Click here to get this post in PDF

Is Idolatry Possible on Pandora?

The corporate CEO in charge of the process of mining Pandora makes the most biblical statement about Pandoran religion when the Dr. is trying to tell him about the scientific and sacred nature of the tree system on Pandora. “You throw a stick in the air around here, and it’s gonna land on some sacred fern, for Christ’s sake.” Interesting combination of words in that sentence. And to make sure the modern, 21st century American, who worships science is brought in intellectually (the viewer is already emotionally on the side of the “real” people of Pandora and not the capitalist pigs the humans are shown as) to side with the Pandorans, the Dr. says, “I’m not talking about some kind of pagan voodoo here, I’m talking about something real, something measurable in the biology of the forest. . . . What we think we know is there is some electro-chemical communication between the roots of the trees, like the synapses between neurons. Each tree has 10 to the 4th connections to the trees around it, and there are 10 to the 12th trees on Pandora. . . . It’s more connections than the human brain. Get it? It’s a network, it’s a global network, and the Navi [Pandorans] can access it. They can upload and download data, memories at sites like the one you just destroyed.” The CEO’s response, while laughing: “What the hell have you people been smoking out there? They’re just g__ d____ trees.”

Of course, no tree is just a tree; it’s a creation of God. But you don’t need a global neural network of data that can be downloaded to respect them. The earth God created allows for use of trees and condemns their worship. Not the god of Pandora; whoever created Pandora wants people to worship trees, communicate with the dead (prohibited in the bible), and not cut them down. Stay primitive. On earth, staying primitive means not participating in the world of modern technology, the world of computers. On Pandora, staying primitive is the way to technological advance. The trees and the Pandorans’ tails are the computers and cable connections. Everything is upside down. Stay primitive to communicate with the planet, the trees, and the past. No need for computers. Brilliant. Cameron has created a world in which the laws of earth don’t apply and for which the best and brightest can fight for keeping the native in his place, so that technology and knowledge on that planet can advance. The modern liberal can argue for keeping the native below him and still claim to want progress to not be impeded.