Father Inire Theory cont.

Lee Berman · 10 Dec 2010, 21:04 · from 2010-December.txt.gz

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From: severiansola at hotmail.com (Lee Berman)
Date: Fri, 10 Dec 2010 16:04:46 -0500
Subject: (urth) Father Inire Theory cont.
Message-ID: <SNT123-W39F07BCA558003A074CC3ACF2F0 at phx.gbl>

>David Stockhoff- Lee, I'm not trying to be unfair. The Devil runs a very different kind 
>of game than does Lucifer. They are not the same. If you say Devil, I read Devil. If you 
>say Lucifer, I read Lucifer. It helps to say what you mean as much as you can---it would 
>save us all a lot of words. :)

This sounds a bit like the "Dionysus cannot have anything to do with lianas unless they have
grapes on them, even if Gene Wolfe calls them vines" cavil. I am not an expert demonologist 
and perhaps you are. In my experience most people find a connection between Lucifer and the Devil. 
If they are completely different, unrelated entities to you I think I am too uneducated to discuss
the issue. I just get the feeling Gene Wolfe is writing for people who think Lucifer and the Devil
are connected but what do I know.

I've mentioned there is a BotNS character who seems unequivocally good but with a Lucifer-association.
Maybe Father Inire is best described as "demi-urge". Maybe Hethor is best described as "devil". I don't
know. They all seem like aspect of the same basic principle to me, but what do I know. Not much I guess.

>Yes, if Urth is Abaddon...

No, that wasn't what I was saying. I was saying that if Abaddon is hell from a Briah point of view then
perhaps Briah (and Urth) is hell from our point of view from a higher universe with a true Christ-figure.

>No, I don't think Hethor needs to be Inire. Only Inire needs to be Inire.

Does that mean only Tzadkiel needs to be Tzadkiel? Isn't it possible other entities in the story can 
perform his/her tricks to a lesser degree? Tzadkiel's largest form (that we see) is described as big
as an island. Erebus and Abaia are a bit smaller, being only the size of mountains.

>How can the Devil (Serpent, Lucifer) serve anyone but himself?

How can multiple copies of Tzadkiel all serve Tzadkiel? How can multiple copies of Great God Pan
all serve Pan? How can both The Commonwealth and the Ascian lands be controlled by anti-human, demonic
forces? I hope this illustrates how all Urth could be considered a demi-urgic creation of the being we
usually call Father Inire. Whispers in the ears of all leaders.

Can a portion of a larger being rebel against its larger self? Perhaps we see a tiny example of that
for Tzadkiel? It might not be true. That portion of Tzadkiel is still pretty and still
serves Tzadkiel I think. Just an angelic ruse to let us/Severian know smaller parts can rebel against the 
larger parental unit.

I think (in BotNS) when a portion of Tzadkiel truly falls and becomes separated from angelic grace (and 
leaves the ship for good) we can tell because it becomes ugly. Hence Hethor, Inire and The Cumaean.

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