Project Gutenberg 2009-10-24 Public domain in the USA. 121 Godwin, Tom 1915 1980 Godwin, Thomas William Barberis The Helpful Hand of God Produced from Analog Science Fact & Fiction December 1961. Produced by Sankar Viswanathan, Greg Weeks, and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net "The Helpful Hand of God" by Tom Godwin is a science fiction short story originally published in the December 1961 issue of Analog Science Fact & Fiction. The narrative unfolds in a distant future where the ethical dilemmas of colonization and power dynamics between different races are explored. The story delves into themes of resistance, moral choices, and the potential for compassion between oppressors and the oppressed, with a particular focus on the Church of the Golden Rule and their struggle against the Vogarian State. The plot centers around Commander Y'Nor of the Vogarian cruiser who, seeking resources from the peaceful inhabitants of a newly discovered planet known as Sanctuary, encounters Father Brenn, the leader of the Saints. Y'Nor's brutal demands for fuel production force Brenn into a corner, prompting him to comply out of fear for his people's lives. However, as the story progresses, Brenn's influence on his society leads to unexpected solidarity between the workers of Sanctuary and the Vogarian guards, unearthing emotions and connections that challenge the oppressive regime. Central to the narrative is the character Kane, who grapples with his own role within this power structure and ultimately chooses to side with the Saints, rejecting the oppressive commands of his commander in a bid for a more humane future. The story culminates in a defiance against tyranny, highlighting the complexities of human relationships amidst the backdrop of conflict. (This is an automatically generated summary.) Reading ease score: 81.4 (6th grade). Easy to read. en Science fiction PS Text Science Fiction Category: Short Stories Category: Science-Fiction & Fantasy 76215 2025-08-12T11:31:58.186250 text/html 53136 2024-10-24T20:29:01 text/html 406861 2025-08-12T11:32:02.143264 application/epub+zip 405705 2025-08-12T11:31:59.790243 application/epub+zip 90426 2025-08-12T11:31:58.742241 application/epub+zip 499746 2025-08-12T11:32:03.876259 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 494164 2025-08-12T11:32:01.552237 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 138063 2022-09-14T05:43:05.189447 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 68144 2025-08-12T11:31:57.874235 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 48367 2024-10-24T20:29:01 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 16926 2025-08-12T11:32:04.018217 application/rdf+xml 12787 2025-08-12T11:31:59.232227 image/jpeg 3816 2025-08-12T11:31:58.985232 image/jpeg 376673 2025-08-12T11:31:58.205283 application/octet-stream application/zip Archives containing the RDF files for *all* our books can be downloaded at https://book.klll.cc/wiki/Gutenberg:Feeds#The_Complete_Project_Gutenberg_Catalog en.wikipedia