“Think Blade Runner meets the Amish”: A conversation with Peco Gaskovski

Some of the most profound observations and depictions in recent decades about the challenges of modernity, technology, and current affairs have been made through science fiction and dystopian novels, movies, and television shows. Star Trek, for example, is well-known to be a tool for social commentary. One reason that Rod Serling created The Twilight Zone was so that he could comment on current events and slip it past the network executives. Aldous Huxley, Ray Bradbury, George Orwell, and many more have utilized fictional worlds and dramatic narratives to put up a mirror to society, and to shine a spotlight of sorts on the ills of society and where they might lead.

The Canadian writer and neuropsychologist Peco Gaskovski is the latest in this illustrious line. He is the author of Exogenesis (Ignatius Press, 2023), a novel depicting a not-too-distant future in which birthing and genetic quality are controlled through mass embryonic selection, via a technology known as “exogenesis”, where fetuses are grown on a sort of farm in artificial wombs. The darkness of the times and the hope that spawns a rebellion are powerfully depicted, and more than just shades of our own time can be glimpsed in the novel’s events.

Gaskovski recently spoke with Catholic World Report about his new book, and the role that science fiction can play in evangelization.

Catholic World Report: How did this book come about?

Peco Gaskovski: We all wonder what the future is going to look like. Exogenesis is just that, a kind of fictional wondering, an imaginative exploration of what America could turn into if the current divisions we see in society continue. The novel isn’t meant to be prophecy, of course, but a creative way of asking questions like, “What happens to a society completely dominated by technology and self-focused ideology? How might religious and spiritual people adapt to such a world? What might life look like for children and families?”

Some of the inspiration around these questions has emerged from a growing conversation over the last few years about “the Machine”, or what people see as the negative side of digital and new technologies. Writers like Wendell Berry and Paul Kingsnorth have been at the forefront of this conversation, but many others have joined in to add our own insights and perspectives. Exogenesis is a science fiction novel, yet it’s a part of this broader conversation.

CWR: The book conjures up comparisons to Brave New World, 1984, Fahrenheit 451, and other dystopian, science fiction-based social commentaries. Were you influenced by other science fiction writers or particular books?

Gaskovski: That’s a question I’m often asked. Actually, the main influence wasn’t reading science fiction, but reading about real science and tracking real scientific developments, like artificial wombs, advances in genetic understanding, and the neurological correlates of spiritual experience.

Ironically, I hadn’t read Brave New World until I had already finished Exogenesis. While the two novels share some similarities, such as artificial birth technology, the stories are very different. Brave New World, though brilliant, takes a pessimistic view of the world—the book even ends that way, with orgy and suicide. Exogenesis ends with hope and redemption.

CWR: What benefits are there to exploring these issues in a fictional setting, rather than just writing non-fiction articles or commentaries about it?

Gaskovski: Analysis and commentaries are important, but human beings are narrative beings. Our brains tend to think in stories. Even spirituality, from a Christian perspective, is narrative. God didn’t give us a PowerPoint presentation with a bullet point list. Instead we have Scripture and Tradition and Church, and lives lived in faith and sacrifice—and we also have art, like novels.

Of course, we need to be careful with fiction, as its transformative power cuts both ways. We can read powerful stories that incline our values and views in unhelpful directions. Maybe that’s why some people want to stick with analysis and commentaries; you can see the logic, everything is clear and certain. The problem is, logical analysis can never capture everything. We will always need art as a means of expressing truth and reality. That comes with risks, so we need to be discerning, but I don’t think we can get away from art without living narrower lives.

CWR: Your own faith background is Macedonian Orthodox. What role did your faith play in the writing of the book?

Gaskovski: In terms of the writing process, the role of faith in my work is probably similar to that experienced by artists in other Christian traditions. We understand that we are sub-creators, and so we pray and try to be faithful to create something that is good, beautiful, and true.

I also took a lot of inspiration from Catholic author Michael O’Brien, who I had the opportunity to meet in person a few years ago. Michael has written a wonderful open letter to artists and writers, which was originally published in the Catholic World Report in 2021. I still have a printout of this letter, which I keep near my desk and read over from time to time.

In terms of faith as expressed in Exogenesis itself, the Christians of the future are depicted as the “Benedites”, whose name is inspired by St. Benedict. In many respects the Benedites are like ancient Christians; they have priests, they have church and communion, they have the Bible, and they also speak a dialect of Latin. In other respects, the Benedites are a bit like the Amish, in that they live simple agrarian lives.

CWR: Do you think this book has a broad cultural appeal? Does it have something to say to everyone, not just Catholics? (And if so, did you intend it that way?)

Gaskovski: Yes, on all counts. At a certain level the novel can be read purely as entertainment, engaging and cinematic—think Blade Runner meets the Amish. Then it has a deeper level, with spiritual themes.

But it’s ultimately about the impact of technology on human beings and what it means to be a person. That might sound oddly philosophical, since ordinary people have never really had to ponder what it means to be a “person”. But transhumanism—the idea that we should transcend our basic humanity through technology—is the up-and-coming worldview of our time, the new gospel, the new salvation, so it’s an urgent issue for everyone.

CWR: What do you hope readers will take away from the book?

Gaskovski: I hope the novel will make readers think more intentionally about how they use technology in their lives today, and about their willingness to accept emerging technologies into their homes, schools, and communities.

For instance, until now, society’s attitude around digital devices has been fairly lax. Almost anybody can access almost any content, anytime and anywhere. What happens to a society that takes this kind of approach to tech? What happens to its children and young people? There’s substantial research suggesting that dramatic rises in mental health issues among our youth over the last decade have been due to devices and social media. We can’t afford to race into a future where we unthinkingly accept new forms of tech—like advanced AI—without carefully considering the risks.

CWR: Is there anything else you would like to add?

Gaskovski: I write about minimizing technology in our daily lives, and what it means to be human, in a Substack (newsletter) called Pilgrims in the Machine, and also at School of the Unconformed. My wife Ruth is often my co-writer. The readership includes many Catholics, Orthodox, other Christians, and also non-Christians. Technology is rapidly changing how we live, and the goal of our articles is to help ourselves and others navigate the upheaval with insight, practical suggestions, and most of all hope.