The eighth and final liturgical season, Viventibus Galaxia (Living Galaxies), stretches from mid-fall to the Winter Solstice. It covers the far future. When life spreads from star to star. Humanity may be left behind. Humanity may adaptively radiate. Life may become such a powerful force that it controls the paths of stars, slingshotting them around each other so that entire systems are thrust toward other galaxies. Life may become so powerful that it shapes the destiny of the universe. The four great advances of this time are interstellar life, the fate of humanity, intergalactic life and life as a shaper of the fate of the universe.
Here is [[Eric]]'s draft of the opening ceremony for the [[Weekly Service Calls]] during this season:
:Nothing ... still ... Nothing.
:And then ... <gasp> ... Something!
:Space! Time! Energy! Matter! Gravity!
:Galaxies coalesce.
:In one celestial nursery, Sol is born.
:Sol's story has begun .. but it is only the beginning.
:The story continues with life, starfaring life,
:Green fire spreading and flowering through the galaxy!
:Next comes the chapter about the fate of humanity, the first spacefaring species.
:Does it pass into the fossil record?
:Or does it adaptively radiate into an unimaginable diversity of forms?
:Then will come intergalactic life!
:The power to control star systems.
:The power to sail them across the dark intergalactic seas!
:Finally, life may come to control the fate of all!
:Turning dark energy into matter,
:Freely available to all living creatures.
:Life. Humanity. Living galaxies. The fate of the universe.
:From nothing ... Something else!
=== Discussion ===
[[Ben]]: Just one bit of ambivalence about the eighth season: Is the idea of moving a star system across intergalactic space really in accord with our values, or is it more in the direction of the techno-libertarian “we will be gods” mindset? I admit that talking more generically about “travel between galaxies” wouldn’t evoke nearly the same sense of wonder. Speaking of sense of wonder, this season may need a bit of language about just how vast the empty gulfs between stars and galaxies are, to give a sense of both the grandeur of the cosmos and the mighty challenges to be overcome.