Raëlians believe that the word Elohim, as said by primitive people of the past, refers to "those who came from the sky", or more accurately, humanoid extraterrestrials. Raëlism espouses belief that through mastery several sciences including solar astronomy, terraformation, nanotechnology, and genetic engineering, the Elohim were able to synthesize a novel ecological system with organisms adapted to the chemical and thermal make up of the Earth.
Daniel's life is one of unrelenting disappointment with life and rage against other people, including his two lovers, the sophisticated magazine editor Isabelle, who doesn't like sex, and the sensual budding actress Esther, who doesn't like love. He finally discovers a sect, the Elohimites, whom he initially finds attractive because of their cult of promiscuity and, later, because they give him, through cloning, the possibility of eternal life after his suicide - although why anyone so miserable would want to live for ever defeats me. The Elohimites are based on the Raelians, a sect in whom Houellebecq became interested when living in Spain and who believe that the ancient Hebrew concept of Elohim should not be translated as "God" in the singular, but as "those who came from the sky", flying in from another planet to create life on earth. They infamously hit the headlines in December 2002, when Brigitte Boisselier, a Raelian bishop and biochemist, claimed that they had created the first successful human clone.
(Michael Worton)
