I remember everything about this book except the title and author, who was fairly prominent.
It was a short 3-parter, with the first part published as stand-alone story in a magazine.
Set in near future Blade Runner-style Earth: overcrowded, poor, on verge of collapse, swept by new addictions such as wire-heading. A world government bureaucrat in assigned to baby-sit a visiting delegate from Mars: the human Martian colonies are rich and developed; Earth depends on them for resources. They are puritanical and scornful of the decadent Earthlings, but eager to wallow in the fleshpots when they get there.
There is a minor cult that worships atomic power centered around mini-atomic reactors; the bureaucrat eventually converts at the end when he stops the drunken Martian from grabbing their reactor (told you they were mini-).
Part 2 is set on Venus. The atomic cult has taken over Earth, a la Christianity and the Roman Empire, and rebuilt it. However a heretical leader split off, denouncing their focus on physics instead of the mind; he disappeared and his followers believe he was murdered by the orthodox church. His heresy was wiped out on Earth but is dominant on Venus.
A missionary is sent to try and bring them back into the fold; this being the Old Solar System, human have to be bio-engineered to withstand the hot wet climate. The missionary fails and converts himself, while discovering the younger generation of Venusians is starting to develop psi powers based on their sect's mental meditations.
Part 3 starts with the discovery that the heresy's founder wasn't killed, but stuffed into suspended animation; the heresy's leaders are by no means happy to see him back; nor is he thrilled about being transformed and shipped off to Venus. Anyway, a reconciliation is achieved, and at the end a starship developed by the orthodox church's physicists is being sent out to colonise new worlds, propelled by the Venusians' psychic powers.
But I can't remember the name !
It was a short 3-parter, with the first part published as stand-alone story in a magazine.
Set in near future Blade Runner-style Earth: overcrowded, poor, on verge of collapse, swept by new addictions such as wire-heading. A world government bureaucrat in assigned to baby-sit a visiting delegate from Mars: the human Martian colonies are rich and developed; Earth depends on them for resources. They are puritanical and scornful of the decadent Earthlings, but eager to wallow in the fleshpots when they get there.
There is a minor cult that worships atomic power centered around mini-atomic reactors; the bureaucrat eventually converts at the end when he stops the drunken Martian from grabbing their reactor (told you they were mini-).
Part 2 is set on Venus. The atomic cult has taken over Earth, a la Christianity and the Roman Empire, and rebuilt it. However a heretical leader split off, denouncing their focus on physics instead of the mind; he disappeared and his followers believe he was murdered by the orthodox church. His heresy was wiped out on Earth but is dominant on Venus.
A missionary is sent to try and bring them back into the fold; this being the Old Solar System, human have to be bio-engineered to withstand the hot wet climate. The missionary fails and converts himself, while discovering the younger generation of Venusians is starting to develop psi powers based on their sect's mental meditations.
Part 3 starts with the discovery that the heresy's founder wasn't killed, but stuffed into suspended animation; the heresy's leaders are by no means happy to see him back; nor is he thrilled about being transformed and shipped off to Venus. Anyway, a reconciliation is achieved, and at the end a starship developed by the orthodox church's physicists is being sent out to colonise new worlds, propelled by the Venusians' psychic powers.
But I can't remember the name !
