Star Trek - The Religion. No, that's not the name of the next corner church in town, but a belief system that is explored on the Internet.

The futuristic program that began exciting science fiction fans in the late 1960s has become, well, a religion, complete with its own theology.

Click onto http://members.aol.com/Heraklit1/startrek.htm and beam aboard a Website that uncovers the religious foundations for a show whose popularity has endured more than three decades.

"Gene Roddenberry's pantheism and humanism how religious beliefs have influenced Star Trek," examines the religious beliefs of the show's creator. It also explores the religious message conveyed by dissecting various programs from the original series.

For example, in "Who Mourns For Adonis", the Enterprise stumbles onto a planet inhabited by the Greek God Apollo. Missing the adoration from the Greeks on Earth, Apollo tries to force the Enterprise's crew to worship him. They refuse, and he is destroyed by their unbelief. The episode set a religious tone for the series, focusing on Roddenberry's disbelief in personal gods and organised religion, according to the Website. (New York Times Service)