Standard Wolfean Riddle

António Pedro Marques · 16 Aug 2010, 13:18 · from 2010-August.txt.gz

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From: entonio at gmail.com (=?UTF-8?B?QW50w7NuaW8gUGVkcm8gTWFycXVlcw==?=)
Date: Mon, 16 Aug 2010 14:18:24 +0100
Subject: (urth) Standard Wolfean Riddle
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David Stockhoff wrote (16-08-2010 12:49):
> This shift in focus to the universes might be a way out from a sticky
> problem, but you seem to propose that each Jesus is identically
> Jesus-like but not necessarily identically effective. Why are some
> Jesuses less effective? Why do some fail utterly?

It's not a problem with the Jesuses, it's the world that doesn't live up to 
them. The idea is that ultimately there is free will, and God's creatures 
may will themselves into damnation. It's not like we're not going down that 
route ourselves. At a certain point, the responsibility of salvation becomes 
the creatures'.

> Do some die before the
> age of 5? Are some run over by a chariot while chasing a ball into the
> street?

No, because then their mission wouldn't be accomplished.

> Also, if each universe gets one Jesus, and the Conciliator is not one of
> them (but rather an attempt to fill a void where there should be one),

No, I'm saying that "parallel worlds different in detail" + "conciliator" = 
red herring suggesting "conciliator is the local Jesus", but in my view not 
even a very convincing one. I find it obviously red and herring-like. Of 
course, Wolfe could give an interview tomorrow and say things that show I'm 
completely wrong.

> this brings back the question of whether there was one in Severian's
> Briah, does it not?

I said there was one. The church he built disappeared from sight. Whether 
that means that it went underground or is trapped in some unknown corner of 
Urth is open to question. The issue is that Jesus promised the church he was 
founding would not fail, so it just can't be the cult of the Conciliator. It 
is open to debate what 'not fail' means here, but it certainly isn't a 
guarantee of immediate permanent worlwide triumph.

I can't see why God would send a 'better' Jesus to a given universe. Also, I 
think Severian comes too late in History to be the local Jesus.

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