The Novelette, “A Higher Calling,” found on the Fiction menu, was the result of thinking about the role of STEM and arts education as well as pondering the purpose of religion. The story began as two short story ideas that I eventually realized could be combined to set up a larger scenario. One involved the failure of STEM-thinkers to perform an activity that turned out to be more of an art than anyone anticipated. The other asked questions about faith, destiny, and what might matter beyond professed religious beliefs.
There is also a big, “what if?” question. What if alien visitors are not as portrayed in so many movies – malevolent, ruthless conquerors – but instead operated by a higher moral code? What might be their reaction to discovering they might endanger this planet, or any planet, where their presence could put people’s lives at risk? Is it necessarily true that a being from another world, one who possessed the technology to travel many light-years to get here, wouldn’t hesitate to take whatever they could, to conquer, or colonize? Or would a species with that kind of knowledge also possess the ability to control their base impulses and not behave as we humans have so many times in our history?
It seems to me any species able to achieve the level of technological advancement necessary to cross interstellar space must also work out ways to act based on principles other than “me first,” “my country first,” or even “my world first.” In my way of thinking, these notions are not principles. Likewise, greatness, ambition, and loyalty are not principles. Jesus asked, “For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, but loses his soul?” Now, this question points towards a principle: “In everything, then, do to others as you would have them do to you. For this is the essence of the Law and the Prophets.” If a person claims to be following “a higher calling,” he or she must follow “the golden rule” at very least. Every time we have seen individuals or countries on this planet claim to act based on principles, but instead act on greed, profit, or other forms of one-sided gain, we see advancements in technology wasted on conflict, war, and human suffering.
My dad once told me have advanced greatly in terms of inventions and technology but have made little or no moral advancement. We now have nuclear missiles but still have the moral sense of people who once used clubs and spears. If we want to be able to use our technology to travel to the stars, it seems to me we must advance past our current self-centered, adversarial assumptions. We must find ways to make our whole world great, not just our countries, or our political parties, or our tribes. We must find, or rather practice moral principles, even if doing so comes with some personal cost. We may not get everything we want, when we want it, the way we want it, but at least we will get out of the business of preventing the next person from getting what they need. If we can treat people who are not like us the way we would like to be treated, regardless of our own petty prejudices, desires, or loyalties, perhaps we will live long enough as a species to use our spirit of curiosity and invention to achieve something more than “winning” whatever we selfishly think we “deserve.”
MurrayWorks 