{"id":33684,"date":"2016-02-16T12:40:40","date_gmt":"2016-02-16T17:40:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/admin.patheos.com\/blogs\/exploringourmatrix\/?p=33684"},"modified":"2016-02-16T12:40:40","modified_gmt":"2016-02-16T17:40:40","slug":"x-files-10-5-babylon","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/2016\/02\/x-files-10-5-babylon.html","title":{"rendered":"X-Files 10.5 – Babylon"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

No need to justify discussing this episode of the X-Files in relation to religion \u2013 the episode begins with a Muslim man at prayer.\u00a0The same man goes to pick up another Arabic-speaking friend, and then they go to an art gallery called Ziggurat, where there\u00a0is a depiction of the prophet Muhammad. They blow it up.<\/p>\n

Then we see Mulder talk with Scully about \u201cear-witnesses\u201d who heard trumpets that seemed to come from nowhere. Mulder\u00a0calls the book \u201cRevelations\u201d with an s at the end, and refers to God \u201cblowing his own trumpet.\u201d Scully asks, \u201cSince when do you believe in God, Mulder?\u201d Mulder\u00a0denies that he does.<\/p>\n

Two FBI investigators, Miller and Einstein, come to talk to them \u2013 are these going to be the new faces of a new X-Files series or spin-off?<\/p>\n

Mulder talks with Einstein about magic mushrooms, which he later takes. Scully talks with Miller about the use of an electroencephalogram. Both of these approaches are attempts\u00a0to interrogate\u00a0one of the bombers who survived, barely alive. Mulder has what he considers a drug-induced vision that includes the Lone Gunmen, the cigarette-smoking man, and the terrorist on a boat being held by a woman in a pieta pose. It turns out that what he took was a placebo. But the man\u2019s mother comes to the hospital, and she was the one he saw in the vision.\u00a0In his vision, Mulder heard the man, Shiraz, whisper to him in Arabic. He said \u201cBabel al funduq\u201d \u2013 \u201cBabylon, the Hotel.\u201d Mulder didn\u2019t understand the words, but agent Miller knows Arabic and they are able to apprehend the terrorist cell there as a result.<\/p>\n

Throughout the episode, set for the most part in Texas, there is discussion of Islam, terrorism, extremism, hopes for rewards in the afterlife, and other such topics. There is also discussion of acceptance of refugees\u00a0and conspiracy theories. And\u00a0there are also other kinds of\u00a0religious symbolism \u2013 the title of the episode, Babylon, connects not just with the hotel but also with the\u00a0name of the art gallery, Ziggurat, both of which connect to\u00a0the Tower of Babel story and the confusion of languages that is a major part of the episode as well.<\/p>\n

Agent Einstein quotes her distant relative, Albert Einstein, who said, \u201cThe most beautiful thing that we can experience is the mysterious.\u00a0It is the source of all true art and science.\u201d Mulder and Scully talk about their experiences, having witnessed unconditional love and hate. At the end of the episode, Mulder and Scully talk about the angry God of the Bible as well as of radical Islam. He makes a comparison with his own experience \u2013 swallowing a pill (metaphorically as well as literally) and the power of suggestion.<\/span>\u00a0Scully suggests that maybe finding a common language again is God\u2019s will. Mulder asks how we can know, when God is absent from the stage. Scully suggests that maybe we should open our hearts and truly listen. Then Mulder thinks he hears a trumpet.<\/p>\n

Another great episode, and one that not only has religious themes at its core, but also hints that the plan may be to give a new life to the X-Files franchise with new characters. What do you think?<\/p>\n

\"The-X-Files<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

No need to justify discussing this episode of the X-Files in relation to religion \u2013 the episode begins with a Muslim man at prayer.\u00a0The same man goes to pick up another Arabic-speaking friend, and then they go to an art gallery called Ziggurat, where there\u00a0is a depiction of the prophet Muhammad. They blow it up. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":136,"featured_media":33685,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[139,149,107],"tags":[741,938,941,1140,1297,2408,2991,3558,5414,5416,12389,12393,12792,13929,14066],"class_list":["post-33684","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-fundamentalism-religion","category-islam-religion","category-x-files-science-fiction","tag-arabic","tag-babel","tag-babylon","tag-bible","tag-bombing","tag-dana-scully","tag-einstein","tag-fox-mulder","tag-islam-religion","tag-islamic","tag-terrorism","tag-terrorists","tag-tower","tag-x-files","tag-ziggurat"],"yoast_head":"\nX-Files 10.5 - Babylon<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"No need to justify discussing this episode of the X-Files in relation to religion - the episode begins with a Muslim man at prayer.\u00a0The same man goes to\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/2016\/02\/x-files-10-5-babylon.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"X-Files 10.5 - Babylon\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"No need to justify discussing this episode of the X-Files in relation to religion - the episode begins with a Muslim man at prayer.\u00a0The same man goes to\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/2016\/02\/x-files-10-5-babylon.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Religion Prof: The Blog of James F. 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