Eve of the Nativity of Our Lord
Matthew 1:18-25
There was a television show that ran my last year in high school and into my first two years in college—seaQuest DSV; think Star Trek, but under water. As the second season began, a riot breaks out in a prison camp for people who were genetically engineered to be warriors. These people, grown entirely in a laboratory, were called GELFs, Genetically Engineered Life Forms. They were seen as less-than-human because they weren’t born in the usual way, they lacked many of the traits that make the rest of humanity human (since they were bred as fighting machines), and they were unable to have children of their own. They seek recognition as people and their freedom, though it’s safe to say, given the derogatory attitude people have toward them, that could likely never happen.
As these genetically engineered warriors riot and take over their camp, one of them gives birth; the first GELF conceived and born in the natural way—a miracle! As the powers that be seek to quell the riot and retake the camp, the rioters jettison the baby in a life pod, hoping to save it. It was picked up by the submarine seaQuest. As they discover the baby and it’s GELF traits, the boat’s doctor exclaims, “If this is their baby, that means they’re becoming human.”