I'm reminded of the Niven-Pournelle sci-fi novel (I don't recall whether it was
The Mote in God's Eye or the sequel
The Gripping Hand) in which mankind has voyaged to the stars, and organized a galactic empire deliberately modeled on the Roman Empire, and the captain of the the starship
Lenin, who hails from a planet colonized by Russians, has his bridge festooned with icons.
Only a theology student notice the irony.