Elosha
priest of the Fleet
Elosha was a Colonial priest who swore in Laura Roslin as President during the Fall and became her spiritual guide as the Fleet sought Earth. She read Roslin's visions against the prophecies of Pythia, and even after her death on Kobol she returned to Roslin in vision.
Elosha was a Colonial priest present at the decommissioning ceremonies for Galactica who went on to preside over religious services within the Fleet. After the Fall of the Twelve Colonies she administered the oath of office to Laura Roslin and became her confidante and spiritual advisor, reading the new President's visions against ancient prophecy. She died on Kobol, but returned to Roslin years later in a series of visions. (Battlestar Galactica (miniseries); Battlestar Galactica, "Home, Part I"; Battlestar Galactica, "The Hub")
The Fall and the Fleet#
During the Cylon attack, Elosha was aboard Colonial Heavy 798 along with other attendees of Galactica's decommissioning. When word reached them that President of the Twelve Colonies Richard Adar and his entire cabinet had been wiped out by the Cylons, Elosha administered the oath of office of President to Secretary of Education Laura Roslin. (Battlestar Galactica (miniseries))
Later, after the Fleet's escape from the Cylons at Ragnar Anchorage, Elosha presided over the funeral service aboard Galactica for the ship's dead. With the crew suffering from shock and low morale, Commander William Adama sought her knowledge of the Sacred Scrolls and the legend of Earth to give his people hope. She also presided over the Service for the Dead for the Galactica pilots killed in a freak accident during a celebration on the port hangar deck. (Battlestar Galactica (miniseries); Battlestar Galactica, "Act of Contrition")
Crisis and renewal of faith#
Elosha secretly suffered a crisis of faith. Although she was well versed in the Sacred Scrolls and the history of the Thirteen Tribes of Kobol, she did not entirely believe in the truth of either. Her faith was renewed when she learned that President Roslin was having visions that mirrored the writings of Pythia, an ancient oracle. Elosha became Roslin's confidante and spiritual advisor and helped her discern the meanings of her visions. (Battlestar Galactica, "Kobol's Last Gleaming, Part I"; Battlestar Galactica, "The Hand of God")
She was the fourth person to learn of Roslin's terminal cancer, confirming in her eyes Roslin's role as the dying leader of prophecy. When Roslin escaped from incarceration on Galactica following her arrest in a military coup, Elosha accompanied her on a Raptor piloted by Lee Adama to the Astral Queen. She was visibly uncomfortable when Roslin chose to play the religious card to persuade twenty four ships of the Fleet to follow her to Kobol. (Battlestar Galactica, "Kobol's Last Gleaming, Part I"; Battlestar Galactica, "Resistance"; Battlestar Galactica, "The Farm")
Death on Kobol#
While exploring Kobol, Elosha noted that the Scrolls warned Zeus would exact a price in blood for any return to the world. She triggered an antipersonnel landmine left by Cylon Centurions while examining an ancient gravestone marker on the path toward the Gates of Hera and the Tomb of Athena, and was killed instantly. Roslin took Elosha's copy of the Sacred Scrolls and continued her journey without her. (Battlestar Galactica, "Home, Part I")
In Roslin's visions#
Two years later, Roslin experienced visions featuring Elosha during the Cylon rebel basestar's pursuit of the Resurrection Hub. With each FTL jump, Elosha guided her through an empty Galactica and showed Roslin her own death from cancer. Through these visions Elosha tried to teach Roslin the importance of love and convinced her to save Gaius Baltar, who had been seriously wounded during the battle. Elosha also helped Roslin realize that Galactica was now her home and acknowledge her feelings toward William Adama. (Battlestar Galactica, "The Hub")
Frequently asked questions
- Who is Elosha?
- Elosha was a Colonial priest who was present at the decommissioning ceremonies for Galactica and went on to preside over religious services within the Fleet. After the Fall of the Twelve Colonies she became President Laura Roslin's confidante and spiritual advisor.
- How did Elosha swear in Laura Roslin as President?
- During the Cylon attack, Elosha was aboard Colonial Heavy 798 with other attendees of Galactica's decommissioning. When word reached them that President Richard Adar and his entire cabinet had been wiped out, she administered the oath of office of President to Secretary of Education Laura Roslin.
- Why did Elosha suffer a crisis of faith?
- Although Elosha was well versed in the Sacred Scrolls and the history of the Thirteen Tribes of Kobol, she did not entirely believe in the truth of either. Her faith was renewed when she learned that Roslin was having visions that mirrored the writings of Pythia, an ancient oracle.
- How did Elosha die?
- While exploring Kobol, Elosha triggered an antipersonnel landmine left by Cylon Centurions while examining an ancient gravestone marker on the path toward the Gates of Hera and the Tomb of Athena, and was killed instantly. Roslin took Elosha's copy of the Sacred Scrolls and continued her journey without her.
- What happened to Elosha after her death?
- Two years later, Roslin experienced visions featuring Elosha during the Cylon rebel basestar's pursuit of the Resurrection Hub. Through these visions Elosha tried to teach Roslin the importance of love, convinced her to save Gaius Baltar, and helped her acknowledge her feelings toward William Adama.
Sources
- EpisodeBattlestar Galactica (miniseries), Miniseries (2003)
- EpisodeBattlestar Galactica, "Home, Part I", Season 2, Episode 6 (2005)
- EpisodeBattlestar Galactica, "The Hub", Season 4, Episode 9 (2008)
- EpisodeBattlestar Galactica, "Act of Contrition", Season 1, Episode 4 (2005)
- EpisodeBattlestar Galactica, "Kobol's Last Gleaming, Part I", Season 1, Episode 12 (2005)
- EpisodeBattlestar Galactica, "The Hand of God", Season 1, Episode 10 (2005)
- EpisodeBattlestar Galactica, "Resistance", Season 2, Episode 4 (2005)
- EpisodeBattlestar Galactica, "The Farm", Season 2, Episode 5 (2005)
Spotted a factual error or a primary source we missed? Email a correction. Every flagged claim gets reviewed.
Followed from this entry

Gaius Baltar
Dr. Gaius Baltar was a celebrated computer scientist whose vanity and manipulation by a Cylon agent handed the enemy the keys to the Colonial defenses, enabling the near-extermination of humanity. He survived to become Vice President, President, prophet, and finally a reluctant penitent.

Laura Roslin: the dying leader
Secretary of Education until the Cylon attack killed everyone above her. Sworn in as President, she became the dying leader of Colonial prophecy.

Lee Adama: Leland Adama, callsign Apollo
Commander Leland "Apollo" Adama was a Colonial Fleet officer, the sole surviving son of William Adama, who served as Galactica's CAG before turning to politics as the Caprican delegate to the Quorum and, in time, interim President of the Twelve Colonies.

Richard Adar
Richard Adar was President of the United Colonies of Kobol and Commander-in-Chief of the Colonial Fleet at the time of the Fall of the Twelve Colonies. His administration funded the work that the Cylons exploited to cripple the fleet, and he was killed along with nearly his entire government in the attack.

William Adama
William "Husker" Adama was a Colonial Fleet officer who commanded the battlestar Galactica through the Fall of the Twelve Colonies. His refusal to network the ship spared it from the Cylon attack, and alongside President Laura Roslin he led the survivors of humanity in search of a new home.

Astral Queen
The Astral Queen was a former starliner converted into a Colonial prison transport that survived the Fall of the Twelve Colonies. Its inmates rallied under Tom Zarek, kept control of the ship and made it a power base within the fleet.
Mentioned in4 entries
"The Hub": Battlestar Galactica season 4 episode 9 explained
In "The Hub", humans and rebel Cylons destroy the Resurrection Hub and end Cylon immortality, while Roslin, stuck on a basestar with Baltar, finally hears his confession. Here's what happens, what Roslin's visions of Elosha mean and where it leads.
Battlestar Galactica (2003) Miniseries Explained: Plot Summary and Ending
The 2003 miniseries is where the reimagined Battlestar Galactica starts: the Cylons come back after 40 years, the Colonies burn, and one old battlestar leads about 50,000 survivors into the dark. Here's what happens across both nights, what the ending means and where it fits in the watch order.
Laura Roslin: the dying leader
Secretary of Education until the Cylon attack killed everyone above her. Sworn in as President, she became the dying leader of Colonial prophecy.
Polytheism
Polytheism was the dominant religion of the Twelve Worlds, originating on Kobol and worshipping many deities known as the Lords of Kobol. Its faith shaped Colonial politics, ritual, and community, and stood in long opposition to the Monotheist belief in a single God.
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