fandomhigh | Comparative Religions, Monday, Period 3, Class #1

As the students entered, Vala was perched on top of her desk (yes, she had a desk!), and looking over her notes and class lists. Once they were seated, she began,

"Good morning, everyone. For those of you who don't know me already, my name is Vala Mal Doran. Please feel free to call me Vala, or Professor Mal Doran if that makes you more comfortable."

"This class is about different religions," she explained, "and the first half of the class will focus on strictly the Earthen religions. The second half will be broader in scope and expand our study to inter-planetary religions. The only thing I ask--in light of the fact that more bloody wars have been fought over religion than anything else in human history--is that you have respect for the teachings of the guest speakers, and of the other students in this class. You don't have to agree, and I don't expect you to convert to their religion, but I won't tolerate any insults or baiting on the subject. With any luck, we'll all come out of this with a better understanding of religion."

"Today's class will be relatively simple--introduce yourselves, explain why you're taking this class, and explain your religion in broad language, if you have one. If you don't, explain why you don't. There are no penalties for not having one, by the way."

"As far as food and drink are concerned," she added, "I don't make enough money to feed you all every week, but you should bring whatever you want that you've provided for yourself."

She pointed to a student at random. "Okay, go ahead."

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Vala walked over and lowered her voice, "Is everything all right?"

There was a slight roll of Adah's eyes; for once, it was an expression she'd fully intended. With the same sort of insistence, she waved the paper at the teacher again, encouraging to take it and starting to feel a little panicked again. She couldn't insist like this for much longer before her body would start straining over it, and then she might have to talk. She really, really wasn't ready to talk yet. She shook the paper more, willing it to be taken, and half expecting an admonishment and a demanded trip to the principle's office. They only took this sort of behavior from Adah so far at Bethlehem, but Bethlehem was a long time ago.

Luckily for Adah, Vala was still relatively new to teaching. Still concerned, she picked up the piece of paper.

On the paper, in handwriting just a little less precise and exact and small as Adah's usual penmanship, Vala would find the words "Adah Price. Aethist. I believe in the religion of science and mathematics" scribbled down.

And she'd also notice her quiet student slumping back hard against her chair, closing her eyes in a wash of almost painful relief. Adah didn't know why it had panicked her so much as it did; hadn't she resolved that if she was going to do this, she was going to have to talk? She just...wasn't as ready as she thought she was, she guessed. Maybe it was just all the writing everyone'd been allowing her to do lately, or the fact that no one, with one exception, made her feel like she had to talk.

Vala wondered if Adah was mute, or just painfully shy. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Miss Price, and I can't wait for your viewpoint as we go through these religions. Science and mathematics are definitely appealling, aren't they?"

Another piece of paper waved Vala's way a moment later.

"I find that logic, as a whole, is more appealing of a place to put my faith. I walk already on too shaky of ground to put my foot on something even remotely intangible."

Vala resisted the urge (at least so far) to write back. "Isn't belief in math and science just as amorphous, once you get into higher physics and mathematical theory?"

That was a good question. It made Adah grin a little; it helped that she had a pretty good feeling that such a grin would not have her smacked with the Verse, that would leave her hand cramped for three days, painful and cradled against her chest. The sudden realization of debate without punishment excited Adah and drove her pencil.

"The higher plane," she wrote quickly, eagerly, "is usually the problem, isn't it? We are always looking up, up, up to where we cannot see, and forget that perfectly acceptable rules and laws exist down low where we stand."

"Aren't they the same rules, though? Just...smaller?"

Adah's head tilted. "Physics, maybe," she allowed herself to give up, which was strange, she wasn't used to having to do that. "But I mean more along the lines of biology. Microbiology, macrobiology, viruses and nervous systems and things that make us tick. Or not tick."

"What part of biology gives you the greatest sense of solidity?"

Sure, that could be a word.

"Parasitic relationships," Adah wrote after another moment of thought. "They're everywhere. Too hard to ignore. In us, outside of us, including us, excluding us. And, if you don't mind me saying so, ma'am, very appropriate to many religions."

Vala may have paled slightly at the mention of parasites, especially in connection with religions. "Yes, I think that there's an argument to be made that certain religions were dependent on that relationship to prosper, but we'll get into that a bit more next week."

Adah grinned a bit, and waved one last piece of paper her way.

"I look forward to it."

Comparative Religions, Monday, Period 3, Class #1

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