Jordan Interview

David Stockhoff · 22 Oct 2011, 21:23 · from 2011-October.txt.gz

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From: dstockhoff at verizon.net (David Stockhoff)
Date: Sat, 22 Oct 2011 17:23:16 -0400
Subject: (urth) Jordan Interview
In-Reply-To: <CAJ8=rtitjBBB-QW6Qqsnpna3d677yXQPxPWBDt6=ux-b3muhNg at mail.gmail.com>
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	<CAJ8=rtitjBBB-QW6Qqsnpna3d677yXQPxPWBDt6=ux-b3muhNg at mail.gmail.com>
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On 10/22/2011 4:25 PM, Dan'l Danehy-Oakes wrote:
> Lee Berman wrote:
>
>>> mark me down in the camp who thinks Christ has not
>>> appeared in the Briah universe.
>> Dan'l Danehy-Oakes: Then how explain the references to the Theoanthropos?
>> Without meaning to slight Christianity, the theoanthropic concept did not
>> originate with Jesus Christ. It can be found in pre-Christian religions
>> stretching from Hinduism to Greek and Egyptian mythology.
> Agreed. But when you're dealing with a writer who insists that there
> is only one Theoanthropos in the history of all universes, that
> becomes semirelevant at best.

Are you sure? Given Wolfe's view of how myths work / myth works?

>
>> I really think Agia's use of "the name of the Theanthropos" as an expletive
>> to Severian is a purposefully ironic joke by Wolfe. I think the Theanthropos
>> refers to The Conciliator for those in the commonwealth.
> Can you point to any evidence for this?

This seems impossible to prove. But given that the term predated Christ, 
what else could it indicate but a non-Christ?

>
>> This I agree with. But I don't think we see any reference to this guy until
>> Silk mentions his dream of a guy welcomed with palm fronds, etc. In my view,
>> Wolfe mentions this Jesus not-Christ, and roods and gammadions and the distorted
>> Roman Catholic Church in Viron as a way of saying that many Christians get too
>> involved and attached to the trappings and rituals of their religion and forget
>> that the essence of their faith (missing in Urth/Whorl) is Christ.
> I agree with you here, and pretty much the rest of your post.
>

I think it's a pretty big deal that at least three of us here agree that 
Wolfe offers a critique of his adopted religion in the Briah series. 
I've argued for it before: that I would extend the critique to Severian 
himself in terms of certain darker episodes in the Catholic Church's 
past. Just sayin'.

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