Unitology

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Church of Unitology

Organizational information
Founder(s)	Michael Altman
Locations	Earth, Mars, Aegis VII, Titan Station and many more population centres
Founding	2215 - Earth^[1]

[Source]

“

Altman Be Praised.^[2]^[3]^[4]

”

Unitology is a religion in the Dead Space universe, officially founded on the discoveries of Michael Altman.^[5]

Unitologists adamantly believe that the human race was created by the intelligent design of a divine alien agency, and will be reunified after death in Heaven through the power of a sacred artifact known as the Marker.^[6]

The promise of the Church of Unitology is one of "transformation and rebirth".^[5] This scriptural message is poetic, elusive and unscientific despite their claimed origins in a secret research project, and embodies the abandonment of reason for the profession of unwavering faith in the promise of the Marker.^[7] Much of the detail about the Church's inner workings remains undisclosed to outsiders and most adherents.^[5]

Michael Altman, known as a "reluctant prophet," was not a believer in Unitology, nor did he found the religion. Michael was the only scientist at the Chicxulub crater who was immune, or possibly had a stronger resistance to the Markers' dead loved ones messages, just like Isaac. He was able to always acknowledge that the hallucinations were not real and was never fully driven to suicide or madness like all the others. Because of his resistance, the people being manipulated by their dead friends and family saw him as the one the Marker speaks to, the prophet. Michael refused to believe in such nonsense, and after repeated attempts to sabotage the project, was murdered. His image was used to posthumously promote the Unitology message until the history books stated that he was indeed the great founder.

Official HistoryEdit

For two hundred years, Unitology has sought the truth. When Michael Altman spread his word, few people believed him. The government tried to discredit him! And when that didn't work, they killed him and said it was an accident! But we also know he was telling the truth! For two centuries, we and our forefathers kept the faith and our belief in his words. Now finally we have proof - that we have been right all along. You've all seen the vidlogs by now, you all know what they found out there. Here on this very planet, we found - Another Marker!

Deakin Abbott^[8]

Public DoctrineEdit

The MarkerEdit

The basis of the religion are the

Markers, artifacts of unknown origin and purpose. Oddly, many scientists, even Altman himself, have little idea of the Marker's true purpose and origin. The meaning of the inscriptions about the Marker had puzzled Unitologists for years. Unitologists believe that the inscriptions on the marker are a message that will reveal the true origin and meaning of human life. They believe the Marker contains a code that will be the key to eternal life and bring about a physically real paradise that will save mankind from its destructive materialistic course.^[5]

SymbolismEdit

Everything about the Church is modeled in the image of the Marker and the symbols adorning it. Intertwining shapes and circles in accord with the Marker and its promise of unity are used to create a rich environment in Unitology worship spaces.

MessageEdit

The Church publicly conveys a positive and appealing message of social harmony and unity, as well as apparent environmentalist concerns as evidenced in their concern over planet-cracking^[9] and the apparent destructive course they believe EarthGov has taken.^[10]

Unitology has great appeal because spirituality and meaning has diminished in many people's lives.^[11] In the manner of a New Age Movement, Unitology provided a simple and holistic message of unity, harmony and fulfillment that was just what many people in their world of increasingly incomprehensible technology were looking for. Due to these factors, Unitology was considered to be the fastest growing religion in history.^[5]

TheologyEdit

Unitologist theology is based on the study and debate of the mysteries of the Black Marker. Titan Station's Church of Unitology was the site of the Annual Unitology Symposium and contained a vast library of Unitology scholarly material.^[12]

Unitologists have never been clear about God. Challus Mercer was known to use the word quite frequently and it can occasionally be seen scrawled on walls by Unitologists in the events of Dead Space. Mercer used the word "God" to refer generally to the elusive power behind the Marker and the profound events he believed to be taking place.^[13] "God" was apparently seen as the alien intelligence or agency that created the Marker and humanity, in Unitology belief, and it was a force that would regather humanity and make it "one" in the process of Convergence.

EschatologyEdit

The Unitologist religion is highly eschatological, based upon their conception of the end of days similar to the apocalypses described in many religions.

Death is central to Unitology. Unitologists believe that all living beings will intertwine in the manner of the two prongs of the Marker, to become one. They call this process Convergence, and believe that it will alleviate all of the destructive materialistic problems of the human race.^[14]

The Unitologists seem to believe that they will be saved and that non-believers will not be saved (unless their bodies come into the possession of the Church). They refer to people who do not accept their end of days as "infidels." Mercer believed that becoming a Necromorph is being saved, and that he had a missionary duty to murder and prepare infidels such as Clarke for infection in order to save them. He believed that infidels simply did not understand, and that he was helping them to do so.^[15]

Convergence is the attainment of spiritual oneness in paradise. Oneness for Unitologists does not mean a usual oneness of God theory (although it can be supposed Unitologists do have such a doctrine), but the coming oneness of humanity: human souls will cease to possess their individuality and all become intertwined as a single entity. Sometimes the word "soul" is substituted for "body" or "flesh",^[16] in what is thought to be a figurative reference.

Famous Mantras and VersesEdit

"Altman be Praised."
"Praise the Great Marker."
"Death is only the Beginning."
"Keep us whole. Unity is Forever."
"There is no Death. Only Rebirth."
"Give unto the Church and the Church will give unto you."
"Embrace the Evolution."
"Take Us. We are Ready."
"The Marker is life everlasting for all of its children."
"Praise Altman, chosen of the Marker, architect of the Church."
"To join is to survive."
"Holy creatures, transform me into your servant, show me the path to enlightenment, as you alter my flesh and free my soul."
"One Mind, One Soul, One Flesh."
"One Purpose, One Mind, One Soul."
"One People, One Mind, One Purpose."
"Unity after death unity forever"

Bibliography of the Church of UnitologyEdit

Teachings of Unitology, attributed to Michael Altman
Tome of Unitology
Death is Only the Beginning
Eternal Life
Hymn Book

PracticeEdit

Preaching and Public ConductEdit

Unitologists are generally very evangelical, and often preach to non-Unitologists in an attempt to convert them to their message. Unitologists are open and unashamed of their beliefs, despite many of the public regarding their religion as bizarre, particularly their belief in an intelligent alien designer of humanity. They publicly wear Marker pendants they buy from the Church, as a social statement that they are proud of their beliefs.

Unitologists are also very devoted to spreading their word through distributing literature in public spaces. EarthGov tried to suppress this on Titan Station by introducing a law that made it necessary for Unitologists to acquire a special permit before distributing literature. The Unitologists rejected this policy and labeled it as oppression. EarthGov was known to address evangelical Unitologists critically in the press, describing them as a threat to public order.^[17]

RitesEdit

"Soul Cleansing"Edit

Little is known about this process other than that it is an initiation ceremony for Unitologists and that it is likely painful and disorienting.^[18]

IndoctrinationEdit

Unitology members are believed to be "indoctrinated" or brainwashed, and the Church does not favor individuals who are strong-willed and critical-minded, usually assessing them to determine this before letting them progress further in the Church.^[19] A great deal of secrecy surrounds the Unitology indoctrination process.

PrayerEdit

Unitologists appear to engage in communal prayer, led by the Church's ranked clergy.

MeditationEdit

Unitologists are known to meditate with their arms locked in a cross with their hands bent inward to give the appearance of the Marker. They possess a number of aids for this purpose, including Marker replicas, candles and mats. Their meditation is characterized as quiet and reverent, as they focus their minds on the teachings of the Church.^[20]

Death RitualEdit

Promotional poster for Unitology within

the crew quarters' canteen, bearing the phrase commonly-recited by members.

This is the most important part of Unitology practice. Death is the most important step for Unitologists, and Unitologists are encouraged to celebrate the death of loved ones and hope to join them, rather than mourn them.

The Unitologists refuse to allow their member's bodies to be buried or cremated, instead choosing to preserve them aboard starships. The reason for this is the belief that a human body must be untouched after death, as it is the "vessel" for the member's convergence. "Convergence" is the belief that upon death, if the human body has been kept intact and the Unitologist has lived an unselfish life, that all the bodies will one day be reborn with ascended spiritual and physical prowess, and will live in unity with his or her other members as a single community. It is heavily encouraged by members that they keep their bodies in the best shape possible upon death.

Despite their supposedly peaceful exterior, The Church is noted for having many cult-like features including its indoctrination practices, its hierarchy and its proven capacity to induce mass suicide. The teachings to embrace death further enhances these.

Hierarchy and Ranking SystemEdit

The Church is said to possess considerable political and economic influence, despite a persistent atmosphere of what they see as persecution by EarthGov; the upper echelons of the Concordance Extraction Corporation are mentioned as being increasingly controlled by Unitologists on several occasions, and it is mentioned that they require members to contribute huge sums of money to the church in order to move up in rank within it. There are two ranks above that of the average follower, and a suspected third. Two of these possible ranks have been confirmed as being "Vested" and "Overseer", the latter being the higher. The speculated third and possibly highest rank is "Enigma". This speculation is based on a video transmission in which the recipient is addressed as "Enigma Lange" after the author addresses himself by inserting his rank within the Church before his last name.

Secrets of the ChurchEdit

Suppressed HistoryEdit

Unknown to the common church member, much of Unitology's history and ideology have been fabricated by its leaders for their own benefit. Michael Altman never truly believed in the promise of the Marker, and was in fact murdered by Craig Markoff, who used his death and several of his broadcasts to establish Unitology as a rising religious movement under his control. Moreover, despite the tensions between the church and the Earth Government, the Unitology founders were really government researchers and staff from the Chicxulub Crater Facility who became psychotic due to prolonged exposure to the Black Marker carrier wave. Their psychosis appears to have led them away from logic and science.

The founders believed the Necromorphs were a defect. The Church retained some live specimens and did not unleash them. However, they believed the reanimation process was evidence the Marker "created life" and could bring eternal life if used correctly.^[1] This irrational anthropocentric conclusion has remained the central promise of Unitology ever since, and they have developed unyielding faith in the Marker.

The Church believed the Marker held the key to the next step in human evolution. The Church believed they were entrusted to ensure this evolution comes to pass. They believed the psychosis caused by the Marker was revelatory and that the horrors of the Marker are merely the result of humans being too weak-minded and materialistic to understand the workings of God (described as an alien intelligence behind the Marker and humanity itself). Unitology theology was written to blind its adherents to any conceivable horror and willfully submit to the power of the Marker even if infection proved to be the only form of eternal life it provided. The Church was founded to prepare humanity for the coming of another Marker that would allow them to bring about the evolution.^[1]

Unitologists short of the Church's highest echelons remain blissfully unaware of their real mission.

The MarkerEdit

It would be 200 years before a colonist would decipher the meaning of the Black Marker: the inscriptions on the rocks surface are the code for the recombinant DNA that transforms human corpses into the terrifying creatures known as Necromorphs. While these revelations are extraordinarily important to show the truth behind the church, both incidents where this critical information was discovered resulted in the virus escaping and the Necromorphs killing everyone.

RebirthEdit

The Unitologists' sole belief is keeping the body intact for death, and in great shape, so that it may be "reborn", along with the other member's bodies, to live as a greater community. The horrific truth behind convergence is that it is not speaking of being reborn into a peaceful spiritual existence, but the physical human body being horrifically twisted into monstrous, hive-minded killing machines known as Necromorphs.

Faith in "Convergence"Edit

The true founders of Unitology were fully aware of the Necromorphs, and believed they were proof of the power of the Marker to bring eternal life. Although they believed Necromorphs were divine instruments, the founders also originally theorized they were defective, produced by the "broken" Black Marker; their founding theory was that either another Marker would be found or a new one would be created and fulfill the promise of Convergence. The Church founders possessed live Necromorph specimens (one was used to kill Altman) but did not release them. Their original intent was indeed to use Markers for eternal life, rather than infection.

However, the more enlightened designs of the founders fell apart sometime and the Necromorphs themselves became the basis of the religion's promise of transformation and rebirth. Unitologists such as Challus Mercer take refuge in the Necromorph infection as the proof their religion was right. The Church now also believes this, as evidenced in the commitment of Daina Le Guin that the infection is glorious and must be spread. This does not mean to say that they know of all the horror that will be unleashed, but that they are prepared to accept it because it comes from the Marker.

Hole in the StorylineEdit

The main role of Unitologists in the Dead Space storyline seems to be as unbelievable fanatics who want to push humanity into mass suicide, and who consistently make the situation worse for Isaac:

Challus Mercer created the Hunter in his desire to further the infection. He also intended to take frozen Necromorphs from the USG Ishimura to release them on Earth and doom mankind,^[21] believing this would bring about the Unitologist paradise. It is not known if he was in a high enough rank to know the full detail of the Unitologist purpose to spread the infection, or if the psychosis simply made him believe the Necromorphs were divine in the same way it convinced the Unitology founders.

The Sprawl infection was deliberately started by the Church of Unitology: a log has a Unitologist woman ranting about a unique "rebirth" ceremony she was invited to; there are audio logs found in the mines with a Unitologist (Karrie Norton) talking about a "special secret mission" for the Church, but whose later logs reveal that she repented and died fighting the Necromorphs once she realised the truth behind Unitology. There are strong suggestions that she bears the most guilt for causing the infection, but simply didn't know what she was doing. There is also evidence that Daina was also briefed thoroughly by the Church and mentioned her duty to spread the infection.^[22] There is still little evidence to suggest that the Church has a proper understanding of the Necromorphs though.

However, Unitology and its followers are sometimes shown to be less extremist and hard-lined than often portrayed elsewise:

The Unitology founders did think the Necromorphs were defective and the Marker needed to be rebuilt to really bring eternal life. They had live specimens of Necromorphs and used one to kill Altman, but they never unleashed them.^[1]

Terrence Kyne was the Church's expert on the Marker and said what he observed of the infection did not correspond with the teachings of Unitology and was unethical.^[3]

Kyne also repeatedly said the Church was mistaken.^[3]^[4] He also said Unitology was a lie and that people had been "tricked into believing there are space-gods".^[3] This and the fact he was a high-level member with such an important mission suggests the Church actually does not know about the Necromorph threat or that Unitologists are just as likely to have mixed views on it as anyone else.

The destructive and suicidal actions we have seen from the Unitologists may not even have anything to with their faith and just be the result of the Marker. Non-Unitologists have behaved extremely suicidally and tried to spread the infection while seemingly reciting Unitology verses. Examples are Stross and Hanson.
The Government has also proven to be just as irrational, reckless and prone to cause disaster as the Unitologists.

Samuel Irons helped fight off Necromorphs and save people even though he was a Unitologist.^[3]

Daina's route did help Isaac survive albeit for the Church's own ends. The Church wants him to live, even if it is for nefarious purposes.^[23]

They do serve as a counterweight to the repressive power of EarthGov.

They have built a rich religious tradition that is not without its aesthetic value.
Karrie Norton (Dead Space (mobile)) was a Unitologist and fought off the hordes of Necromoprhs aboard the Sprawl, even killing The Boss to keep the Sprawl from overheating.
Strangely enough, in Dead Space 2 Director Tiedemann wants to keep the Marker intact (showing some affection towards it and possibly Necromorphs along with it) but in Dead Space (mobile) he told Vandal to do all she could to stop it from spreading.

Conflict with EarthGovEdit

Unitology is often shown to be in civil struggle with EarthGov. Unitologists have often come into collision with the government over issues such as planet-cracking, the suppression of information on the Marker, and most significantly their belief that the Government murdered their purported founder, Michael Altman. The Church is powerful, but vies for more power and shows signs of wanting to overpower EarthGov. EarthGov has often portrayed them as carpetbaggers and insurrectionists in the press. Unitology regards them as still trying to suppress the truth that Altman revealed about their divine Black Marker. They claim to be the only source of opposition to the oppressive political system.^[24]

The conflict is primarily an information war, fought in the press, although the strength of both sides suggests the possibility of armed struggle as well. The Church of Unitology appears to be more popular and in some way acts as an insurrectionary vehicle against EarthGov. In accord with the typical cynical universe of Dead Space, both EarthGov and Unitology are closed totalitarian factions and they are both desperate to possess the Marker for themselves.

Of the two, Unitology is probably more irrational and prone to cause disasters with the Marker. Meanwhile EarthGov attempts to study and develop new Markers to secure more power and to hopefully solve its mounting economic issues, regardless of the risks involved.

Notable MembersEdit

Several members of the Church of Unitology are prominent characters in Dead Space; including:

Craig Markoff: True founder of Unitology; led Government splinter group in possession of Black Marker
Benjamin Matthius: Captain of the CEC Planet Cracker USG Ishimura^[2]^[3]^[4]
Challus Mercer: A doctor aboard the Ishimura, creator of the Hunter^[4]
Terrence Kyne: A doctor aboard the Ishimura, researched the Red Marker^[3]^[4]
Hanford Carthusia: Manager of the Aegis VII Colony, ranked as "Vested"^[2]
Deakin Abbott: CEC Engineer on the Aegis VII Colony, first to experience visions after the discovery of the Red Marker^[2]^[25]
Vera Cortez: Aegis VII P-Sec officer, partner to Abraham Neumann^[2]
Warren Eckhardt: CEC Executive of Colonial Mining Affairs, ranked as "Overseer"^[25]
Benedykt Malyech: Captain of the Black Beak in Dead Space: Salvage^[26]
Daina Le Guin: Prominent Unitologist on Titan Station; anti-EarthGov insurgent
Franco Delille: Associated with Unitologist insurgency on Titan Station; subordinate to Daina Le Guin
Gatura Okeke: Captain of the Sunset in Dead Space: Salvage
Karrie Norton: Chosen for a special mission aboard the Sprawl, her codename was Vandal and Protagonist of Dead Space (mobile).
Octavia Clarke: Mother of Isaac Clarke; spent family funds on the religion to purchase a high leveled rank in the Church, leading to Isaac's hatred and distrust of Unitologists and Unitology in general.

Trivia Edit

Unitologists are often derogatorily referred to as 'Marker-Heads' or 'Rock Worshipers'.
Unitology seems to be inspired by Scientology on the grounds that members must pay vast amounts of money to learn the church's teachings and secrets, the considerable controversy surrounding it as well as the all around sci-fi influence, among other things.^[27]
Unitology's history is further fleshed out in the Dead Space: Martyr novel, which describes Michael Altman's discovery of the Black Marker.^[28]
Isaac Clarke hates and distrusts Unitologists. This is because his mother was one and spent family funds attempting to move up in rank in the Church.
The Unitology lecture set is likely a direct parody of the Scientology media format.^[29]Even though official sources declared the contrary.