Source: NASAEach of us is engaged in a very personal spiritual journey as we search for truth and meaning in our lives. My own parents sent me to Presbyterian Summer Bible School as an elementary school kid, though we did not attend the Presbyterian Church. Years later, when I asked my father why I had been enrolled in a week-long Bible school at a church we had never gone to and which I knew nothing about, he told me that they (my parents) wanted to introduce me to God; figuring the rest out was up to me.
We never did go to that church. Years later, when I again asked my dad about it, he just said “When I go outside, I am in church.” Now that made sense to me. It resonated. I have never felt spiritually moved inside of a building. Impressed, perhaps, by structures like St. Peter’s Basilica, a structure that made me shake my head at what inspired human beings were capable of building. All the same, my spirit wasn’t moved beyond feeling an awe of human engineering and architectural skills when visiting places like that. When I visit the ocean, however, or stare up at the star-encrusted night sky, something moves my spirit. For me, there has always been something about “The Final Frontier” that has stirred my imagination and inspired my sense of wonder. So, would it surprise anyone to reveal that the single strongest spiritual influence in my life for at least 50 years (I’m 57) has been…”Star Trek”? Well, there it is. That show and many of its follow-up incarnations have helped me to live long and prosper. I couldn’t imagine where my life would be, intellectually, morally, or spiritually, without it.
I have an old Polaroid photo of me standing in my childhood home’s living room on a Christmas morning sometime in the early 1970’s. I got a bike that Christmas, and the photo shows me standing there with a huge grin on my face, holding onto the handlebars. What sticks in my head about the photo is not the bike, but the homemade Starfleet delta symbol from Star Trek sewn onto the chest of my pajamas. There’s no way such a thing existed commercially at the time; my mom made that for me, knowing where my real passion was even then. Another photo from that era depicts a small-scale birthday party gathering in my kitchen with just my three cousins and me–and the Starship Enterprise–shaped birthday cake my mom made. Even at only seven or eight years old, the world of “Star Trek” was my world too.
Then there is the school photo from the first or second grade with me wearing the Starfleet delta on a blue t-shirt, all the while arguing with my elementary school friends that the show was indeed entitled “Star Trek” not “Star Track” as they insisted. What the heck did “Star Track” mean? I’ll admit at the time I didn’t know what the word “trek” actually meant either, but I knew for a fact that, whatever it meant, that “TREK” was the word in the title.
My room was adorned with plastic ATM model kits: the Galileo shuttlecraft, the Klingon Battle Cruiser, the Romulan Bird-of-Prey, the three-part phaser, communicator, and tricorder model kit, and of course, the Starship Enterprise herself (I never could get the support struts for her engines to hold them up at the correct angle; I insist that was a design flaw). To put it mildly, I was all in on the Star Trek universe.
Syndicated reruns of the original series, which was canceled the year I was born (1969) sustained my imagination for years, stimulating endless reenactments and original adventures I conjured for the Enterprise and her crew. Then came the movies, beginning with “Star Trek: The Motion Picture” in 1979 and concluding (for the original series cast anyway) in 1991 with “Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country.” A few years before that, in 1987 when I was a freshman in college, “Star Trek: The Next Generation” premiered, lasting seven seasons, inspiring three more shows (Deep Space Nine, Voyager, and Enterprise) and four more feature films. What other IP or television franchise could claim the following numbers: 968 hour long television episodes, 14 full length feature films, over 850 officially licensed novels, 700 comic books, hundreds of fan clubs, and multiple yearly fan conventions and cruises all over the globe? “Star Trek” has been around for 60 years in one form or another, and it has deeply influenced all 57 years of my life. It was always there for me in one iteration or another, and remains one of the most profound intellectual and spiritual influences/inspirations I have ever known.
Many will scoff. What possible comparison could a science-fiction franchise have to more time and history-honored spiritual traditions that span the globe with billions of adherents? “Star Trek” isn’t a religion, and no, it hasn’t been around for thousands of years, shaping human history along the way. At the same time, there are valid comparisons that can be made: “Star Trek,” like most spiritual traditions, has a body of stories that provide inspiration and moral lessons; it offers hope and a positive vision of the future; it brings joy; it inspires. It too has changed lives. There are countless examples of people who entered their career fields due to the inspiration “Star Trek” instilled in them. There are those who even credit “Star Trek” for saving their lives. Let’s take a look at some of these stories.
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There is Dr. Mae Jemison, the first African American woman in space. She would watch actress Nichelle Nichols portray Nyota Uhura, the Enterprise’s communications officer in the original series, who made her realize that a future in space flight could actually be possible for someone who looked just like her. She would go on to serve as a NASA astronaut, and even cameo as a guest star on “Star Trek: The Next Generation.”
Eileen Collins, a retired NASA astronaut who would serve as the first female pilot and commander of a space shuttle in history, confirmed that she always wanted to be Captain Kirk and command a starship. “Star Trek” helped to inspire her career in military aviation and ultimately space exploration.
Nichelle Nichols herself originally planned to leave “Star Trek” after its first season to pursue a career on Broadway. It was Martin Luther King Jr. himself who personally convinced her to stay with the show. King shared with her that “Star Trek” was the only television program that he allowed their children to stay up and watch because it presented a future in which Black individuals were viewed as equals and competent professionals. He assured her that her role was vital to the civil rights movement, convincing her to stay on the show.
Martin Cooper, the inventor of the first handheld mobile phone, openly stated that the inspiration for his invention came directly from watching Captain Kirk flip open his communicator and say “Kirk to Enterprise. Come in, Enterprise.” He was motivated to prove that portable cellular communication was indeed a possibility. Today we all carry “communicators” in our pockets and think nothing of it. In the 1970’s, such a concept belonged exclusively in the realm of science fiction–and the creativity of Martin Cooper.
Steve Wozniak, computer engineer and co-founder of Apple Inc., credited watching “Star Trek” and attending fan conventions as the catalyst for his ambitions related to the development of technology. “Star Trek’s” depiction of how technology and human potential could work together directly inspired his involvement in the computing industry, helping to make ubiquitous computer use a reality.
Those are just a few examples of how “Star Trek” has influenced people who went on to make history, but you don’t have to be an astronaut or computer genius to be inspired by the vision of the future Gene Roddenberry, “Star Trek’s” creator, introduced to us back in 1967. There are countless stories of how the show has impacted the lives of ordinary people everywhere, and I can speak to the many ways in which “Star Trek” can inspire people. So…let’s boldly go.
First, human beings are simply wired for story, and “Star Trek” has had some master storytellers craft its episodes over the years. The stories, though set in a distant future filled with alien life forms and fantastical planets, are fundamentally about us. They resonate with us on deep levels and help guide us through trying times, functioning much as many ancient world mythologies did. The characters in “Star Trek” are at times confronted with moral quandaries that make us wonder what we would do in similar situations. Though they are not in any way depicted as perfect people, they do always strive to adhere to a high moral standard. To quote Captain Picard from “Star Trek: The Next Generation”: “The first duty of every Starfleet officer is to the truth, whether it’s scientific truth or historical truth or personal truth! It is the guiding principle on which Starfleet is based. And if you can’t find it within yourself to stand up and tell the truth about what happened, you don’t deserve to wear that uniform!” (“The First Duty”). Captain Picard goes on, in a completely different context, to emphasize the fundamental right of freedom of expression: “With the first link, the chain is forged. The first speech censured, the first thought forbidden, the first freedom denied, chains us all irrevocably.” (“The Drumhead”). Freedom, truth, self-determination–all Starfleet values that mirror modern human aspirations across the world. The stories of “Star Trek” have those values as their throughlines, throwing characters into situations where their values are tested by adversaries from without or by their own inner conflicts as they struggle with the same kinds of issues, albeit in a science fiction context, that humans today must face. Stories are what all great spiritual traditions rely on, whether they be found in The Poetic Edda, The Koran, The Bible, or The Odyssey, and they show us how to act and treat one another when facing adversity.
Secondly, “Star Trek” offers a sense of hope and optimism for the future. Captain Picard, of course, provides our first example: “The economics of the future are somewhat different. You see, money doesn’t exist in the twenty-fourth century. The acquisition of wealth is no longer the driving force in our lives. We work to better ourselves and the rest of humanity.” (“Star Trek: First Contact”). In the “Star Trek” universe, money and its accumulation no longer matter; enriching and improving life has transcended material wealth as the primary aspiration. Disease, war, poverty–all of humankind’s age-old scourges have been eliminated as the human race has allied itself with other advanced civilizations across the galaxy. Perhaps this philosophy of hope is best expressed by the creator of “Star Trek” himself: “The human race is a remarkable creature, one with great potential, and I hope that Star Trek has helped to show us what we can be if we believe in ourselves and our abilities” (Gene Roddenberry). If we can set aside our petty grievances and jealousies and truly work together to achieve greatness, there is no telling how far we can go. The world today is facing some enormous challenges, some of which constitute existential threats to civilization itself. In the history of the “Star Trek” universe, mankind suffered through a planetary conflict against genetically-engineered super humans, a limited nuclear war–and then first contact with an alien race occurred, changing everything. Let’s hope we can reach down and tap into our inner potentials to save ourselves from catastrophe–using “Star Trek” as an inspiration!
Next, we have the need for role models. Hopefully, everyone has someone in their life that can serve as a direct and living role model for them, but if not, we can turn to literary or fictional characters to fulfill that role. There are several characters from “Star Trek” that have served in that capacity for me, each representing a different set of qualities I admire and would like to emulate in my daily life. The strongest among these, for me, is a character mentioned earlier: Jean-Luc Picard, the captain of the Enterprise from “Star Trek: The Next Generation.” Excellently portrayed by the Royal Shakespeare Company veteran actor Patrick Stewart, Jean-Luc Picard is everything I try to be on a daily basis, particularly as an English teacher. He is literary, philosophical, experienced, and exudes a quiet but firm command of every room he enters. He is never at a loss for what to say or do in any given situation, and is always ready to offer words of wisdom when needed. I find him to be the best of the captains (a sure topic of debate among fellow Trekkers), as he personifies the qualities I myself most admire.
Now, that is not to say I lack deep admiration for Captain Kirk from the original series. He was the captain I grew up with, after all. He just had a different style. I deeply enjoyed the documentary entitled “The Captains,” a 2011 documentary, available on You Tube, that William Shatner himself hosted. Shatner sat down for an interview with every actor who had portrayed a captain on a major “Star Trek” series or film. To see Shatner sit across from Patrick Stewart in Stewart’s cozy home in England discussing how each of them had approached the role of captain of the Enterprise and how it impacted their lives was pure fan joy.
The one time the two characters actually met on film was in “Star Trek: Generations.” I keep a video clip from this film bookmarked so that I can rewatch it whenever I am feeling professionally exhausted from the work I do each day:
- Kirk: Captain of the Enterprise, huh?
- Picard: That’s right.
- Kirk: Close to retirement?
- Picard: I’m not planning on it.
- Kirk: Well let me tell you something. Don’t! Don’t let them promote you. Don’t let them transfer you. Don’t let them do anything that takes you off the bridge of that ship, because while you’re there… you can make a difference.
- Picard: Come back with me. Help me stop Soran. Help make a difference again!
(Star Trek: Generations)
Whenever anyone I work with says that they are about to retire, I have mixed emotions. I am happy for them as they ready themselves to move on to a new chapter of their lives, but I also can’t help feeling that they will no longer be able to make a difference in the lives of their students. I don’t want to retire or be promoted or transferred either. While I am in the classroom, I too can make a difference. Each day as I look into the bathroom mirror before the day begins, I whisper “Make a difference again,” which sets the tone for the day to come. The two captains and their conversation help remind me of my “first duty” every day.
Our spiritual lives are profoundly unique. We each find joy, meaning, and fulfillment in a myriad of ways. For me, reflecting on meaningful, thought-provoking stories set in a universe of fascinating possibility that gives me hope for the future of humankind provides a daily meditation that helps get me through the most challenging of days. I sincerely hope that each of you also has something that stirs in you that same level of joy and fascination to which you can turn when the inevitable trials of life come knocking. “Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a great battle” Ian Maclaren once said. I hope that you have something, and someone, to help you engage in that battle. I promise you, if you just give “Star Trek” a chance, it just might help carry you through the battle too.
Hailing frequencies closed.
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