WI: Gene Roddenberry Forms a Cult

Roddenberry was a contemporary of L. Ron Hubbard, and said that if he wanted to, he could have founded a religion too instead of doing Star Trek. What if he did? In simplest terms, what if he took Star Trek canon of the OTL and used it instead as the founding canon for a Roddenbible? Roddenberry himself could have gone off the deep end. He had trouble with addictions to various things, and started to buy into his own hype after a while, which is what beset Hubbard. It is not hard to see this California failed television writer turned cult hippie guru turned widespread religion.
 
Roddenberry was a contemporary of L. Ron Hubbard, and said that if he wanted to, he could have founded a religion too instead of doing Star Trek. What if he did? In simplest terms, what if he took Star Trek canon of the OTL and used it instead as the founding canon for a Roddenbible?

I bet he would be hated in the same way LRH is."Trekkism" is a really nasty thing, probably revolving around the principle of, "Give Teacher Roddenberry money to build a warp drive so we can achieve eternal bliss!"
 
I've actually thought more then once upon understanding how much Gene's increasingly crackpot ideas -grieving the dead is wrong, the PD turning from safe guard against exploiting underdeveloped worlds to Social Darwinist creed- played in TNG's early seasons that there's probably a universe where he founded a crazy cult and L. Ron Hubbard created a respect Sci-Fi series.
 
So more like the Raelians and their attempts at science (Clonaid)? Except Trekkism wants to build a warp drive instead so we can go out and meet aliens and convert the universe to Trekkism and Roddenberry's ideals?

It might not be as wealthy as Scientology unless he's able to get a money-making scheme as convincing as Dianetics and other low-level Scientology practices, with a hit book to match. That also restricts its potential growth and spread to some degree.

However, I await the appearance of Star Trek on the big screen starring John Travolta.
 
So more like the Raelians and their attempts at science (Clonaid)? Except Trekkism wants to build a warp drive instead so we can go out and meet aliens and convert the universe to Trekkism and Roddenberry's ideals?

It might not be as wealthy as Scientology unless he's able to get a money-making scheme as convincing as Dianetics and other low-level Scientology practices, with a hit book to match. That also restricts its potential growth and spread to some degree.

However, I await the appearance of Star Trek on the big screen starring John Travolta.

In Scientology fashion, they could keep the "real truth" about Captain Kirk and space aliens for a higher promotional level (and more money invested). The lower levels could just be taught his philosophy about humanism and intergalactic brotherhood and how he's the Great Bird of the Galaxy. Then you get sucked in enough, and learn that hundreds of years ago, the United Federation of Planets roamed the galaxy, and however else you adopt Star Trek to a religion. Maybe Earth was devastated by an ancient nuclear war that set it back to square one or something?
 
Yeah, no Klingons/Vulcans/whoever until you get to the higher levels. But might the goal be that it is mankind's destiny to help form the United Federation of Planets instead, to stop all the intergalactic wars/whatever?

I think I'm thinking of this in too much of a "Star Trek as we know it" context. The Star Trek: First Contact plot element of "Vulcans were lured to Earth by our warp drive" would be perfect to explain why we need to build one, but it's a shame that Roddenberry had no involvement in that movie (obviously).

Incidentally, I'd feel really bad for Miguel Alcubierre or anyone else who devises something like his theory--he'd get harassed by cultists.
 
Given how many times Star Trek invoked a 'chariots of the gods' theme, I can imagine a Roddencult starting with the premise that Earth's society is the result of a Cold War between Klingons and Vulcans, each of which introduced advanced tech some long time ago while also breeding with earth women. The good people (Trekkies) naturally descend from Vulcans, while those who oppose them (mainstream society) are baseline humans or Klingon-humans. This was revealed to Gene through a mind-meld with a psychic being (may as well check all the Trek boxes here), and thus Gene knows that the Warp Drive is necessary for the reunion of Earth with Vulcan and consequent utopia.

Could be fairly successful--you can take tests to determine your fraction of Vulcan ancestry and learn Vulcan mental techniques to unlock your inner Spock, the proceeds, of course, funding warp drive research.
 
You mean he didn't?:openedeyewink:
Yea., I wonder... Jedi-ism is a recognized.religion in Australia apparently. So what about Vulcanism... I can see lots of people for who Mr. Spock's philosophy would be as good a moral guideline as many a religion, especially if coupled with a Prime Directive... I admit I considered it myself for a while, but that was way back when.I was a geeky freshman who didn't know hoe to talk to girls.
 
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