#Christianity in fiction

[griseldagimpel]

Why Basira Hussain in The Magnus Archives Isn't Textually Muslim

I've noted before that Basira Hussain in The Magnus Archives isn't textually Muslim and is implied not to have strong religious faith. And it is religious faith I want to talk about in this post. Basira may very well come from a Muslim cultural background. But she isn't depicted as a capital B Believer.

Let's start with: a character's background - of any and every sort - is going to have some kind of impact on that character. The specifics of that impact will vary - there is no universal experience of anything - and the extend of the impact will be affected by the specifics of the story they are inhabiting. But a character's background shouldn't just be garnish.

With The Magnus Archives, it's a story that deeply involves religion and religious faith, what with the fear entities being worshiped as gods and all. And that means that characters' non-fear-god religious background comes up more than it might in another narrative. Thus, we get stuff like Eugene opining that the Cult of the Lightless Flame shouldn't just imitate Christianity and Martin & Jon discussing whether the Christian God is a force they can invoke.

As such, the fact that religion never comes up with Basira - when it comes up with so many other characters in the story - leads me to believe that she doesn't have a strong religious background.

Are you following me so far?

Right. So why is this? Why did the creative team make this creative decision?

Well, it's because of season five.

The fourth season ends with the fear apocalypse beginning, and then throughout all of season five, no deity intervenes to stop the fear apocalypse. (Well, unless you want to argue this was the case with Georgie and Melanie's immunity, and there, yeah, I think from an in-story perspective their cult's pretty justified, honestly.)

We spend most of the our time with Jon & Martin, who explicitly come from culturally Christian backgrounds but don't have particularly strong Christian faith themselves and predominantly experience religion in the context of the fear gods. Then there's Basira, Georgie, and Melanie.

The goal of the fifth season is the stop the fear apocalypse, which the characters do, and then the series quickly ends. And the sequel series is over there in a whole different parallel universe.

Because, look, even after being undone, the fear apocalypse was going to fuck with a lot of humanity's religious faith (or lack there of!) something fierce. Gods are real but also they're monsters and also no other god intervened.

That's...a lot.

Basira's doesn't have strong religious faith because if she did, she'd have to process season five through the lens of her religion.

And that's...a lot.

And the creative team wanted Basira's story arc to be about her confronting the harm she and Daisy did as corrupt cops.

Also, look, a British podcast depicting the Christian God as either probably nonexistent or useless? That's like, whatever. England's got a whole Church of England. Christians in England aren't being persecuted for being Christian. The episode "The Architect of Fear" can have Robert Smirke write, "I am certain the Dread Powers cannot take a soul who keeps faith in the Resurrection." and then drop dead before he can even finish his letter. It's fine.

But a British podcast specifically depicting a Muslim character having to confront that their faith is false?

Muslims in England are a religious minority. They don't have a whole institutionalized Mosque of England behind them.

Yeah, that could easily end up coming off as Jerk Move.

Not saying that it couldn't be done or couldn't make a compelling narrative, but it would be a lot to take on. It would risk overpowering the corrupt cop reckoning character arc. And the creative team would have to tread carefully for it not to be a Jerk Move.

Ergo, it's easier on the creative team for them to just...not have Basira be religiously Muslim.

Relatedly, Melanie and Georgie aren't depicted as strongly religious for similar reasons. Because they're outside of the Eye's power! If either of them had a strong religious faith, the characters would likely be interpreting their exemption as being a reflection of their faith! And that would be another plotline where the creative team would likely feel like they had to tread carefully lest their story come off as Jerk Move. Again, not impossible to pull off. But difficult.

[jackiestarsister]

OUAT religion headcanons

The existence and practice of organized religion is pretty ambiguous in Once Upon a Time, and the writers play pretty fast and loose with spiritual themes.

Apparently Christianity is practiced in both the Enchanted Forest, which has bishops and churches, and Storybrooke, which has a convent and a Catholic school. The fact that there is a community of nuns in Storybrooke would necessitate the existence of at least one priest within Storybrooke to minister to them, so there is probably at least one church in the town as well.

I imagine that the Mills, Charming, and Swan-Jones families are not particularly keen on organized religion. They probably have a lot of questions and ambivalence after everything they’ve experienced across the realms. On the one hand, they know the Underworld and the Greek gods are real; on the other hand, so are aspects of Christianity like the Holy Grail.

However, I think Mary Margaret (who wears a cross pendant in the first season) and the nuns have genuine faith, and that the others would learn a little from them, as well as from their own experiences. Plus, Christianity resonates with their strong values of hope, love, grace, forgiveness, and redemption.

So, these are my headcanons:

~ Charming likes the story of David, who not only shares his name, but also was a shepherd who became a prince, faced down a giant, and had to fight a war against the jealous king who first gave him power.

~ Emma recognizes that she is much like baby Moses escaping Pharaoh by being hidden in a basket and baby Jesus escaping Herod's Massacre of the Innocents. She also identifies with Joseph’s abandonment and eventual reunion and reconciliation with his family.

~ Mary Margaret's favorite Bible verse is Hebrews 11:1, "Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen."

~ Mary Margaret's favorite saint is Margaret of Scotland, who, like her, lost her father, was forced to flee her homeland, had a happy marriage in a land she did not expect to live in, and found her "happy ending" was not what she expected it to be.

~ When Hope is born, Mother Superior makes her family aware of the verse in Hebrews 6:19, "We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure." As a result, anchors become Hope's favorite nautical symbol.

~ Mary Margaret and the nuns introduce Hope to the more mythical/folkloric stories of the Bible.

~ When Emma, Hook, and Hope visit Boston, they discover the Shrine of Our Lady of Good Voyage in the seaport. They end up visiting long enough to attend a Mass. This is Hook's first real exposure to the core beliefs of Christianity. Given his own past, he can't help being moved by what he hears about repentance, forgiveness, and redemption.

~ Hook relates to the parables about a man finding treasure and deciding to sell everything he has in order to obtain them (Matthew 13:44-46). But his favorite verse is Matthew 6:21, "For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also."

~ Hope discovers VeggieTales while looking for movies about pirates. She loves Jonah and The Pirates Who Don’t Do Anything. Hook finds the concept of singing vegetables utterly bizarre, but he likes the story of Jonah and the idea of a "God of Second Chances." Hope sings the songs so much that he sometimes finds himself humming them. Emma teases them by pointing out that they have, in fact, been to Boston in the fall.

[fanfictionismyaddiction]

Toto’s Guard Dog – Part 5

Part 1 Parte 2 Part 3 Part 4

Word count: 636

Pairing: Toto Wolff x reader

Summary: Y/n finally kisses Toto, but when Christian Horner catches them and starts running his mouth, she unleashes hell.

________________________________________________________

Y/n had Toto Wolff right where she wanted him.

For weeks, he’d been smirking, teasing, playing his little power games. But now? Now she was in control.

And Toto hated it.

Well, hated might be the wrong word.

Because every time she leaned in just a little too close—every time she touched his tie, ran her fingers down his arm, or murmured something suggestive just for him—his restraint cracked just a little more.

She was winning.

Until, of course, he decided to ruin her life.

It happened in the Mercedes motorhome.

The paddock had been hot, sticky, exhausting. Y/n had been up since sunrise, running around, dealing with logistics, making fun of Horner three times before breakfast—the usual.

By the time she made it back to the hospitality lounge, she was done.

Toto, of course, looked perfectly fine. No sweat, no exhaustion—just standing there in his crisp white shirt, sleeves rolled up, arms crossed, watching her like he knew things.

She scowled. “Why are you looking at me like that?”

His smirk deepened. “Like what?”

“Like you’re thinking.”

Toto chuckled, stepping closer—too close, really. “I was just wondering���” He tilted his head. “How far are you willing to push this, schatzi?”

Her breath caught. “Push what?”

Toto leaned in, so close she could feel his breath. “This game of yours.”

For the first time in her life, Y/n was speechless.

And Toto?

Toto knew it.

He chuckled, so smug, and started to pull away.

Absolutely not.

Before he could move, Y/n grabbed his collar and kissed him.

Hard.

It wasn’t sweet. It wasn’t slow. It was a collision—weeks of tension snapping like a rubber band, lips crashing, hands tangling in fabric and hair.

Toto made a sound deep in his throat—half surprise, half something much darker—and then his arms were around her, one hand gripping her waist, the other cupping her face as he devoured her.

God, he kissed like he did everything else—completely, overwhelmingly, like he owned her.

Y/n felt dizzy. Drunk. Gone.

And then—

“Ohhhhhh, well isn’t this adorable?”

Y/n and Toto ripped apart.

And there, standing in the doorway, looking way too smug—

Was Christian Horner.

Y/n was going to jail.

She could already see the headlines: Mercedes Strategist Murders Red Bull Team Principal in Broad Daylight.

Horner was grinning. “I knew there was something going on with you two.” He wagged a finger between them. “You know, Toto, for all your talk about professionalism, this seems very—”

“Get out.” Y/n’s voice was deadly.

Horner ignored her. “Honestly, this explains so much. The guard dog routine? The constant defending?” He smirked. “Tell me, Y/n, is it loyalty or are you just whipped?”

Toto tensed.

Y/n saw red.

“Oh, that’s rich,” she snapped. “You want to talk about being whipped? You’re the one whose wife has to publicly defend you every other week because you can’t keep your mouth shut.”

Horner’s smirk faltered.

Y/n wasn’t done.

“You have the audacity to call me Toto’s guard dog when you’re literally running around begging for scraps of validation from a team that doesn’t even like you? How embarrassing.” She took a step closer. “You think I’m obsessed with him? Sweetheart, you’re obsessed with beating him. And you never will.”

Horner opened his mouth—then shut it.

And for the first time ever, Christian Horner had nothing to say.

Y/n smiled sweetly. “Now. Get out.”

Horner turned on his heel and left.

The second the door shut, Toto let out a long whistle. “Mein Gott.”

Y/n turned to him, still fuming. “I hate him.”

Toto grinned. “I know.”

She crossed her arms. “I—”

Before she could finish, Toto grabbed her face and kissed her again.

Hard.

Possessive.

Like he owned her.

Like he was saying, Mine.

And Y/n?

She kissed him back.

[stingray-art]

you cling so tightly to the beast that waits to devour you

(please don’t tag as ship)

[whereserpentswalk]

You were born to be a sacrifice. When you first exited your mothers womb the oracles decided that would be your fate. They tattooed your hands and forehead so everyone would know.

When you turn twenty, they'll take you to the church, and they'll set you on fire. And then when your body is burned they'll give your ashes for the angels, and the angels and saints will be proud, and bless your community and family with great riches. Or at least that's what they say.

When you were young it didn't seem to mean anything that you were born to die young. Nobody cared, they just saw you as another kid. But it was always there. Adults would ask other kids what they wanted to be when they grew up, but they'd ask you what you would do once you were a ruler in the court of heaven. They'd tell other kids about marriage and sex and having children, but for you that would just be for other people, you'd die a virgin.

And at a certain age, you were removed from school. Because they said you wouldn't need it. That you shouldn't be wasting your time on such things. And you didn't understand, but you understood that all your freinds were upset that they wouldn't see you anymore. Not as much at least. And people talked about you so much differently from then on. You weren't complimented as strong, or as smart, or as ambitious, you were pretty, and pure, and brave, and dutiful. And everyone talked about how proud they were of you, how wonderful it was that you were going to die for them.

They were so nice to you. They gave you so many gifts and jewelry. You got to spend all day inside playing video games, and you got the best toys and got to go to movies and plays when you wanted to. Soldiers in power armor would bow when they saw you, and robots and cyborgs would turn off their lights. And you sat at a special place in church, and the clothing you wore was diffrent then everyone else's. And people talked about how wonderful you were, and how pretty you were, and how much they loved having you when they knew you wouldn't be on this world for long. And they were so proud of you when they showed you the platinum clothing you would wear on the day of your sacrifice. And you didn't understand why but all of the compliments sounded sad.

As you grew older things changed. The other children went through puberty, but you didn't, they gave you surgery to prevent it, ans told you how pure you were for not producing blood or seed. And you were old enough to understand that you would die, that you would burn, and it would hurt, and that nobody really knew for sure what happened after peopled died. And you saw a sacrifice, and saw the pain they were in, and there weren't any angels, there were only priests watching and chanting, and the smell of burning skin.

Your parents and family started to care much more how you behave. To make sure you're polite. To make sure you're a good sacrifice, who the angels will like. And meanwhile while all your other freinds are going to college, and talking about becoming artists, or starship pilots, or scientists, you know you'll only ever have one ending. But still, everyone loves you, and you don't have responsibilities, but still sometimes you think about how much diffrent life would be if you were born differently.

You've started meeting people who've left the faith, or people who didn't grow up in it, people who believe in diffrent religions or in no religion at all. And your heaven seems less and less certain every day. According to imperial law you're allowed to be sacrificed, but if you choose not to they can't force you. But if you choose not to you can never be a part of your faith again, and your family will be disappointed in you forever. All your family and community, everyone who you ever knew, will consider you a failure, a coward doomed to hell for not going through with what the cosmos planned for you. And all that pride and joy they felt about your fate would be replaced with anger that you never became what they were so happy and proud about you being. You don't think you believe in heaven anymore, but you still might choose to die, if it means they're proud... it's what you're raised to do, you don't know who you'll be if you choose to leave.

Better choose fast darling, it's only a few months away now. You don't want them to be upset.

[free-land-free-labor]

Hilarious to see people try to project secular politics onto the Papal election. Catholic social teaching is long established and extends far beyond the Catholic Church, generally aligning with the basic socio-political doctrine of most of Christendom.

“He’s anti-abortion, but also pro-environment?”

Yes; that’s basic Catholic (and the consensus in wider Christian) social teaching. Opposing killing babies being “conservative” and supporting conserving the environment being “liberal” is not some fundamental preordained thing. Supporting human rights for unborn children and immigrants and the poor is entirely coherent with opposing the unjust economic structures and the wide ideology of liberal materialism.

[literaryvein-reblogs]

Writing Notes: Exploring your Setting

(Excerpted from the Young Novelist Workbook) ⚜ Basics: Setting

PART 1: Settings That Create Moods

Mood - the feeling of your novel; its emotional quality.

You can also think of the mood as how you want someone to feel while reading your novel. 

Examples: playful, serious, mysterious, tense, warm, dangerous, joyous

The setting of a novel - where and when the story takes place. As you know, most novels have more than one setting.

Usually, the author decides to have one large setting.

Example: Los Angeles in 1995

and then many smaller settings

Examples: The laundromat where the characters hang out on the weekends, or the classroom where they get in a fight

Settings do more than serve as a backdrop to the action in your novel. They can also create or enhance the mood of your novel. 

Example

If you wanted to create a creepy mood for a scene in your novel, you could start with something like: 

"A dead tree stood alone in a dark field. Its branches creaked in a cold wind, and in the distance, something howled.”

These images remind us of dark, disturbing things, and show the reader that the scene of the novel is “creepy” without having to tell them directly.

Describing the Setting: A Sample Exercise

Describe the settings that would help create each of the moods listed below.

Try to write 2 or 3 sentences for each mood.

Include specific details about the sights, sounds, sensations (and maybe even smells) of the settings you choose:

Creepy, Joyous, Suspenseful/tense

Now make up 2-3 of your own moods and describe a setting that would go along with each one. 

The last step is to apply your new skills to your upcoming novel.

Think of a scene from each section of your novel.

Then, write or list details to describe a setting that will help create the right mood for each scene.

Example: You might set your climax on the edge of a crumbling cliff at sunset in the middle of a thunderstorm. 

A setting from your set-up:

A setting from your inciting incident:

A setting from your rising action:

A setting from your climax:

A setting from your falling action:

A setting from your resolution:

Now you have settings to enhance the different moods that will be in your novel.

PART 2: Settings That Reinforce Characters

Another advanced writing trick is to show things about your characters just by putting them in specific settings.

Examples: If you were writing about a mysterious person, you might place them in a dark mansion on a hill outside of town; if you were writing about a musician, you might place them in a messy room filled with instruments, speakers, and microphones.

Sample Exercise

For each of the following characters, try to come up with a setting that will reflect or reinforce what you imagine about them.

As you write, try to be as detailed as possible.

Don’t forget colors, sounds, and even smells.

Focus on where the character is.

The shy new kid in town:

A secret scientist superhero:

A character from your novel:

Another character from your novel:

Source ⚜ Writing Notes & References ⚜ On Setting

[doverstar]

can't express accurately how happy it makes me that c.s. lewis did not leave room for many interpretations in narnia. it's christian and you can't get around it. susan chose to care more about worldly things than what matters and he said what he said. the lion is Jesus. evil is evil and good is good and people have to choose. and that makes some readers angry because it's nearly impossible to ignore and they want to ignore it. they want it to be something else and they can't make it something else without making it not narnia. love that. that is doing it right

[reliand]

"He's a soulless vampire! How can you ship him with Buffy when he's hurt her?!"

I could not give less of a fuck that he is soulless when it comes to a discussion with you about this. Because you don't want a discussion. Every time I try, you bring up "Seeing Red" as some kind of gotcha.

Characters with souls have done some pretty horrible shit to Buffy. The Buffyverse is full of characters who do evil things all the time, despite their souls, so sometimes I'm not sure it's a good litmus test...especially when you don't hold other characters to the same standard whether souled or not.

[vulturevanity]

What is wrong with her (affectionate)

[griseldagimpel]

Okay, I haven't started The Magnus Protocol yet - I think I'm going to listen to at least the first episode today - but I can't get over how much the fifth season of The Magnus Archives must have changed the world even after the fear-apocalypse was undone.

Because the fear-apocalypse happened! Most of humanity spent an uncountable amount of time being divinely tormented!

Just, every atheist now knows they're wrong. Some gods, at least, do exist. They're evil, but they exist. Do some become anti-theists? Believers in the fear-gods out of fear that the fear-apocalypse could happen again?

Every agnostic now has more of an answer than they believed possible. The divine IS knowable, at least to a degree!

For those that are religious, well, okay, not all religions function the same or have Christianity's focus on an afterlife of reward or punishment. But I'd expect a lot of religious individuals are either going to have their faith shaken or are going to be trying to reconcile their experiences through their faith. After all, for those that follow a religion where they'd expect their faith to protect them, that didn't happen. And that didn't happen on a world-wide scale.

And then there are the Avatars, the special few who didn't get tormented. We know that some people turned on the Avatars in anger afterwards, but I'll note that "watches in peace while other people are tortured in Hell" is literally what some Christians believe Heaven will be like.

If Diego can think his god is Asag and still be an Avatar of the Desolation, how many Christians will identify the Ceaseless Watcher with their god and blame themselves for their torment? How many Christians will now seek Avatarship as a matter of faith?

Yeesh, I mentioned in another post that some Avatars are probably smug about their gods definitely existing, but you know who's going to be absolutely insufferable? TULIP Calvinists! Doubly so for any TULIP Calvinists who also found themselves as Avatars in the fear-apocalypse. Complete vindication for them.

[ablatheringblatherskite]

Every time I see someone post about how someone's life doesn't matter because they did something terrible, or that they deserve to die because of it, or that they don't deserve any pity or love or mercy or grace or forgiveness or redemption because they did horrible things... I just want to cry.

And it's worse when it's from a Christian. Because you know what?? That just doesn't seem Christ-like to me. God is a righteous and just God, but that's His job, not ours.

When it's you, it's sin.

[fanfictionismyaddiction]

Toto’s Guard Dog – Part 2

Part 1 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5

Word count: 411

Pairing: Toto Wolff x reader

Summary: Y/n’s relentless war against The Hobbit reaches new heights

________________________________________________________

Y/n was in trouble.

Not with Christian Horner—because please, when was she ever worried about him? No, her problem was Toto Wolff. Specifically, the way he’d looked at her after calling her good girl and then just walked away like he hadn’t single-handedly sent her into a crisis.

It had been a week since that moment, and she still hadn’t recovered.

Every time he passed by, every time his hand lingered on her lower back in the garage, every time he so much as smirked in her direction, her brain betrayed her with thoughts.

And to make matters worse, everyone had noticed.

“She’s malfunctioning,” Lewis whispered to George one afternoon, watching Y/n freeze like a deer in headlights as Toto adjusted his watch, his shirt sleeve rolling up just enough to reveal his forearms.

“She’s down bad,” George whispered back.

“I am not,” Y/n hissed.

Lewis raised an eyebrow. “You just dropped your phone in your coffee.”

Y/n looked down. Her phone was indeed floating in her coffee.

Shit.

Meanwhile, Horner was still running his mouth.

“She’s obsessed with me,” he said in an interview, smug as ever. “I don’t know what her deal is. Maybe she wishes she was in the Red Bull garage instead.”

That was the last straw.

Y/n stormed onto Twitter.

“The Hobbit thinking I want to be in his garage is the funniest thing I’ve ever heard. Bro, I don’t even want to be in the same country as him.”

It didn’t stop there.

During the next race weekend, she made a show of spraying perfume around the Mercedes hospitality suite before a press conference. When someone asked what she was doing, she sighed dramatically.

“Christian walked by earlier,” she said. “Trying to get the stench out.”

The clip went viral in minutes.

By the time the press conference started, Max was crying from laughter, Lando could barely contain himself, and Charles—sweet, diplomatic Charles—hid his face in his hands, shaking his head.

And Toto?

Toto just sat there, arms crossed, watching Y/n with a smirk like she was his favorite show.

That night, Y/n was going through her mentions when she got a text.

Toto: You know, it’s starting to look like you’re obsessed with me instead.

Her breath hitched.

She stared at her phone. Then—

Y/n: Maybe I am.

…

…

Three dots appeared.

Then disappeared.

Then appeared again.

And finally—

Toto: Good girl.

Y/n dropped her phone.

Again.

[greater-than-the-sword]

How can I not loathe the "witchcraft equals feminism" trope that's become almost ubiquitous in modern fantasy when 1) its themes are grounded in post-Enlightenment era atheistic slander about Christianity 2) It's only half a jump away from its obvious implication that womanhood is Satanic

[whereserpentswalk]

When the human known to us as Christ arrived in the underworld, gods and shades alike were horrified. It was always a big deal when demigods arrived in the underworld, but this one had died so brutally, a young man, not even old enough to grow a beard, tourtued to death at the will of his own divine parentage, the blood dripping from his shade's hands.

The high gods of the underworld brought him up to their tower to figure out what happened. Christ had recoiled from them at first, thinking they were Devils, but had to take Anubis's hand to ascend the tower's steps, as his legs were badly wounded. The gods of the dead looked at him with both sympathy and horror, it was the first time a he had seen a god look at him with either of those emotions.

Hades swore that this was his brother's doing, but even then it crossed a new line. The description of a god impregnating a young girl in Bethlehem fit what Hades knew of Zeus, but to harm his own son in such a way, as part of a ploy to try to gain all of Rome for him alone, had proven his brother's reign growing darker. Still, he took mercy on the young man, promising him at least three days safety in the underworld without his father trying to claim him again. Hades wondered if the poor girl knew when she held her child that he was born to suffer and die, just as the mothers of great heros knew their destiny. Hades hoped Chrsit would have a chance to stay longer, his wife would return in the fall, and he had the same kind eyes as her, she would probably like to know him.

Hel came to comfort Christ once he had a chance to rest. She helped tend his wounds, and pet his head, and for the first time christ was held by a divinity that didn't expect anything from him. And she told him stories of her father to cheer him up after meeting with such a horrible fate. And she told him that no father should ever do such a thing as what his father had done to his child, that if she had known in time she would have saved him. And she let him be comforted as a human, instead of being a lord of all humanity. And for a momment he didn't have to be the son of god who felt alone while bleeding and dying, but the son of the carpenter Joseph who had been reminded of home when he felt the wood of the cross.

He wasn't allowed to stay, his father wanted him back, back to be the bleeding prince of a new and lonely kingdom. And the underworld wept for him, not because the underworld was deprived of Christ, but because Christ was deprived of the underworld.

[artist-issues]

Christians: write monster stories, please. Thank you.