“If This Goes On—”
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“If This Goes On—” is a science fiction short novel by Robert A. Heinlein, published in 1953 as part of the book Revolt in 2100. One of his Future History series, it recounts a future theocratic American society, ruled by the latest in a series of “Prophets”. The First Prophet was Nehemiah Scudder, a backwoods preacher turned President (elected in 2012), then dictator (no elections were held in 2016 or later). Scudder was previously mentioned in passing in stories such as Logic of Empire and later on in Heinlein’s final novel To Sail Beyond the Sunset.
Not surprisingly for Heinlein, the novel deals with a rebellion, one organized by The Cabal, a secret society led by Freemasons, that leads to the eventual re-establishment of democracy. One of the major strengths of the novel is that it is less about action-adventure and derring-do, and more about how the rebellion is organized—Heinlein makes military organization and logistics as fascinating as a swordfight or space battle.
This story includes the idea that in modern American democracy the hypothetical government endorsement of a particular religion is prevented by the fact that while most religions believe themselves to be the “One True Faith” which everyone should be required to believe, each has to settle on the compromise of religious freedom to prevent somebody else’s “One True Faith” from being forced on themselves. If one religion were able to get a voting majority, they very well might simply take over. This concept is also discussed briefly in Stranger in a Strange Land from the other perspective (before any such takeover).
References
- {{cite journal
| author=Bill Patterson | url = http://www.heinleinsociety.org/rah/works/novels/ifthisogoeson.html | title = A Study of ‘If This Goes On—’ | journal=The Heinlein Journal | issue=7 | year=2000 }}