Science Fiction · ThoughtfulIn 2049, a Jesuit biologist joins a team judging whether the planet Lithia can be opened to human contact
A Case of Conscience
by James Blish
A priest on an alien world that has morality without religion
The story first appeared as a novella-length short novel in the September 1953 issue of If, and the expanded full-length novel was published in 1958. In 2049, a four-man scientific team travels to the planet Lithia to decide whether it can be opened to human contact. The Lithians appear to have a society without religion but with an innate sense of morality, which conflicts with Catholic teaching. Father Ramon Ruiz-Sanchez is a Jesuit biologist and the team doctor; the team also includes Michelis, Agronski and Cleaver.
More about this book
Who
Father Ramon Ruiz-Sanchez, Michelis, Agronski, Cleaver and the Lithians Chtexa and Egtverchi.
World
The planet Lithia in 2049, as seen by a four-man scientific team.
What makes it different
It is the first part of Blish's After Such Knowledge trilogy. In a foreword Blish wrote that he set out to write about "not a body of faith, but a man." The short novel also won a Retro Hugo, in 2004.
Feel
Serious and searching.
Page count and cover shown for: Selected edition
Further reading
- A Case of ConscienceWikipedia