#I love a lot of traditional Catholic things and I think people should connect to God however they do

[violet-viriditas]

Some TradCath on the Internet: “The man is the spiritual head of the household, and his wife must come to him with all spiritual questions and NEVER correct him outright.”

My husband to me: “Hey can I ask you a question? I want to make sure I’m not accidentally believing heresy.”

[saintsenara]

Hi, I’m also Irish and I reckon around the same age but our Halloween experiences could not be more different. Halloween is a big thing where I live and has been for the last 30-40 years. When my parents were younger, it was a different story- peanuts, carves turnips instead of carved pumpkins, etc. I live in Connemara and there are a few pagan rituals the older families here practise, including on Halloween so there’s that as well… I just find it crazy that you haven’t had a trick or treater up till 5 years ago. Is it not so much of a thing in Northern Ireland?

well yes, i suppose there's a specific "why might you not go up to random houses, especially in the nineties" context here...

but - to be clear - i'm not saying that halloween celebrations have never existed here, [or in britain]. humans love any excuse for a party!

nor am i saying that there have never been similarities between halloween celebrations across different places - carving a turnip is essentially the same as carving a pumpkin.

what i'm saying is that the specific "look" of halloween which exists in the transatlantic cultural mind has totally homogenised in the past decade or so, while local traditions have receded. in 2000, we would have had two coexisting modes of thought - "how we do halloween" and "how the americans do halloween" - and we wouldn't have found the latter bizarre or impossible to comprehend, but we would have found it meaningfully different.

[and - in particular - much more extravagant, in a way that makes the extravagance seem like it's been exaggerated for fictional purposes. you know how americans are always amused when europeans discover that red solo cups are actually real, since they're something so associated with cool and hot and aspirational partying in the american media that we consume that we primarily think of them as existing in a fictional context... i always assumed that the lavish house decorations, or children getting so many sweets while trick-or-treating that they last for months, or the concept of halloween shops which only appear in october were similarly exaggerated for "movie magic"... reading the description of halloween in philosopher's stone has that similar movie magic feel - it doesn't just feel fantastical and exciting because it's talking about literal magic, but because it feels like it's describing an exaggerated, big-screen, hollywood version of halloween.]

but by the 2010s those distinctions had basically vanished, and now they totally have. we just have "how halloween is done" [and, beyond that, "how autumn is done"]. how many people do you know who'd still put a turnip out?

also we have to say it... 99% of the "pagan traditions" connected to samhain were made up in the later nineteenth century. and those that weren't tend not to have survived because of pagans...

they're gaelic revival stuff, which makes them interesting as part of historical myth-making and collective identity. the conflation of samhain and halloween is twentieth-century, and directly connected to republican political organisation. which is fascinating! but it's not ancient.

[they also have a much more contemporary political context, in that they're being embraced as part of irish society becoming less dominated by the church and speaking more openly about the church's excesses and abuses. which is something we're absolutely correct to do - but i've noticed an interesting accompanying phenomenon of "the church" and its bad actors being made in some way "unirish", and the fact that enormous numbers of ordinary irish citizens were directly involved in the maintenance of the church's power brushed aside... the idea that there's a true, noble, pre-catholic irish way of behaving is part of this.]

we should also bear in mind that there's a transatlantic connection there too - a lot of "ancient celtic traditions", when they're actually investigated, turn out to have their first mention in the states in the mid-to-late twentieth century. the idea that traditions and modes of behaviour have ancient irish roots is a central part of irish-american identity formation [especially in the latter half of the twentieth century], but they're often traditions which developed in america, which are assigned origins on the island of ireland because the experience of emigration and being severed from the unchanging, mystical homeland is such a significant part of understanding oneself as irish-american. and no matter the giving out we do about them saying "st patty's", we love to go along with this and nod cheerfully when they talk about halloween being the night when the ancient irish believed the veil grew thin.

and so how old are the "old ways" which your neighbours are keeping? because there's a very, very good chance they've only crept in - slowly at first, and then with increasing speed since the millennium - as part of the recent aesthetic and cultural homogenisation surrounding halloween.

[queerprayers]

since you mention having a rosary, is it common for lutherans or other branches of protestants to use them? i've always found them fascinating, but i grew up baptist and wasn't really around anyone who used or had them. what are your thoughts on people having them just because they find comfort in them?

Hi beloved, good question!

In my experience, they're not very common among Protestants, which seems to be because the rosary is so associated with veneration of Mary, which most Protestants are wary of (to say the least). The tradition is so associated with Catholicism that lots of Protestants don't even consider that it could be for them too.

I've had to create my own way of connecting with rosary practices, because the dominant Catholic tradition is often not relevant to me. I'm more comfortable incorporating Mary than most Lutherans, but I don't generally pray through any saints--it just has never been how I've prayed, and while I love saying prayers saints have written and learning about them, asking them to pray for me isn't really how I interpret "the communion of saints." For me, they're praying with me, and my petitions are to God, as Jesus taught. (I'm not dismissing or demonizing anyone's saint work! This is just personally my practice.)

The Hail Mary is such a gorgeous prayer, for instance, and most of it is straight from the gospel--and I definitely find it more valuable because it doesn't involve any personalization/specific petitions, just a general yearning for her to pray for us. I don't really experience her as listening to me, but as praying for all people with her Son, and my recognizing that connects me with her and all saints who have prayed through time.

Anyway, practices like this are really common and people find all different ways of connecting with them! Catholic rosaries, Orthodox prayer ropes, Muslim misbahahs, Jewish tzitzit--they all tap into a physical prayer practice, a tangible repetition/reminder of spirituality that I think is beautiful.

Holding something people regard as holy can be inherently comforting, however you connect with it! Just holding a rosary, wrapping it around my fingers, religious art I can put in my backpack--it's powerful. Hanging it up, carrying it with you--this is a tangible prayer practice as much as any repeated prayer sequence.

If you are interested in prayers to go with it, but don't connect with the Catholic tradition, there are all kinds of things you can do! You can look at the existing traditions and see what you connect with and what you don't--I love some Mysteries, and some aren't in my practice/belief system, like the Assumption. You can look up "[denomination] rosary" to see if anyone's done it before you--several people have written Lutheran rosaries, and a Swedish bishop created the pearls of life tradition, to tap into this desire for Protestants! And then of course, you can create your own practice, picking prayers/verses/meditation subjects that are most part of your spirituality, and going through them.

Best wishes on your journey! Fascination in a practice is often (for me, at least) a sign that I should try it out, seeing how it transforms my practice and me. You can always leave it behind if it doesn't work for you.

<3 Johanna

P.S. Artist shoutout! Work of Human Hands on Etsy makes personalized pride flag rosaries, if anyone's interested! I'm planning to get one when it's in my budget :)

[eremosjournal]

Confirmation or Child Wedding

an Anonymous Contribution

I just played music at what I hope is my last Confirmation mass. And for all the Catholics and ex-Catholics not talking about it, Confirmation mass is a strange fucking phenomenon, right? Though I could go on for hours, I just want to bring up one thing. 

Confirmation mass feels a lot like a cultish child wedding. From the girls’ perspective specifically. 

A group of thirteen-year-old girls, all in pure white dresses. An older man anoints their heads with oil while touching their faces. Two of these girls bring baskets of fruit to the altar during the preparation of the gifts (it’s giving… dowry). They commit their lives to a man (the cult leader himself) whose teachings they are not to question, and at whose feet they are told to worship. All wrapped up in a coming of age ritual. 

***

Years ago on a Confirmation retreat, I was assigned the “girl’s talk”. For those who don’t know, the girl’s talk will almost always involve some kind of message regarding the importance of virginity and otherwise moral purity for Catholic girls. But in an attempt to avoid this topic (partly because I was tired of it and partly because I genuinely liked sex and didn’t feel like lying), I thought I would give a whole presentation comparing their upcoming Confirmation to a big white wedding. 

All the aesthetic parts of a wedding were there: the church, the flowers, the white dresses. But thematically, I feel my presentation got away from me. In my Catholic delusion, I implied that - at the end of the big wedding-y Confirmation mass, their “spouse” would be God. I, of all people, was telling a bunch of teenage girls to marry God. I was only four or so years older than most of these girls, and I cringe to think of how weird and misled my girl’s talk was. That is, if they even remembered it. At this point, I myself have repressed most of the nonsense I spewed in my time as a youth leader. But I remember very keenly one thing I said during this girl’s talk:

“You don’t have to find a man who loves you so much he would die for you. Because I know one who already did.”

I literally want to throw up just reading that. It’s certainly a compelling line, and I remember it sticking with a lot of people. But that’s the power of organized religion. It artificially inseminates people - sinful, flawed people like myself - with the power to say pretty much whatever they want. We’re all sinful and flawed, so why was I up on a stage propagating purity and devotion when I could have been reassuring these girls that sin and flaw don’t make them bad people? This seems to be a recurring theme in Catholicism: having every opportunity to relate and connect with one another in our innate human faults, and instead leveraging that moment to bring guilt and insecurity upon others. 

If I could go back and give that talk again, I would keep the first half of what I said and probably scrap everything else. You don’t have to find a man who loves you so much he would die for you. Find yourself. You’re sixteen. Your Confirmation will not and should not be like a wedding. It will be crowded and long and forgettable. And you will not marry God. I’m embarrassed to think that I was so far up the church’s ass that the best, most prized celebration I could think of for a girl was a wedding. 

I remember wondering, as I was talking and talking on that retreat, if I was even making sense. But I was so turned on by my own conviction that I didn’t even stop to check if I believed what I was saying. I hope those girls I was preaching to are smarter than I was, that they stop to check if they believe what they’re saying. I hope they see themselves as more than lost brides. And I hope they find themselves, whether that involves faith or not. 

I’m tired of not talking about the archaic traditions that the church still practices and upholds. Sure, there is power in tradition and ritual, but at what cost.

[kaijutegu]

Catholicism is an aesthetic. When you look at Catholic art and architecture, particularly from the Middle Ages to the Renaissance, cathedrals, statues, stained glass, and all the other trappings of the church were explicitly designed to be an aspirational aesthetic. Church design wasn’t just there so that illiterate people could understand biblical allegory before Mass was done in linguae francae, but to be beautiful and glorify God. Church fathers from St. Augustine to St. Thomas Aquinas had long treatises on beauty, and why it pleases God and why we should strive for it. The Church wants to be #aesthetic and always has.

But heretic! you may say, surely that beauty belongs only to the church and to believers, and only those who ascribe to Catholicism should revel in it?

Well, see now, we need to discuss Catholicism as a domineering force in Western art and how it defined what type of art was allowed to be created throughout much of Europe. Basically, the cultural hegemony of the Catholic church was so constricting in Europe that nobody was allowed to create art about anything else. Well that and portraits of kings and stuff, and maybe mythology. During the Renaissance, mythology got to be bigger, but before than in Europe, you were really limited in what you were allowed to create. Even if you aren’t Catholic, if you’re of European descent, that is honestly part of your cultural heritage. For centuries, Church art and Church architecture was the only allowable aesthetic, and it’s within peoples’ right to explore and reclaim it. We place such incredible value on the Renaissance- in Western society, we let it still inform things like our beauty standards and what we consider to be “real art.” The ghosts of the Renaissance follow us as we deem other cultural traditions worthy or unworthy. It’s a huge problem, honestly, and I think that exploring the Renaissance aesthetic- which just so happens to be Catholic, the two are uniquely intertwined- isn’t something you, OP, or anybody else should try to police. We need to reckon with the past in order to understand how it impacts the present, and using these themes as an #aesthetic can help us think critically about why we feel the way we do about art and where our artistic standards came from.

Also, this doesn’t just cover the traditions of the Renaissance in Western Europe. Look at the role Catholicism has played with Eastern European aesthetics. Look at the hard and fast rules for icon design, and how that grew as the Orthodox churches split away from the Roman church. When you claim that somebody is appropriating your religion, who are you to determine what a person’s background is? What they might be connecting to through the aesthetics of Catholicism? This is especially true for modern Eastern European diasporas- connecting through the aesthetics of faith, even if you don’t practice, is one of the ways that people can connect with distant family histories.

Blasphemer! you may say, only in the modern era have we, and by we I mean Western Culture, strayed from the loving arms of Mother Rome. Surely the modern appropriation of Catholic imagery is a modern mockery?

Now what’s interesting is that when you look at local theology during the golden ages of Catholic architecture, you actually get a variety of beliefs. Outside of Rome and the Papal States, people knew some Latin, mostly in the form of prayers- but people were arguing about theology in general a lot more than they do today. Today’s Catholicism is really tame compared to what it used to be like. The Church has the major points of its philosophy hammered down- all arguments today are minor compared to the rip-roaring pre-medieval fights about things like divinity, sainthood, trinitarian heresies, etc. etc. etc.

Point being, during the sort of golden age of Church architecture, there was a lot of theological variance. What this means is that you really did have little sects and folk beliefs in Catholicism popping up here and there. The Catholic aesthetic you’re so protective of is not modern- it’s medieval and renaissance, the grand and glorious cathedrals, the precious metalwork, the mosaics and inlays and carvings and paintings. This aesthetic was not actually created by the Church as a monolithic faith. Instead, it was created by a Church that existed as something that you aligned yourself with for political power. Church iconography wasn’t just about your belief or faith, it was about showing who you were. Like when we look at Catholic monarchs- by and large they were terrible Catholics and terrible people! It didn’t really matter though, because they looked Catholic, and that was enough. It’s always been an aesthetic. Is it not part of the grand tradition of the religion to have its trappings adopted by people outside of the faith?

It is also important to remember that the aesthetics of faith are not the faith itself. Catholic practices don’t get appropriated like other religions’ practices do. People actually take sacred practices from other faiths and do them without really engaging. But like, nobody’s walking around saying “Paternoster” like they say “Namaste.”

And this leads to what might be the most important bit: Catholicism is an imperial force, and pressed itself upon millions of people. How can you appropriate that which was forced? How can you say in the face of the religious trauma that the Church has caused that it is unfair to play with the aesthetics of it to suit one’s own identity? The Church has much to answer for, and there is no reason not to play around with the aesthetic for your own purposes. Whether you’re exploring your heritage, processing religious trauma, or you just think it looks good, the Church’s history as a global imperalist force means that it’s given up any claim to being a closed practice. In a sense, its global outreach made it public domain. The Church has always wanted to be globally appreciated; who are you, tumblr user, to interfere?

Really wish tumblr had a "people are appropriating and misusing elements of my faith and that is offensive" option for reporting posts...

CATHOLICISM 👏 IS 👏 NOT 👏 AN 👏 AESTHETIC 👏

[modernmagdalene]

Saint and Crystal Associations Part 2

Once again, I’m posting this as a potential resource for other Christian witches or Christian mystics (whatever you call yourself). These are my own personal associations, not official associations of any Christian denominations, so if they don’t feel right for you feel free to use different crystals with different saints. Thanks and enjoy.

Saint Francis of Assisi --> Amber

Francis is best associated with Amber. While not technically a crystal it still is used in a lot of crystal magic. Francis is a very complex saint who helps with a lot of different things: voluntary poverty, helping the poor, antiwar, and oneness with nature. Amber is very old and connected deeply to the earth. It helps with grounding, clarity, patience, wisdom, dissolves negativity, eliminates fear, and balances emotions. All things Francis needed to leave his life of privilege behind and follow God. I think it represents much of who Francis is and can help support the same virtues that Francis represents. 

Saint Brigid --> Opal

St. Brigid would be associated with Opal. Brigid is a saint that is very connected to the goddess Brigid. Their stories are extremely intertwined that you can’t really talk about without the other. Both are connected to fire, love, and hope and that’s all things Opal is connected with as well. I also personally tend to associate Opal with the divine feminine and Brigid connection to a goddess makes that work as well.

Saint Julian of Norwich --> Moonstone

Julian of Norwich I said in a comment that I associated with Lapis Lazuli but then relaized I was already using that crystal with St. Perpetua and Felicity. So I did some more research and decided that Moonstone would work really well for Saint Julian of Norwich. Moonstone is obviously associated with Lunar magick and the moon is also regularly associated with femimine energy. Which works wonders with St. Julian who often depicted God as femimine. One of the things that made her contraversal. St. Julian of Norwich had visions and was a prolific writer. Moonstone helps those seeking wisdom and strengthens psychic abilities. St. Julian of Norwich is also a known cat lover so have moonstone carved into the shape of a cat is even better. 

Saint Mary MacKillop --> Obsidian

(Trigger Warning Mentions of sexual abuse in this.)

Mary MacKillop is the first saint of Australia and one of my favorites! Mary MacKillop reported a priest who was abusing children and not longer after a friend of this priest used his connections to get her excommunicated. Her excommunication was eventually lifted. I have always admired her strength and resilience. That’s why I chose obsidian for her. Obsidian shines a light on the negativity and clears it away, helping us to choose the path leading towards light and love. It is also a protective stone as it used to be used for weapons. If you need to fight the devil obsidian is up there with tourmaline as an excellent crystal to clean house.     

Saint Raphael the Archangel --> Ametrine

St. Raphael the Archangel is another favorite of mine. If you use a Protestant Bible you might not have read about him. Raphael is featured in the Book of Tobit which is only in Catholic and Orthodox Bibles. The Book of Tobit is an epic love story between Tobias and Sarah that also features thievery, exile, and fights with demons. Where Michael and Gabriel tend to appear to humans briefly then leave. Raphael, disguised as a human, travels with Tobias throughout the whole book. Raphael is most associated with healing and I connect him to the crystal ametrine. Ametrine is associated with healing, harmony, strength, balancing physical and spiritual life, and aids in contacting spirit guides. This works with Raphael’s connections to healing. Furthermore, Raphael’s role guiding Tobit and being a spiritual being working on earth makes ametrine perfect in helping to connect with him. Use this stone and ask him to help find balance in your practice and assist you with finding spiritual guides.

Saint Rita --> Smoky Quartz

St. Rita is the patron saint of impossible tasks. She is someone I rely on when I really need to overcome an obstacle or problem in my life. She is also prayed to when someone has a deadly illness or serious problem helping with things that seem impossible to deal with is just her jam. Because of this I associate her most with smoky quartz. This crystal is super powerful and is a great grounding and balancing stone. It absorbs negative energy like a sponge (because of this it should be cleansed often-ish use your best judgement). It’s so useful and can even cleanse other crystals. It keeps all the negativity away from you which is something that one really needs when dealing with impossible situations.

Saint Mary Magdalene --> Celestite

Mary Magdalene is one of my favorite witchy women in the Bible. She wasn’t scared away like the other disciples when Christ was crucified, she was the first to preach about the resurrection, and was active in preaching and teaching others about Christ. One of my favorite stories about her comes from the Orthodox tradition where she was preaching to Emperor Tiberius Caesar about Christ and turned an egg red to prove to the emperor that Christ’s story and power was true. I associate Mary Magdalene most with Celestite. Celestite raises spiritual vibrations, promotes spiritual growth, and aides in communication with the spiritual realm. This crystal also boosts self-worth and self-expression, all things Mary Magdalene had in abundance. Mary Magdalene also seems to be the most connected to the spiritual world out of all the apostles (with the exception of maybe John) so this crystal is perfect for her.

Saint Joan of Arc --> Bloodstone 

St. Joan is a warrior and protector. I also consider her a trans and/or genderfluid saint who will naturally protect trans and genderfluid peoples. Because of this I associate her most with bloodstone. Bloodstone promotes justice and strength, it is also good for healing and renewal, but bloodstone is probably best known for boosting spells and banishing spirits. Or as I prefer to use it, boosting protection spells and banishing TERFs.

Saint Francis de Sales --> Kyanite

St. Francis de Sales is one of my favorite saints purely because he is the patron saint of writers and I am someone who greatly enjoys writing. Kyanite is the crystal I use with this saint. It promotes creativity and also dispels negativity aka those negative thoughts that tell you that you can’t write. It’s also supposed to sharpen your focus which can be especially helpful with writing or any creative work, especially if you are easily distracted like me.

Saint Anthony of Padua --> Amazonite

St. Anthony was one of my grandmother’s favorite saints and probably the saint I use the most in day to day life. He is the patron saint of lost items. He was a devout priest and taught students from a book of psalms. He once tried to preach to people who refused to listen to him. He instead decided to preach to the fish who all started to gather near the shore to listen to him. When people saw this they decided they should listen too. So you know when in doubt preach to fish I guess. Anyway, I associate St. Anthony with amazonite. Amazonite helps sharpen the mind, aids communication and promotes good luck all of which are great attributes for learning and teaching, finding lost items (that’s the good luck bit), and aiding communication could help you talk to people or fish, your call. 

Saint Valentine --> Rose Quartz 

St. Valentine did a lot but he is most associated today with marrying couples in the Christian church during the height of Roman persecution. So naturally I associate him with rose quartz, a crystal that promotes love and fertility, dispels loneliness, opens the heart to compassion, and even strengthens faith. The perfect stone for this romantic saint. 

Saint Scholastica --> Citrine 

St. Scholastica was the twin sister of St. Benedict, and was the founder of the women’s benedictine order. As someone who went to a benedictine college I have a fondness for her. If you are a storm witch in particular I think this might be the saint for you. At one point Benedict and his monks visit Scholastica and her nuns. Scholastica didn’t think she would live long enough to see her brother again after this meeting so begged him to stay the night, but Benedict didn’t want to spend the night outside his monastery and told her he couldn’t. So Scholastica prayed and a massive thunderstorm suddenly came making it unsafe for Benedict and his monks to travel. And here is my favorite bit:

“Realizing what had happened, Benedict reproached her: "What have you done, my sister?” Scholastica answered simply, "I asked a favor of you, and you refused to listen to me. So I asked my God, and He, more generous than you, granted my request.” Once again Scholastica’s pleas won the favor she was seeking.” 

With Scholastica I associate the crystal citrine. Citrine is all about manifesting change, protection, creativity, and success all things she needed to live the life she did.

Saint Dymphna --> Blue Lace Agate

St. Dymphna is one of my favorite saints and she is one I utilize often. She is most associated with mental and emotional illnesses. If you are a spoonie witch this is the saint for you. Because of this I associate her most with Blue Lace Agate, which helps people express themselves (helpful when going to therapy or a doctor) and also helps with dealing with any sorts of fears or anxiety. (Reminder: That utilizing this saint and crystal is meant as a prayerful way to ask for help dealing with mental and emotional illness. It is not a replacement for therapy or meds.)

St. Sara-la-Kali --> Jasper

St. Sara-la-Kali is the patroness of the Romani people. She is said to have helped the Three Marys of the Bible arrive safely in Gaul after she had a vision of them arriving. She used her dress as a raft and helped the women get to shore despite the tumultuous waves. She was also extremely generous and often collected alms for the poor. I associate her most with jasper. A crystal native to Romania it aids in peace and wisdom and also is particularly helpful during times of transition by providing stability and protection. It also supports perseverance and acceptance, something we definitely need Sara's help with right now.

[unbidden-yidden-deactivated20240]

Hiya, your pinned post said to introduce if you’re a new follower -

I followed after seeing you had liked my response on that insanely long Catholic post. I appreciated the takes you had earlier in that chain and the nuanced view of religion that wasn't based in proselytizing. Also mad appreciation for other observant queer folk esp observant nonbinary people.

And I feel like I should probably say this out the gate even though it's obvious - but I am Catholic.

I have a deep respect for the Jewish faith and people. (As much as I can from the outside of course, and without belaboring you with too much backstory) Where I live the shared view of Catholics here is that Catholicism and Judaism share a familial connection of faith through shared beliefs and value of tradition, and should be loved and respected as family. I'm aware that can be a loaded viewpoint, and I'm not trying to be weird, but like, I'm super interested in hearing more of your theology points, and I have -1000 interest in debating 'what religion is correct' nonsense or trying to convert or preach. That's a waste of everyone's time and an incredible disrespect to the followers of beautiful religions several millenia old.

My issues where I jump in are with people misrepresenting and twisting Catholicism and evangelicals/fundamentalists trying to spread hate and division, because that's definitely not what God is about. By the same token I also have a really deep knowledge of the Catholic catechism, and while I stay off like, joke questions and posts, when someone's looking for the actual canon answer I'm super happy to share it or give resources to find it.

All that aside 95% of what I post isn't religious and like I said, super excited to hear your takes, and if you have anything you want to say to me re:above or if you'd rather I DNI, lmk, or if you ever need to @ a Catholic for a take on something I'd be glad to toss in info. :)

Hope you're having a great week :)

Hi!! You are definitely welcome here and honestly this message really warmed my heart. I very much appreciate your approach as well, and am fascinated by comparative religion.

That said, while I am absolutely working on speaking in a way that is more compassionate and am trying to be someone who can do good interfaith dialog, I can definitely have some, er, strident strong takes on some Xtian things, as I was raised Xtian and converted to Judaism as an adult. I would encourage you to check out my "every hour is theology hour around here apparently" tag to make sure it's not going to be too much/upsetting for you since it can be a lot.

Bottom line is that there are two strong impulses in me that both are (and on some level are also not) in conflict with one another: I have very strong opinions and critiques of Xtianity having left it for cause, and seeing all of the damage it has caused throughout history and unfortunately the people (mis)using it in the present, especially (but far from exclusively) with regards to antisemitism. And on the other hand, I've also seen it give people new life and hope and be a light in the darkness, and be a way that some folks profoundly connect to the Divine. And I genuinely believe that no tradition has a monopoly on truth; rather, I think that G-d wants to be in relationship with humanity, and will speak to us in whatever voice we're most likely to hear. For me that's Judaism, for you, that's Catholicism, and honestly? I think that's great. Who am I to judge anyone else's relationship to G-d and who am I to think I've found the one singular and only truth of the universe?

All of that is true for me all at the same time, and so I absolutely welcome you to stay and would love to be in dialogue with you as well. But I can also see how that could be challenging and give someone who is not me whiplash, so I just wanted to give you a heads up.

tl;dr: You are totally welcome to stay, with the understanding that I am frequently a Bitter Jew(tm) on main with strong opinions, but I also do care deeply about positive interfaith dialogue when the chips are down and am fascinated with comparative religion.

Also re: other observant religious queer, trans and/or non-binary folks - agreed! I hope you are having a nice week as well, and right back at you re: if you need to @ someone about Judaism.

[mxadrian779]

Discourse with a “Christian.” Posting in case it might be helpful to someone.

Context: I’m a trans Catholic who constantly battles transphobia on fake Biblical reasons.

That's enough proof right there to show that this is just a trend and is absolutely a choice.

What made you choose to be cisgender? 

oh boy.

Well see God made male and female and He chose to make me a male. I was born that way.

This is the part where you say "gotch ya!" But let me go ahead and stop you there.

Unfortunately as we've seen with this disturbing trend is that some men and women think they have the ability to choose one of the two or even a completely fictional gender. Unfortunately for them no amount of hormones, surgery, make up, or clothing that they choose will change that person into their gender of choice. You can't change dna, physiology, or biology. God does not make mistakes. See you're not born an alcoholic, a criminal, a liar, etc. Those are things that you choose to become. Becoming an opposite or made up gender is no different.

Or let me explain it this way. What if I said I was born a trex in a human's body? You'd call me crazy and I'd be institutionalized for going around growling at people, right? Of course. So why then is gender dysphoria the only mental issue that we actively push a person further into instead of trying to help them? Odd.

And at the end of the day you CHOOSE to have sex with, be in a relationship with, etc. Those decisions are not made by your hormones or subconscious mind based on what or who you think is attractive. Those are consciously made choices.

There is a lot testimony from people who've left the lgbt or regretted their transition and realized how wrong they were. You should look into it.

Peace 

Oh, Lord. Okay, here we go.

Sex and gender are not the same. Sex is purely biological, whereas gender is purely cultural and sexual. Sex and gender inherently have no connection except for the tradition of assigning the gender of girl/woman to babies with vaginas, and assigning the gender of boy/man to babies with penises.

Most people's sex and gender align. Most people with penises identify as boys/men, and most people with vaginas identify as girls/women. However, this isn't a rule. Some people with vaginas are boys/men, and some people with penises are girls/women. And then there are some people with penises or vaginas who are neither boy/man nor girl/woman.

The reason you cannot make fun of trans identity by saying you're a T-rex is that a T-rex is a different species, so your excuse of a joke is illogical. You can't be trans-anything but -gender. Trans-racial doesn't exist because race is genetic. Trans-species doesn't exist because species is genetic. Gender is not genetic. It's not biological. It's no different than religion in that way. Religion isn't hardwired in your DNA, and neither is gender.

You're right; God made male and female. But there are a few problems with unchristians using that to base their bigotry.

1. Male and female are sexes, biological classifications. There are male and female donkeys and whales and pigs and even plants.

2. That doesn't say He ONLY made male and female. What about intersex (formerly "hermaphrodite") people? If God only makes male and female, who makes intersex people?

3. Saying "God made male and female" isn't the burn against trans people that you think it is, because trans people are still male and female, and most still identify as male or female.

Who are you to say that God didn't also make transgender people, just as He made you? He clearly made you biologically male with a male gender, but He also made people biologically female with a male gender, and people of other sexes and genders. It isn't up to you to judge His creations and proclaim His plans. You cannot possibly know who is and is not a part of Him, because that would require pretending to be Him, which is the evilest of evil deeds. Your place is not to judge His children, not to judge their human forms or their souls, or judge their faith and their relationship with the Father. Your job is to love others as He loves you, to be compassionate and caring and humble and helpful. You are no less sinful than anyone, and certainly you are not sinless solely by the virtue of being cisgender and heterosexual. You need to remember your humility and your humanness. Go with God.

[ourplaceinthecosmosphff]

Chapter 1. The Case Against Fairytales

'his eyes across a room tangled up in her imagination they had spent a lifetime together by the time he said hello' atticus

My brother died the same way he came into the world: silent, eyes closed, changing my life as I knew it. 

We spent our whole lives trying to convince anyone we could that we were as regular as they were, but here's the first fundamentally different thing when you are royal: the meaning of the word ‘everyone’. 

In our case, we usually mean anyone in the country, most of the international media, and at least a sizeable majority of the world's population. It's not that everyone knew us... it's just that enough people did. Enough for it to be easier to call them 'everyone'. 

When my brother Louis was born, mom had been rushed to the hospital in the middle of a Sunday afternoon. The press was notified, they promptly set up camp at the hospital entrance, and the people started prayer campaigns to the safe arrival of their new prince and heir. Everyone rejoiced at his arrival. I remember, I was there. 

At three years-old, it felt like everyone was every single person in the planet. It was mostly just the people in our country; to everyone else, his birth was a quick, short line of announcement, maybe some notice to the fact that the newborn baby boy was taking his older sister's place as heir, and not much else. 

When he died, everyone was every single person in the planet. The second thing fundamentally different when you are a royal: from a very early age you must learn that tragedy sells more than joy. And in any constitutional monarchy country, a royal family is merely another commodity.

A few people talked about my early graduation from University. A lot more people talked about my boyfriend breaking up with me. There were a few articles about my little sister's victory at the ice-skating junior final. When she fell on her face in front of the cameras while attempting a risky move, she went viral. When my brother came into our lives, a few people took notice. 

When he left us, everyone did.

---- ---- ---- ----

I, too, am a victim of culture appropriation. Since the dawn of time, from the moment humankind developed communication skills, there has been storytelling. And for the past few thousands of years most stories that parents tell their young as they tuck them into their blankets every night, have been about my culture. As far as that goes, it is not the most damaging kind of culture appropriation. But I have a duty today, and I will not shy away from it. I am sorry to say I must, and will, shatter the beautiful image of fairytales that kids have been fed for so many years now. 

I know what you are thinking – oh, boo-hoo, the poor little princess girl; is life too difficult in your beautiful palace with all the money a person could ever need? And yes, I know. I am not a victim. The same colonialism that placed my ancestors, and therefore, me, in the position of privilege and power I am in today has created many more actual victims around the world. But that is also why I must tell this story the way it was always meant to be told: truthfully. With all the weird, awkward, awful, bits and pieces that fairytales tend to skip. 

Fairytales would, for instance, skip straight to the grand, majestic welcome ceremony between the Queen of the United Kingdom and the King of Savoy in a sun floored courtyard with guards on tall, furry black hats strutting around, standing in a red-carpeted dais, with a handsome prince making eyes at me. But in my story, we will start with the train. 

That’s right, in modern fairytales you don’t take a lovely carriage ride to a neighboring kingdom. You take a train there – a commercial train, if you can, because modern times beg for demonstrating to the masses that the Monarch isn’t throwing money around. We were trying to highlight the easy routes of access to our neighbors to the northeast, and so we took the ferry across the Celtic Sea to Hugh Town Island and from there, Eurostar number 2 train that made a quick stop in Penzance, UK, and then went straight to London. 

The train ride isn’t comfortable – even if you have a first class private car. It’s bumpy and crowded and a terrible place to spend three straight hours. On that particular morning, I was in our car with my father, his household secretary Auguste, my private aide, Cadie, and a few other staff members. 

In fairytale world, when a princess does not look the part, there is usually the appearance of a fairy godmother who sings a nice song and magically transforms her into a Proper Princess™. There is no fairy godmothers when you are a real princess- real ones, sure, but they are not magical-, but you do learn from an early age what a Proper Princess™ should look like, act like, and sound like, and god forbid you don't. 

In the train that day, I heard all that was keeping me from being Proper™ from Auguste, who was in many ways the exact opposite of a fairy godmother. He had all the menacing authority of one, with none of the charm. He also didn’t have wings or a sparkly wand; he had greying short hair, and thin, small, reading glasses that he always pushed down to the tip of his nose to look above, which made me wonder what was the point of the glasses at all.

Before our arrival, I had to change my lipstick, which was too dark, my dress, which was too short at the daring height of above my knees, my shoes, which were open toed and therefore wrong, and finally, make sure to brush my hair once more.

My parents never subscribed to the idea that we were forbidden to do anything. They were raised on stern rules and heavily traditional costumes and wanted their kids to live more freely. So, growing up, they revolutionarily told us that we were free to be whoever we wanted to be – in private. In public, we had an obligation to be Proper™. After all, as I heard repeatedly growing up: royals don’t make mistakes, we make history; and history remembers.

So, yes. I, a grown, 25 years-old, law-school graduate, bar-approved acquisitions lawyer, changed out of my dress into a more proper one because my dad asked. Because as a princess, you’re never just yourself; you’re the country. And if your country comes from a Roman Catholic tradition, your hemlines must reflect that, no matter what century it is.

The country in question was just to the south of the United Kingdom, west of France, a large island named Savoie. The English call it Savoy, which is how it was pronounced anyway. It was originally populated by the Irish, but over the years it was conquered by the English, the Spanish, and the Portuguese until finally, in the 13th Century, it was conquered by France. It was bigger than Ireland, but smaller than England, and one of the biggest GDPs in the world, with a population of 49 million. Under the reign of Louis XV, however, France lost most of its possessions after its defeat in the Seven Years' War, and to secure Savoy, the king sent part of the court to live there and to reign in his stead as his emissaries. Louis XV's reign grew weak, including his ill-advised financial, political and military decisions, which discredited the monarchy and arguably led to the French Revolution 15 years after his death. France dealt with its dissatisfaction by revolting, Savoy however, secluded away at sea, decided to declare independence before the Revolution had even taken steam. The political leaders of the Island reached an agreement with the king's emissary, Prince Louis, the highest ranking monarch on the island; in exchange for support for the severance of all connection to France, he was then made King Louis I of Savoy. The Royal House of Savoy grew steady and strong by protecting its people and assuring them a freer, better life than the one they'd known under French reign.

A few years later, I sat on that train in front of the current King of Savoy. My father. 

“You look beautiful, Maggie.”

“Thank you.” 

“The other dress was beautiful as well. Just not for today.”

“Mm-hm.”

A moment of silence went by. I picked up my phone and checked my emails. There was one from Sophie with the subject ‘urgent!’ so I clicked in it feeling my heart race.

It read,

‘Marie, I’m sorry to bother you on your days off, but the depositions got moved up to Monday and we can’t find the notes on the manager deposition, you were the one who did them. Is there any chance you have a copy and if so can you send them to me? Enjoy England! XO Soph’

Sighing, I put down my phone and quickly found my laptop on my suitcase. I turned it on as I replied to Sophie’s email to tell her to expect my deposition notes shortly. 

“You know if we could I’d let you wear whatever you wanted.” Dad added as I logged into my computer.

“I do.”

I moved quickly through my folders realizing the most recent update on my notes hadn’t been uploaded to the cloud. Sighing, I logged on to the train WiFi and checked the storage service online. It didn’t connect.

“Honestly, darling, you look even prettier with this dress.”

I looked up, mentally wondering if the previous versions of the notes would be useful.

“This isn’t about the dress.”

I realized, then, that it wouldn’t matter anyway because I wouldn’t be able to send them to Sophie without internet. I looked out the window, realizing perhaps too late that we were in the tunnel, underwater. Of course there wasn’t internet.

“Well, what is it about?” Dad asked, putting his book marker back inside the page he was on and laying down the book to give me his full attention.

“Work, papa. I have a job.”

“Yes, and it’s your day off. Maybe you should try and turn off from work for the next few days?”

I smiled down to my computer, “maybe this is a conversation for another time.”

Dad adjusted his posture, looking a little taller, and looked around the room to Cadie and Auguste sitting in a booth nearby with our private hair and make-up artist, and dad’s footman, and personal aide.

“Excuse me, everyone, would you be so kind as to give us the room? Or, uh, the car? There is a little lounge outside, isn’t there?”

“Of course, sir.” Auguste said, jumping up immediately with the aide, and Cadie and Cass, the make-up artist, followed.

After they had left and closed the door behind them, I looked at my father. He lurched back in his seat and smiled at me. 

“Go on,” he said. “If you don’t scream I don’t think they’ll hear us.”

“Why would I scream?”

“I don’t know, Maggie. But I don’t know why you would be so passive aggressive, either. Can you tell me?”

“What do you want, dad?” 

In truth, I added the ‘dad’ at the end of the sentence to make it sound less aggressive, but as he stared at me, I felt uncomfortable not explaining myself.

“I’m here, aren’t I?”, I asked, tiredly. “I’m here, wearing a proper, long, not-slutty dress-“

“No one here used that word-“

“My toes will be perfectly hidden away when we arrive, I have hidden my ugly, evil legs under some stockings-“

“Really, Maggie, no one said your legs were-“

“My make-up is light and my hair is simple and non-threatening. I know not to smile too much or too little and to let the adults lead the conversation”, I said, the word ‘adults’ dangling bitterly from me lips. “And not to walk ahead of you, but always behind, taking your lead.”

“You make it sound so stiff and calculated.”

“And I have taken time off of work to be here.” I said. “All other Junior Associates are working overtime and through weekends to cash in as many billable hours as possible to be promoted to Full-time Associates, and instead I took off four days to travel with my dad.”

“Work, for work!”

“So, again, what do you want? How else am I not meeting your expectations?”

I spoke calmly, gently, and as low a volume as I could just to confront his joke not a minute before about how if I didn’t scream the others wouldn’t hear us. I made sure to be as poised and contained as I could. He heaved a sigh.

“I’m sorry you had to take time off work.” 

I waited, as he stared in his usual lovingly, patient way. I smiled, more as a peace offering than genuinely. 

“You know very well they won’t fire you.”

Still, I was quiet, smiling as sincerely as I could. 

“And I know that isn’t fair, but there’s nothing I can do about it. So tell me something I can do and I will.”

“Okay.” I said, nodding. “I want your honesty. Don’t treat me like a child you need to protect, don’t patronize me. All I want is an honest answer.”

He adjusted himself in his seat and cleared his throat. “Alright. Go on.”

“Why am I here, papa?”

He blinked, seemingly confused. I could tell he expected a harder question.

“Your- Because your mother sprained her ankle?” he answered, still unsure. “What- do you mean philosophically? Why are any of us here, really? I don’t understand.”

I tried not to smile. “I mean I have a life. I am not your heir. Louis is your heir, it is his job to help you when mom has emergencies.”

He sighed deeply, finally arriving at the same page where I was.

“Your brother is in school.” He said. “And you are our oldest child. So, I’m sorry if it disrupts your life, Maggie. But you are needed.”

“And after school?” I asked “His graduation is in 6 months. Are you telling me that after he graduates university and moves back home, when he is starting his career, maybe moving to the capital, when you and mom have an emergency, you will call him up instead of me?”

He gave the table a sad smile. “If that is your wish, yes.”

“So that’s all, then?” I confirmed, suspiciously. “He moves back after graduation and you will give me the space I need?”

He smiled. “Is that what you want, then?” it wasn’t a confirmation. It was a tone of accomplishment. Of finally realizing what was it that I wanted, as if this entire conversation that’s what he had been trying to find out.

“I went to school for years. I interned for a year. I studied hard for the bar exams in America and Savoy. Yes, dad, I want to use the degree I worked hard for.”

“Okay, then. We will give you space.” He said. “Space from us, to be who you want to be. To be normal.”

I rolled my eyes, smiling, slightly amused at his dramatics. “That is not what I meant.”

“But it is accurate.”

“Papa...” I sighed.

“I’m just saying, sweetheart, I understand.” He insisted. “It’s why you went to America for University, it’s why you are based on the capital now. As long as you’re too close to us, you can’t live a normal life.”

“I can never live a normal life. We are not normal.”

“But you wish to try.”

I chuckled. “How?! You said it yourself, they will never fire me. My firm, I mean. Wherever I am, I am never just me and my degree and my career. People look at me and see you, as if I am you. I am their King. I am the Royal Family of Savoy. They’ll never take me seriously or afford me the same opportunities as everyone, because I am not everyone.”

He nodded, slowly, then sighed. “Yikes. You’re right. That sounds tough.”

“And I’m the passive aggressive one?”

“Job security and the attention of your bosses. That sounds awful.”

“Papa...”

“You want the space to dedicate yourself to your career without us pulling you away for royal work. Is that it? Okay. You got it. As soon as your brother is back from University, I will make sure you’re only needed for official events, and only if you’re not working.” 

He sounded serious now. Sincere as when he delivered the End of Year address every Christmas, which was meaningful. Getting dad to afford me the same seriousness he afforded his subjects was as much seriousness as I could get from him. Still, there was no mistaking the sadness in his eyes. 

“Even before his affirmation ceremony?” I asked, trying to sniff around for a trick.

The affirmation ceremony was meant to make clear to the country that an heir to throne had the seal of approval of the Monarch, and it usually happened when the heir was 21 years of age, to signify the Monarch believed in the event of a tragedy, the heir was ready to rule.  In modern times, it meant an heir was ready to start working as a full-time royal. Though my brother was 22, the family had decided to wait until he had graduated university to do his ceremony. 

Dad took longer than I wished, but finally, he nodded. “Yes. I promise.”

If you’re paying attention, then you might have noticed the math doesn’t add up. How come my 22 years-old brother is the heir when I said I am 25, the oldest child? Well, as with most fairytales, as well as with most of life, the problem is the patriarchy. For the thing is, though I was older than Louis by three years, because I was born a girl, he became the heir when he was born. So, at three, I went from future-Queen to lower ranking older sister. 

It wasn’t unusual, my father himself had two older sisters who were lower than him and his brothers in the line of succession. As a result we had older cousins who we outranked. I cared about all this at 25 the same as when I was 3: not at all. 

Absolute primogeniture law was passed in Savoy when I was 5, propelled by my birth and the new times. It was, however, not retroactive. This meant the law was changed for future births, not past ones, so all girls born after the law came into effect would be heirs in their own right, no matter how many brothers they got after, and all girls born before would go into history as having missed it by ‘just a bit’.

Louis and I, though, didn’t sit around having long discussions about who would be a better ruler. There has never been an instance in which we were arguing and I yelled something like, “first you stole my throne and now you stole my cookies! I hate you!”. For us this was just a little footnote in the family tree. A little fun fact to tell our future kids one day. And although I couldn’t remember what it felt like, I always knew it was much better not having to be the Crown Princess of Savoy.

---- ---- ---- ----

When we finally reached Penzance, the small town in the tip of the isle of England where sat the second Eurostar station, I was able to finally connect to the internet. My father left our train car to walk about with his security because he wanted to witness the new English policy of installing a check-point at the entry due to the immigrant crisis – a huge part of why we were there. While he did that, I sent Sophie my notes on the deposition, and answered some messages.

There was one from Louis, my aforementioned brother:

‘are you close?’

And one from our baby sister, Lourdes:

‘what do you think??!!!!!!!!’, with an attachment of two videos.

And, lastly, one from my mother, Her Majesty Queen Amelie-Elyse, back home with a sprained ankle.

‘Hope all is well! Let me know when you’re with your brother. Don’t forget to let your hair down before leaving the train!’

She didn’t mean it in a philosophical, have fun kind of way. She literally meant let my hair down, apparently it softened my features. 

I replied to her with a selfie, with my hair properly brushed and down, in preparation for the arrival in London, which was close now. Let Louis know we were almost there. And sent a quick, uncommitted ‘woah!’ to my sister, without opening her attachments. They were always the same: videos of her practicing. There was only so much ice skating I could watch in a lifetime.

My mom answered my text with, “why did you change your dress?!”

I sighed, getting ready to justify this decision as well, already anticipating she would argue that the fascinator wouldn’t go with this one dress, so I told her I already had another fascinator standing by. 

Growing up with fairytales they don’t tell you about the little annoying details. Characters who are annoying usually are the villains, the ones the Princess escapes from, usually saved by the prince. They don’t tell you sometimes, actually a lot of the times, the people you love can be equally as annoying. 

---- ---- ---- ----

When we arrived at the station in London, I was already wearing my disc fascinator in a light shade of blue matching both my lace dress, this time reaching all the way to my ankles, and eyes. We were quickly greeted by the Savoyen Ambassador to England in front of the press, and escorted into government cars towards Whitehall. 

The large parade ground was a traditional courtyard in central London that usually housed ceremonies related to the military and the royal family. When we arrived, the day finally was washed in a feeling of ceremony. 

The place was lined neatly with military guards, security barricades and the Scotland Yard Police kept watchers and paparazzi at bay, the press lined up inside to have the best view of all involved. As we arrived, the traditional 41 gun salute was already sounding on. A military band was playing. People waved and yelled hello as we drove inside. I suddenly knew what to do, as if my body had the gene for it. This was one thing that was definitely genetic.

I stepped out of the car delicately, smoothly, knees together like a proper lady, polite smile on my lips in thanks to the guard who saluted as I left. My father greeted a handler who escorted us to the front of all the lined guards, where three structures had been set up: one large one in the middle, with a red-carpeted stage and a large roof, the British Royal Coat of Arms in the center with the British flag to its right and the Savoy flag to its left. Decorative flowers and elegant plants here and there. Two smaller, simpler structures to both of its sides. Inside all of them, men and women in formal suits and ties and knee-length, appropriate dresses and hats. 

We walked the grovel path to the larger structure as the band played and the press, lined up in front of this platform, took their photographs. My father climbed the steps first, quickly being received by the small, elder, lady in a lavender overcoat and matching hat, impressive set of pearls dangling from her neck. She smiled as he lowered himself down to kiss both her cheeks warmly. 

The queen then looked at me and I approached, just as our handler told Her Majesty:

“And may I present, Her Royal Highness, Princess Marie-Margueritte of Savoy.”

I lowered myself in a curtsy, and as she extended her hands to hold mine, I also kissed her cheeks, trying to avoid knocking her hat with mine. 

“Welcome.” She smiled. “I hope the ride was forgiving.”

“Very comfortable.” My father told her. “Always surprising how fast it is.”

“Yes. You’ll remember, I’m sure, the Prince of Wales.” She said, walking us to the center of the platform where another two men awaited.

My father and the Prince of Wales greeted each other warmly, they were more used to running in the same circles – royal weddings here and there, international summits and meetings, or whatever it is they do. 

“We’re so glad to have you.” He told my father. 

“I don’t know if you’ve met my daughter, Princess Marie-Margueritte.”

Smiling, I curtsied to the Prince of Wales as he held my hand, before kissing my cheeks. 

“You brighten this day, Your Royal Highness.” He told me, before stepping closer to add, in a whisper. “Sorry you have been dragged to this.”

I giggled, “I’m happy to be here, sir.”

Straightening up, he noticed my father was already greeting the man behind him. “Hopefully we won’t bore you too much. I have tried to bring someone else closer to your age. Have you met my son?”

The handler didn’t know it, but there were no introductions necessary. And yet, all I could do was smile politely as we were introduced to:

“His Royal Highness, Prince Harry of Wales.”

I wondered, for a moment, if he would acknowledge that we already knew each other. 

“It’s a pleasure, Your Royal Highness.” Holding my hand in his, he brought my knuckles to his lips. 

The answer was, obviously, no. So I lowered myself again in a curtsy as an excuse to avert my eyes from his.

I couldn’t understand why, but I had been unprepared for him. With all of Auguste’s preparation, all the briefings, with all the preachings about my appearance, no one had prepared me for him. I don’t know if it was that, like me, he was one of the youngest there, or how absurdly, almost ridiculously tall he was, or maybe how the blue in his eyes contrasted with the red of his hair, but he just… stunned me. When he kissed my hand, his eyes traveled down my legs all the way back to pierce mine, igniting a wave of electricity down my spine I was unable to control. 

He leaned back, and there we stood, hand in hand, wordlessly. 

“You can follow the King, ma’am.” Auguste whispered behind me, his voice making me jump slightly, as I quickly pulled my hand from Harry’s, not before realizing he had something scribbled on his palm.

My father and the Queen were deep in conversation, with Charles besides them, as they reached the center of the platform to watch the guards. The Queen in the middle, my father to her right, and the Prince of Wales to her left, I walked forward to stand beside my father, while Prince Harry walked to his. 

We waited just a moment, and then the band started playing the Savoy National Anthem, and the British Anthem after it. A few words said, more ceremony here and there, and the Prince Wales formally invited my father to inspect the Guards, so they left together, accompanied by one of the military leaders to walk among the rolls of guards,  as the three of us stood behind to watch.

“I was sorry to hear about your mother, ma’am.”

“Thank you, Your Majesty.” I said, looking regretful, walking towards her, closing the gap left behind by the others. “She was sorry she couldn’t be here.”

“I hope it’s nothing serious.” Prince Harry interjected.

“A sprained ankle.” I explained, looking ahead. 

“Harry is also here after a small hiccup with the Duchess of Cornwall, my daughter-in-law.” His grandmother told me. “An illness in her family, nothing serious.”

“Hopefully I’ll have time to meet her before we leave.”

“Oh, I’m sure.” She nodded. “How did you mother hurt herself?”

“Horse fall. She was never very fond of Polo, I’m afraid this will drive her further away from it.”

“Oh, that is regretful.” The Queen said. 

Harry looked at me. “Do you play?” 

“I do, sir.” 

“Harry is very good,” his grandmother told me, “he will be the one playing with you in the charity match in the coming days.”

“I look forward to-“, I started, but Harry had started the exact same sentence. We locked eyes, and chuckled.

“You first.” I said.

“Please, I insist.” He responded, cheeks reddening.

His grandmother looked between us, and then back to the uniformed men in front. She then said, in a low tone, something I would spend a large part of the upcoming months thinking obsessively about:

“Be careful with him... He will charm you, but he is a heartbreaker.”

The words astonished me so much I looked at her, unsure she had actually said them. But she had, clearly, because Harry was also looking at her, quite shocked.

“Granny!” he complained, in such a whiny tone I broke into laughter.

“Do I lie?” She asked him, grinning. It only made him look more shocked. 

“Don’t ruin my reputation in front of foreign royals!” he said, in a low tone, before looking at me. “Specially such pretty ones.”

My giggle froze in my throat under his intense glare, and I could feel my cheeks reddening.

The Queen looked at me. “Oh, you’re blushing. It’s too late, I see.”

It was.

---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ----

Margueritte’s outfit

The ask box is open! Let me know your thoughts? And if at all possible, like this page so I know you liked it? Thank you so much!

[A/N: Attention: by continuing to read you are accepting that some sad stuff is coming. You been warned. Thanks for checking this out! Let me know your thoughts?? thanks!!!!]

[A/N2: Hey! Nat here. I wanted to talk a little more about the story we are about to go on together.

In the upcoming chapters you will be introduced to the Royal Family of Savoy, a fictitious European country right below the UK, to left of France. When I first posted a fanfiction, FIUYMI, I made the main character latina, since that’s what I am, and I had previously felt that I couldn’t relate to other characters I had read. In this one, however, I decided I wanted to write about a fictitious monarchy, and I knew I wanted to make it as realistic as possible. 

As much as I wanted at many points in the story to make the character look more like me, the idea felt like cheating: Margueritte is a blood royal, born to a life of specific privileges and hardships, and pretending she could look like the type of people who don’t have white privilege would be trying to ignore a very real issue: all monarchies - past and present - existed, lasted and gathered riches on the back of people of color. Most of their descendants still carry white and wealth privilege because these royal families, however many years ago, supported and perpetuated colonialism and white supremacy that left countless countries and their populations still recovering today.

That is a legacy Margueritte didn’t chose, and which she also doesn’t have to face, but in this story she will chose too. As you’ll see, she finds herself in a much more influential position she thought she would have, and as such she realizes she has two options: she can stick to the message her family - and other royal families - have perpetuated for generations and keep her head high, mouth and ears shut, so their legacy can survive; or she can chose to be a modern Queen who will make the institution relevant again. I want to write about this because this issue is important for the times we live in, particularly after the way the Duchess of Sussex was treated in the United Kingdom.

What that will look like will depend on who Margueritte is as a person and whose advice she takes, and that is a journey I hope you’ll take with us =) ]

[brujoenlafrontera]

hi!!! I’m a puertorriqueño/nicaragüense enby looking into resources for learning bruja stuff, any good place you know to start?

I’ve gotten a couple of asks about this lately, and i’m so happy to know there are more latinos finding their way to the practice, tumblr’s brujeria tag often gives the impression that theres so little of us out there reclaiming our practices but getting asks like these brings me a lot of faith that thats not true :) first and foremost:

GETTING INTO BRUJERIA IS HARD.

it really is. baby brujos like us know that better than anyone- getting started, is often the hardest part of doing anything, and its no different with brujeria. it can feel so overwhelming and feeling lost is natural. from my experience, although i am still a newbie ive been able to find a lot of information out there, here are the best places to find info, sorted by priority:

FAMILY! a little self explanatory, but brujeria at its best is truly is an inherited, familial practice. If you can, before delving into internet resources, definitely connect w your family if you’re able to and ask them for guidance and about their experiences!

Your family is always the best resource over anything you can find online; theres so much misinformation out there or information not relevant to your region and if someone in your family already has established practices, always trust them first

 Do some thinking back to all your cultural traditions, quirks, stories, and superstitions that you’ve  learned from your family across time and never thought too much about- and rediscover them under a new light

KEEP IN MIND: brujeria is NOT a singular , concrete practice w concrete rules in itself, the term blankets a lot of traditions across latam, the caribbean, mexico, but imo its always best to stick with brujeria related to your heritage and where your connection is.

this can be hard for people (like me!) with huge family taboos toward brujeria that make it unsafe to ask around about, and/or limitations in family connections (also like me unfortunately). I personally can really only get the tidbits and stories that my family accidentally slips out when I occasionally see them. i try to write them down as much as possible, but the info i can get is limited... and thats where the following comes in.

ONLINE COMMUNITIES. i.e, youtube, tumblr, instagram brujx communities. notice I haven’t said “internet” in general- the reason why i trust community based social media more than random individual websites you find on google is because, in the case of brujeria and honestly any non-european craft, you’re often gonna find a LOT of white people writing blogs, books, etc about their “spiritual experiences” in latam countries and wrongly/incorrectly taking ATR or indigenous traditions (like with smudging). I know, with social media, although those same white people are also on insta and tumblr, it’s a LOT easier to see the face behind the accounts and differentiate who to trust, who’s legit and has real experience to share, rather than a nameless, faceless, website that is actually some colonizer sharing colonized ideas who thinks theyre on a spiritual journey taking traditions all willy nilly. And the fact that in social media, its much easier to find a lot of good brujas at once bc they tend to follow each other lmao.what ive personally done to find information tho is essentially SCOUR tumblrs, insta accs, and watching tons of youtube videos for posts, accounts, videos, etc, and narrowing down good info from there through , namely:

CHECKING WHO YOUR SOURCE IS!!!

ASKING YOURSELF FROM WHAT EXPERIENCE THEYRE SPEAKING FROM

ALWAYS TAKING EVERYTHING WITH A GRAIN OF SALT

AND STICKING TO INFO FROM CULTURES OPEN AND RELEVANT TO ME.

again, brujería is different depending on where your family is from in latam, and if you have an established connection to indigenous and/or black roots, so it’s useful to use keywords relating to that when searching (like if ur black, you can look into ATRs(african traditional religions) which tend to mix deeply with brujeria, if ur indigenous, finding other people from your tribe is great, and if youre not pursuing your already learned traditions you can think about connecting to them more deeply(altho indigenous traditions are their own thing, sometimes they do mix with brujeria too), and apart from familial roots, if ur catholic/christian and/or want to explore it, saint work/catholic brujeria might be a good fit for you!)  

tumblr: there are a couple of fantastic brujxs on this site with great blogs and resources who have sadly left the site, but i still go through their posts heavily for spells, rituals, scraps of info! etting started w brujería is hard bc there’s really not that much info out there right now, but i compile as many good brujeria posts i find on my acc.

@brujeria-n-bongs great for catholic brujeria, now at @Upliftherbs on instagram

@brujeria-lost @barberwitch @reina-morada @highbrujita

@naomi121406 is by far the most active and informative tumblr resource ive found, shes an afro-indigenous diaguita curandera from argentina so shes also really helpful if ATRs are in your path!

Im not black myself and dont follow ATRs so i don’t really know many good blogs for afrolatine brujxs out there but if anyone would like to tag some in the replies thatd be awesome!

instagram: Ive found that instagram #brujeria tags has a pretty healthy active stream of posts. You’re gonna have to sift through a lot of them to get to the good stuff though- imo a lot of hispanics use the brujería tag not to mean “latine brujería” but just the spanish word for witchcraft, so a lot of white hispanics will put wicca/neo witchcraft in the tag. imo that’s really not something i’m personally interested in bc it’s not true to brujeria’s traditional nature, is very white/eruropean , and that wicca shit basically just got here. its a relatively a recent thing😭 so i try to stick to bruja accounts that aren’t influenced by that.

youtube: The youtube brujería tag is hit or miss? and again, contains a lot of wicca. But there are some good practitioners on there like The Mexican Witch! You just gonna look around, and dont be afraid to click on videos by really really small youtubers; they often are the ones with the most informative and legit things to say!

Everyone’s path as a bruja/o/x (sjdf trying to be inclusive w gendered language is difficult) is different but here are some topics i think are great to look into as a beginner!

ancestors: start at the bottom and figure out who they are, where theyre from, and set up an altar. it’ll help you a lot with figuring out your identity and path as a bruja later on.

setting up a grimoire

divination: tarot is actually what got me into brujeria at first! tarot isnt strictly traditional and is european in itself but its a wonderful tool for connecting to dieties, saints, etc as well as super fun and helps a lot with introspection

ritual abrecaminos, aka road opening spells!

amarres (love spells... proceed with caution)

limpias, mal de ojo

saint work: even if you’re not catholic (im ex catholic), a growing number of us (especially lgbt latines like @/upliftherbs on instagram) are starting to take back and decolonize our view of saints like La Virgen Maria and removing her from the rigid european/colonized interpretation thats been forced into us

candle spells in general (i fucking love candles tbh, cheap, easy, fun, and WORKS)

spiritual colognes, how to cleanse

finally, here are some helpful posts yall should definitely read and think about moving forward!

about using tumblr as a resource

about looking into brujeria as a part-white part latine

bruja psa + about reclaiming lost indiginety

honestly naomi’s entire brujeria tag is great and super informative for beginners and basically holds answers for almost anything at this point

hope this post helps yall out!

EDIT: oh lord now that this is posted the outline format i tried to use is all kinds of fucked up please dont mind the odd numbering lmfao tumbr hates organized formats

[lookatmerosalie]

Love’s Consequences, Seventeen

    Sunday mass. It's something I've had to attend my entire life. It's never something I've decided to attend, but have done so anyway for my parents.

   I wasn't always apathetic when it came to religion. When I was little, I actually had a strong connection with God. I liked singing at church, and I thought the cathedral was gorgeous. But as I aged, I became more and more disenchanted. I wondered why all these things were taught to me, and if it was truly real. Was there really a divine power watching over me?

  By the time I reached middle school, I had a weak connection to the Catholic church. I saw the way my parents would treat certain groups of people and felt guilt. The way my life was going, I felt like I was alone, and no one was watching over me. It didn't feel right.

  Today, I still continue my tradition of going to church every Sunday. Stepping into that same white and gold cathedral, my parents leading me inside. We find our usual spot and sit at the pew. Once more people arrive, the mass gets started, and we partake in the opening hymn.

   We talk of pardoning our sins, and jump right into the gospel reading. Another hymn, more pardoning of sins. The name of Christ is holy, blah blah blah. It all sounds like amplified white noise to me.

  Since I've started dating Austin, my relationship with the church has reached an all-time low. Although my parents have never explicitly stated that they hate gay people, I know their backgrounds, who they were raised by, and what messages have been given to them by the church. I feel like an outsider, even just standing in the pew. All the people around me, though they've seen me grow up and have known me my whole life, would never speak to me again if they knew who I really was.

  This time of year, our church prepares itself for lent, Easter, and the rest of the coinciding holy holidays. I can tell that, as usual, my parents are super invested and excited to be here. I find it great that some people can find solace in the Catholic church, but I'm not one of them.

   As if I fell asleep and woke up suddenly, the mass is nearly over. I lost myself in my own thoughts, which happens pretty often these days. I must have just gone through the motions until now.

   We go up, take communion, and head back to the pew for the remainder of the mass.

   "The Lord be with you."

   "And with your spirit," I mumble.

   "May almighty God bless you, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirt."

   "Amen," everyone responds.

   We all get dismissed and file ourselves out of the cathedral. My parents exit with giddy strides and smiles on their faces. I exit with the weight of the world on my shoulders.

   "I thought today's mass was excellent. Did you enjoy it, Dylan?" my mom asks me. I nod, not saying anything in response.

   The three of us make our way down the street to the parking lot. Across the street, two women with dyed hair sit next to each other. As we pass, they kiss. My parents keep walking, but I could see the stink on their faces from a mile away.

   As soon as we get in the car, my dad says, "Right across from a Catholic church? Really? The nerve they have."

   My mom shakes her head. "I don't understand how people can choose to live that way. It's downright sinful."

  I sit quietly. My dad asks, "Is there anyone at your school who is in a relationship like that?" My heart starts to race.

  "Nope, not that I know of."

  "Good. I don't want you being exposed to that kind of behavior. It's sickening," he spits.

    Thank goodness I'm not exposing myself to that kind of behavior. That'd be a tragedy.

  The whole ride home, I have a pit in my stomach and a sense of dread falling over me. Being super old school Catholics, I should've known they wouldn't be LGBT-friendly. I was an idiot for thinking otherwise. I wish I got the cool, hip, modern Christian parents that Sammy has.

   "Make sure you wash the dishes today, honey," my mom reminds me before I can escape to my room.

    Not wanting to fight, I simply say, "Alright."

    I wash off the muck from our bowls and plates and try to put them in the dishwasher as quickly as possible. Midway through, I feel a buzz in my pocket. I wipe off my hands and take my phone out to check.

    "I love you," Austin writes. I smile wide and my heart flutters.

   "What are you smiling at?" my dad asks, walking in the kitchen. I quickly click my phone off and put it back in my pocket.

   "Just a funny post I saw," I tell him, getting back to the dishes.

   "Mhm," he says, suspiciously. He continues walking into the living room, but his presence was enough to put me on edge. So, I simply finish doing the dishes in silence.

   "I'm going to tell them."

    "What? Are you sure?" Austin asks me, a little concerned.

    I nod. Although every bone in my body disagrees with my decision, I nod.

   He sighs. "Okay. Please be careful."

   I nod. "I will. Thank you," I say, kissing him one last time.

  Suddenly, I'm back with my parents. The two of them sit on the couch, looking at me expectantly. A surge of pain courses through me, but I walk closer to them nonetheless.

   "Mom. Dad. I need to tell you something," I speak softly.

   "Spit it out," my dad says, getting up and towering over me.

   I take a deep breath. "I'm gay."

  The floor opens up into a dark pit, and I stumble in. I hold on to the edge, which was growing by the second, with my fingertips.

   "No, you're not," both of my parents say simultaneously. Both of them step on my fingers, one taking responsibility of one hand, forcing me to let go and plummet down.

   I scream until I can't anymore. Eventually, it feels as though there's no air left to breathe.

   Suddenly, I wake up. I find myself in a dark place, not able to see anything around me.

  A familiar voice in my ear whispers, “He’s mine.”

  Flashing to another scene, I see six figures in the distance. Two stand out to me: a slim, chocolate haired boy next to a girl with short red hair. They hold hands and the whole group laughs together. They turn around, and I see my friends.

  “I told you he’s mine. Why are you back?” Sammy asks, glaring. My heart races and I double back a few steps.

  “W-what’s happening?” I say, wanting to cry.

  “We don’t need you,” all of them say in unison.

  Frozen in place, the man who should be my boyfriend approaches me and repeats, as if some type of twisted mantra, “We don’t need you.”

   Blinded by tears, the scenery changes once again. All I can hear is laughter, but it didn’t seem like they were laughing at anything funny. I wipe my eyes and look around to see faceless teens in a school hallway, laughing and pointing at me.

   This can’t be real... no...

   I jolt up in bed, feeling hot and sweaty. I strip my blanket off from on top of me and turn so my legs are hanging off the bed. I quickly grasp around for my phone on my nightstand, and click it. It’s 2:43.

   My heart continues to race from whatever hell I just experienced. I’ve had dreams like that before, but never that painful. And never with Austin.

   I try to regain comfort in the fact that none of it was real, and I’m safe again. But the pit in my stomach remains.

  Although I’m unsure if Austin is awake, I call him anyway. It rings only once or twice before he picks up.

  “Are you okay? Is something wrong?” Austin asks, clearly panicked. I calm myself a little just from the sound of his voice.

 “I’m okay now,” I sigh a breath of relief.

 “What’s wrong?” he asks, still concerned.

 “If I said I had a nightmare, would you laugh at me?” I ask, scratching my head.

  “Of course not. I’m guessing it was worse than usual?” he asks, knowing I’ve had plenty before.

  “Yeah. It was rough.”

  “Do you want to talk through it?” he asks kindly.

  “No. I just wanted to hear your voice,” I tell him.

  “Oh yeah?”

  I blush. “Yeah. Hearing you makes me feel better,” I admit.

  He lets out a brief sigh of happiness. “Everything’s going to be alright, Dyl. I’ll always be here with my voice.”

  I smile wide and lay down, leaving the phone next to my ear.

  “Is it okay if I just leave you on for a little longer? You don’t even have to talk if you don’t want to,” I ask.

  “I’ll stay on as long as you need. I’m here,” he says sweetly. I close my eyes and just listen to the sound of his gentle breath, pretending like he was right there next to me. I quickly find myself falling asleep, Austin still virtually by my side.

  The next morning, I’d come to find out that he never hung up.

[surveys-at-your-service]

Survey #305

“you want me to be yours, well then you’ve got to be mine, & if you want a good girl, then goodbye”

Do you call the ice cream topping "jimmies" or "sprinkles"? They're "sprinkles" down here. What music are you listening to? Ha, I just turned on music before starting this. "Sex Metal Barbie" by In This Moment is on rn. If you go to school (HS or college) does your school have a rival? N/A Have you been baptized in any religious tradition? Yeah; I was born in a Roman Catholic family. My mom's mom would've probably had a heart attack if us kids weren't. At family gatherings, are you more likely to hang out with the younger or older relatives? I mean, I'd go for those my age or older, generally. I'd hang out with kids though if they wanted me to. Considering you current health, how long do you think you will live? With my CURRENT health, probably not even 80. Do you have anything in your room that would be 'weird' to others? Posters, yeah. Have you ever done geocaching? No, but it'd be cool if my body could actually handle taking a single goddamn step. What was the last game you won? Maybe Uno with my niece? I generally let her win, but occasionally I'm "lucky" to TRY to be more convincing, lol. I think she knows I let her, though. Do you know any deaf people? If so, is it easy or difficult to have conversations with them? No. Do you enjoy playing Monopoly? Why or why not? No, because I don't like board games, especially any that involve math. Is there a doorknocker on your front door? No. Do 'laugh tracks' on TV shows annoy you? They're so normal that I don't even notice them, really. Do people often mistake you for other ethnicities? If so, what do you usually get? No, I'm pretty obviously white. Has anyone famous ever attended your school? Who? I won't say his name for the sake of not connecting dots, but a well-known football player attended my high school. Have you ever had to attend an event that occurred on your birthday? Ha, my 16th birthday landed on the Super Bowl... I was at Jason's that night, and just to be "part of the family," we watched it with everyone else that came over. I was so bored and uninterested, but that's my own fault, really. I could have said something, but this was only a month into our relationship so I was too uncomfortable to speak up. What do you think makes a girl a slut? Do you believe that label is thrown around far more often than it should be? And finally, do you think it's unfair that mostly only women receive that label? I don't give a flying fuck how many people a girl is sexually involved with so long as she is safe and open and honest with her partners. I'm not a fan of the word and don't think anyone should be called it. Do you think it's bad to have sex at 15 or younger? I don't think it's smart, really. It's just too young to risk pregnancy. Yes, abortion is an option, but like... a 15 y/o girl should never be faced with that dilemma. I'ma be real tho, I don't think it's a "good" idea until you're at least 18, aaaand I don't know any non-virgin who waited that long. Just try your best to wait, ig. Favorite love song at the moment? Love songs never sit well with me anymore. I mean I can enjoy them, absolutely, I just... have a lot of bitterness. Trying to pick a favorite when you feel like that is like trying to pick the best-looking rotten apple of the bunch. Ever wondered what it would be like dating the same gender as you? I've done that already, and it was great but also scary in a massively homophobic state. Ever paid for sex? No. During thunderstorms, how does your pet react? Neither have a unique reaction; they're unfazed. What internet browser do you use? Google Chrome. Do you like eggnog? Noooo no no. How often do you see your mother? Every day, because I live with her. Do you like croutons in your salad? No, I really don't like the texture difference. Who did you last play truth or dare with? I don't know. Have you ever brewed your own mead, wine, beer or soda? No. Have you had to make any changes in your life lately? If so, what kind of changes? ugh What's the earliest popular thing you can remember from your childhood? Ummm. I mean, probably like Barney or Elmo? Do you prefer practicality or fashionability when it comes to clothes? Well, really neither. I'm the type that wears tank tops in snow, flipflops year-round, sweatpants in summer... so I don't really dress with practicality. I don't care what's "fashionable," so. Comfort pretty much reigns over my wardrobe. Which kinds of berries grow in the wild where you live? There are these little red ones that grow in little groups and somewhat resemble raspberries. I can't remember if they're edible, though... Oh, and muscadine grapes (I had to look up if they were berries lmao) can be found here, too. They're yummy. Beautyberries are another. Have you ever made an article of clothing yourself? If so, what was it? No. Do you go to arcades? If so, what's your go-to game at one? Even before Covid, I never really went to them. I enjoy them, though. I guess my favorite is maybe air hockey? When's the last time you had an alcoholic beverage? What was it? At the Cheesecake Factory for my birthday. It was some kind of sangria... Maybe strawberry and peach? Idr, but it was good. What has been the most enjoyable job you've had? You assume I've had a job I actually enjoyed. How about the least enjoyable job? Well, I barely lasted two hours in a dairy, soooo... When's the last time you had to carefully plan how you used your time? You're asking the wroooong person, 'cuz my life is never busy enough for that. Who do you usually say hello or good morning to first? My snake Venus, usually. Well, that is if her head is peeking out of her hide or is just fully out. Do you ever chat about your favorite video games with your friends? I don't really have gamer friends anymore, so not really. What do you hope you grow out of? Being so goddamn dependent. What movie made you cry the most? I can't say for sure considering it's easy for movies to make me cry, lmao. Maybe Titanic. What was one of the happiest moments of your childhood? Seeing a container of dog food in the far back behind the Christmas tree one year. It's how I learned I was finally gettinga dog (Teddy). What brings you the most joy in life? Probably my cat lmao. What's a hobby you would like to try out? I wanna get back into video editing, I just. Don't have the motivation for it anymore. As with most things. What sort of a kiss do you count as the first kiss? On the lips and with mutual intention. What was the last event you attended? Thanksgiving dinner at my sister's, ig. How about the last event you organized? Me? Organizing an event? What's the biggest insect you've ever seen? In the wild, probably like... a rhinocerous beetle or something. NO NO WAIT. I remember at least once in my life seeing a fucking GINORMOUS moth on the ground one morning. I don't know what kind it was, but jc it was huge. How about the biggest spider? Oh yikes, I'll never forget this: an orb weaver wandering across the floor of our childhood van and under the passenger's seat. Never saw it again. I was afraid to let my feet stay on the floor for a looong time, haha. What's something you'd never ever dare to ask another person? I'd never ask certain "why" questions, like "why did you get an abortion?" or something like that. I can think of valid situations to ask most things, even controversial matters, but no one should ever have to justify something like that. "Why don't you have kids?" is another. That one gets to me. Having children is not an advancement or milestone in everyone's life, and hell, you never know if the woman's had like five miscarriages or something. What's something you've always wanted to ask someone but haven't dared? Why Mom didn't raise her eldest daughter, at least for her whole life. Katie's childhood is a big mystery to me, and I want to know more, but I know the topic is very upsetting to Mom, so I'm not about to make her explain it. What's the worst/best thing you've done without your parents knowing? Saying "worst/best" makes this question confusing... but I'm guessing you mean the best thing to me that they wouldn't have approved of? I really didn't do a lot of things that would fit that description. I can only think of a certain intimate occasion where things happened where they probably shouldn't have. If you wear earrings, what does your favorite pair look like? Ugh, I don't because of the holes being too stretched out from wearing heavy earrings too long. I still haven't gotten to putting proper gauges in so it looks less stupid. Have you ever won any money from a scratch card? Maybe like, $10 or something. How about a slot machine? I've never played one. Do like playing bingo? Sure, it's all right. What small, everyday thing makes you really happy? Cuddling with my cat. Do you enjoy puzzle games? If so, which one's your favorite? Yeah, I do. I can't really pick a favorite, though... Is there a substance you avoid at all costs? If so, what is it and why? I think in a past survey I mentioned my aversion to beer because of the association it has with my dad. I'd never be able to get a sip down. Not that I really want to anyway though, it stinks. What you would you absolutely hate living next door to? Any really busy location or travel hubs, like a train station. My childhood home was near a railroad track, and it sucked, so I can only imagine a station. What would you love to live next door to? A waterfall, uggghhhh. In the woods too to hear plenty of frogs and toads and crickets... What gives you nostalgia? It is very easy to make me nostalgic. The littlest things can do it. Hearing about/seeing/playing childhood video games, like Spyro, is a biggie. Which reminds me how damn badly I wanna play the Reignited trilogy, fuck. I just don't have the proper console. Which language do you think is the most complicated to learn? Well English is supposedly the hardest objectively, but as a native English speaker, I can't say anything about that. In my experience, Latin was like fucking impossible. Is there a place that you might call your second home? I guess Dad's house, but it's not like I'm there a lot. I feel comfortable there, though. How do you imagine your later life to look like? I DO NOT want to think about this. I fucking dread the thought. What is a job you would never in a million years want to do? A butcher. There is absolutely no motherfucking way I ever could do it, even if it kept me off the streets. What's the weirdest building in your city? *shrug* How do you keep in touch with friends usually? Facebook. Do you recognize friends'/family's vehicles by sound? Not anymore. Dad had an old car that was very easy to recognize with its shitty muffler, but he hasn't had that car in years upon years. I used to be able to recognize Jason's old car too because of sound, but primarily because he drove way too fast down our path that when I heard a car zooming over rocks, I knew it was him. What's something new you've just recently learned? It was actually a topic of recent discussion that I may have high-functioning Asperger's. Very, very unusual to learn later in life, but apparently Mom's seen the warning signs in some things since childhood, like my extreme pickiness with textures, my tendency to knead and play with my hands in situations of discomfort, my social ineptitude, hyperfixations, it actually running in our family (which I didn't know beforehand), among a lot of other things. We're not really digging into it though because it just doesn't matter; there's obviously no magic treatment for autism, and me being in therapy and having a psychiatrist to handle my meds is enough. If you were in Harry Potter, which house would you be in? Apparently I'm on the Hufflepuff/Gryffindor line when I took a survey a long time ago. Are you nagged about being on the computer too much? Not anymore, at least on the average day. Mom's accepted it by now. Dad's joked about it before though and I know others have certain opinions about it. Based on your personality, what animal do you think you'd be? Maybe a deer. Shy, reclusive, and always on alert. Have you ever been in a hot tub? Yeah. What song is stuck in your head at the moment? I have "my boy" by Billie Eilish on right now because it's stuck in my head. What's your father's middle name? John. What's the last movie you saw in theaters? Yikes, good question. I think it was The Lion King remake. Have you ever vandalized? No. What's a pet you've always wanted? Most pets I want I've had at some point or another... I guess I'll say a ferret, though I've really only wanted one in concept. I could never keep up with their maintenance, but by god they are the cutest fucking things ever. Do you like mice? I love mice! What's your favorite t-shirt? My "equal in our bones" Cloak shirt. :''') The design is so beautiful and just my style in general, plus I live to support anything Fischfuck takes part in. Did you/will you get a car for your 16th birthday? I'm 25 and still have never had my own car lmaoooo. What's your favorite tomato variety? I generally don't like tomatoes themselves, but rather products made with them, like ketchup. If I'm in the mood though, I do like tomato sandwiches with mayo and bacon; I only ever enjoyed them though if they were fresh right from an old friend's garden. Which well-known person's death shocked you the most, if any? I think Chester Bennington's was the biggest surprise. Rest easy, you legend. What's the craziest color you'd dye your hair? More like what crazy color WOULDN'T I dye it... What was the longest train ride you've been on? I've never been on one. What's the coolest hobby one of your friends has? uhhhhh idk Have you ever played in a stack of hay bales? No. If you could learn any skill, which would you like to learn? Ha, cooking. How do you like your steak? Medium well.

[fratresdei]

I saw your post about offering spiritual help and I decided to give it a go! I grew up Catholic but never felt connected to that community or theology. Now I'm attending college across the country and feeling lost. I need to find a way to explore spirituality and my personal connection to a higher power, but I don't know where to begin. More importantly, I want to find a spiritual community, but I have no idea where to start when I don't even know what I believe in! What do you recommend?

Hi there @trianglesolo , thank you so much for reaching out! Feeling lost is never fun, but let me just say, what a beautiful, courageous decision you’re making here. Starting a spiritual practice from scratch! Digging into the sacred and the unknown! The process can certainly feel daunting, but I want you to know that it can also open up so many new opportunities for creativity, adventure, and personal joy.

To start, try looking around for the things in your life that soothe your spirit, no matter how “ordinary” or non-spiritual they may seem. It could be as simple as laughing with friends, cooking a meal, or a creative project of some kind. Start small. Activities that leave us feeling calm, connected, and fulfilled can often tell us a lot about what our spirits crave. Chances are, you are already making space in your life for things that feel sacred to you.

Take your time with this part. Reflect on the common elements here. Do you gravitate towards spaces that involve a strong community? Lots of quiet time to reflect? Using tangible ingredients to craft something new? Physical movement?

Part of Fratres Dei bodywork sessions focus on discerning what your foundational beliefs are, no matter how vague or basic. Bodywork is a great way to listen to every part of your being, so that things like conditioning from religious upbringing or thoughts of what you “should” believe rather than what you actually believe don’t clutter the process.

Then there’s the fun part: trying things out! It could be a YouTube yoga class, a meditation podcast, a virtual church service, whatever strikes your fancy. Trust yourself. If a space doesn’t feel quite right to you, it’s completely ok to move on to something else. Even if you’d rather just sit back and read up on practices that interest you for a while, that’s still engaging with the sacred! You’re doing exactly what you’ve set out to do.

Here are a few more tips for the search:

Talk to people. Lots and lots of people. Talk to people who left a religion you’re interested in and ones who stayed, and don’t be afraid to reach out to religious leaders. Most of the time they’re much more approachable than you think, and they would love to just chat and hear more about you, with no judgement or agenda. You can make amazing spiritual friends this way, no matter what religion you end up choosing.

Check out the sacred texts. Find an entry point into the scriptures, songs, prayers, or oral traditions that represent the religion you’re interested in. Enjoy them, study them, wrestle with them, and ask practitioners about them. They can show a lot about what you connect with and what you admire.

Trust your gut. If a worship space makes you feel weird, or a religious leader pushes your boundaries or makes you feel small and confused, get right out of there. Religion can be an amazing, healing, empowering part of human experience, but it can also draw creeps and abusers. Protect yourself and your light, and trust your body to tell you when something isn’t right.

Interact with Deit(ies). This may take the form of prayer, offering, meditation, scripture reading, singing, volunteering, rituals, or any other number of active practices. When you commit to a religion, you’re committing to its Deity (if it has one), so be sure to meet Them and talk to Them and spend time in Their presence (maybe even just by spending time in a space dedicated to Them). ​Just be sure you’re doing this in a respectful, safe way.​ Talk to lots of practitioners beforehand to ensure that you’re approaching it in a smart way and not making any promises or vows that you don’t intend to keep.

I’m tossing out a lot of options here, but only because this is such a broad topic! If you already have a direction or two in mind, or would like to chat about even more options (heaves a huge pile of books onto the table) it would be my sincere pleasure. In the meantime, best of luck!

[andrewthoughtsbombdiggity]

Gay Me Up “Zaddy”

As a practicing Catholic, born and raised, these last two weeks have been… jarring to say the least. I have no problems with gays, in fact one thing about these movies that makes me sympathize with the characters is that they cannot be accepted or must keep who they are hush-hush and under the table. I take a stance that one should hate the sin and love the sinner, and for future reference maybe have a few Christian movies to dissect after the LGBTQ Movie Unit? Prince of Egypt (2000) was a phenomenal movie as well as The Passion of the Christ (2004). I detect the pushing of one side and not the other and even though this may not be the intention, I still feel it. But not to mention in a world where open mindedness is key, one can parallel that Christian movies as well as gay movies are not given a fair shot in mainstream cinema. So why not expose us to some hidden gem Christian movies as you’ve done with these LGBTQ movies? Maybe we ought to change that. Another thing I am not overall happy with is the fact that these movies are not available on streaming services, however they were for the most part very well made and a lot of care went into making them. That being said the old soul in me is also a little miffed that I had to rent Call Me By Your Name for $3.99, in other words, I paid 4 dollars to watch a kid masturbate with an apricot (1:36:00 – 1:37:31).

I understand teenagers/young adults are hormonal, horny monsters that would bang anything pulse optional, but NO ONE DOES THAT EVER, and if they do… in the words of my friend Elyse, “Do you boo” (I want my money back). A humorous question does pop up in my head; do LGBTQ people get grossed out at straight people make out and sex scenes? Or do they not really care? Just some food for thought, and in the spirit of these humorous/philosophical points can we say that there is a definite style of gay movies, a “Queer style” if you will? I do not believe there is a queer visual style as after reviewing these movies they seem to be filmed, as any other film would be. Scenes such as Elio in Call Me By Your Name courting Marzia (1:08:20 – 1:09:45) are filmed the exact same way (in daylight and moonlight scenes) as scenes between Elio and Oliver’s (55:30 – 57:20) courtship/blossoming relationship. The way the relationship between Elio and Oliver and the relationship between Elio and Marzia is filmed, specifically how the camera captures it (not the writing or emotions the actors portray) is not stylistically different from each other and therefore at least for this movie does not show any “Queer Visual Style”. I also believe that a queer visual style takes away from the fact that queer, gay, trans, and lesbians are people just like you and me and a stylistic difference in visual portrayal could alienate them and make them seem all too different from regular people. Take Moonlight for instance, that movie is beautifully shot, and although scenes such as his struggle to play soccer with “the boys” (13:51 – 16:51) exemplify that he isn’t soft but something inside Chiron (his gay orientation) lurks behind and gives everyone the impression that there is something different about Chiron and that gives them the impression of him being soft. I see no difference in the visual style of that and say the shot of him learning about the pangs of becoming older and realizing one’s wildness in youth must give way to becoming what he wants to be (19:40 - 21:17).

In my opinion there is no difference in visual style whether the movie is queer or hetero-normative. Hollywood, in particular a good story has always had the ability to change my mind about many things. And how, you ask yourself, how can a movie “queer me” and surprisingly, Brokeback Mountain did just “queer” me a little. The deep friendship, bond, and further relationship bond made me see that two men can truly love each other and despite all the norms and tradition they break, still have that fond and unbreakable connection 20 years later (The movie starts in 1963 and ends in 1983). It reminded me of my friend Joe and I, and no we aren’t involved like that but I do consider him a second brother and my closest friend. Where I draw the parallel is that despite being hours away from each other they have managed to remain close just like me and my friend Joe have despite me moving some three years ago. 

No scene shows this excitement and happiness more than their first meeting after the stint on Brokeback Mountain (1:03:45 – 1:04:25) 

and this scene really shows us as the audience the attachment these two feel for each other (even though it completely doomed Ennis’s marriage but we are not focusing on that). Throughout the movie they meet up throughout the years, their passion still lively as ever, and throughout the movie, even though I am not gay or bear romantic feelings towards my best friend Joe, I kept thinking to myself… “Are me and Joe going to be this close with me in a few years…? Am I? I wonder if we’ll ever go on guys’ trips and do some cool shit before we settle down. And that’s the magic of Brokeback Mountain, it humanizes us and most importantly for its time humanized relationships that were unconventional. And for those who aren’t gay, it made me think about my relationships with my family and friends and how close and tight I am with them, and again even though my feelings aren’t of the sexual or romantic kind towards them… I’m still able to sympathize, empathize, and relate to the story of two dudes separated by time and distance never skipping a beat and having a grand ole time. Of course I acknowledge that they had tension in their relationship especially due to the urging of Jack “Fuckin’” Twist to have them leave their lives behind and start anew together and Ennis rejecting the notion due to a past witnessing of a hate crime, however I am choosing to focus on the closeness and bonding aspect and how people gay or not gay can relate to that and relate it to all their relationships. To quote the character Mr. Bucci from Call Me By Your Name (58:38) “Cinema is a mirror of reality and it is a filter”, LGBTQ people have always struggled for acceptance of who they and this is portrayed in movies such as Brokeback Mountain, Call Me By Your Name, and Moonlight among others, without alienating themselves in a distinct visual and rather being filmed as people like you and me, cause again they are people like you and me, they just vibe a little different.

[mariacallous]

(Sorry if this is too personal for an anon ask. )You’ve posted about Catholicism and also about being trans, which along with other factors has clearly had a major influence on your feelings about your attraction to men. How would you describe your current feelings about the church and your place in it? Would you want a Catholic wedding, assuming you found a really cool priest/church? If you had kids, would you want them to be raised Catholic as well?

Did my therapist pay you to ask me this?

We’ll go in order:

-How I would describe my current feelings about the Church and my place in it is: unsure. When I was younger, angrier, and more deeply repressed and closeted, I went through a very insistent agnostic/atheistic period of my life (I also at one point was going to become a Buddhist and got rightly corrected by my friends who were practicing Buddhists. I also went through a period where both bisexual and asexual seemed to fit without knowing about or touching on the trans aspect. All of this between the ages of 12 and 21) and yet kept thinking and engaging and always somehow (ecclesiastically speaking, separate from the gender and sexual identity element) managed to find my way back to the Church. As I thought about it more and as I got older, I came to recognize the rituals and traditions that, oddly enough, had provided comfort. The seeming sense of stability the Church provided, but also its regular (if not always consistent) shifts and changes.and adaptations. The fact that literally from birth I’d been immersed in it, and seeing my dad really start to embrace it (my mom never wavered in her faith or participation), and really connecting to the messages and ideals of the Church’s teachings. That’s also where the dissonance comes in, because so many of the Catholics that I personally know are very progressive and understanding, and yet so many of the Official Stances and Authorities of the Church are so regressive and, to me and them, so divorced from the reality of what the Church is supposed to be about. Ash Wednesday was the first time I’d gone into a church since starting to formally transition and present and it was so surreal in both good and bad ways. I think part of the issue is that I feel like there is a place for me in the Catholic Church, as I am, and that I’m not going against God or defiling my body.

-Would I want a Catholic wedding, if I found a really cool priest/church: What’s funny is, if you had asked me like even 2 years ago if I wanted a Catholic wedding, I would have laughed and said that it was bold to assume I’d ever be in a position to marry period and also that I had planned on dying alone and being the cool family friend to people. I used to be obnoxious about talking about how love is a chemical reaction and hormones and so forth, and it was all basically something I’d convinced myself of to justify not dealing with things or taking other paths in life. And so now that I’ve started dealing with a lot and making all these changes, I find I would want a Catholic wedding. One of the fantasies I’ve had is getting married in the Mission San Carlos Borromeo del Río Carmelo down near Monterey - it’s one of my favorite places and it’s got so much family history there, and I have to be careful about thinking about it too much because right now the chance or likelihood of that happening is on par with the Catholic Church forgiving Martin Luther and Henry VIII, or Mike Pence being named a Cardinal. It also would depend on what my spouse (whomever they are) would also want in this scenario. The point of marriage (besides historically codifying property agreements and alliances and restricting bloodlines) is that it’s a commitment between two people (who should be equal partners and support each other).

-If I had kids, would I want them to be Catholic as well: Maybe? At this point biological children are a non-issue, due to my not being able to, you know, become pregnant or give birth, and preserving any genetic material from me to attempt it down the road is too costly, especially for something with a slim possibility. I have no desire to explore any kind of surrogate path or anything like that. I would like adoption (assuming I would be financially stable enough, have a partner, and be approved) as biological relationship is really irrelevant. It would depend on my hypothetical partner/spouse and how they felt. There’s something nice about being able to share this part of my life with others, and see how they develop their relationship with the Church. But I also feel like I would want them to find their own path, even if it means they wouldn’t be a part of the Church. I’m barely even an APEX Catholic myself at this point, so I couldn’t exactly be strict about it.

[necropsittacus]

I got a request for an Infodump Post on the Revelation imagery in King of the Monsters and tbqh one of my love languages is being asked about my Ghidorah opinions so Here We Go

note: I’m using the New International Version of the Bible, and also I have not rewatched KOTM for this (although I may end up deciding to do that) and am going on memories of my approximately three and a half past viewings. Other note: most of this is going to be me presenting specific Bible quotes and then talking about them a bit. Be prepared for that. also this feels super unfinished to me and shorter than it should be to treat the topic properly, and like i need to rewatch the movie and write an essay 

The whole movie, and Ghidorah in particular, is very focused around apocalypse imagery--the end of the world, the rebuilding of a cleaner, better new world, the breakdown of that attempt to rebuild a better world. This has to do with the Book of Revelation’s focus on the destruction of the world as we know it and the coming of the Kingdom of Heaven. 

except that here the attempt to destroy and remake the world (which, in Revelation, is an act of God, with the Devil as a major part of the narrative but not the prime mover) A. fails, and B. isn’t treated as a good idea to start with by the narrative. While the ending, and specifically information we get in the credits, does show us progress towards a better, brighter future for the world, it’s more “gradual healing” than “apocalypse and rebirth.” The burn-it-all-down apocalypse-and-rebirth style of fixing the world is rather associated with Ghidorah, and the people who release/awaken him. The human villains want to purge the world of humanity’s sins. 

This is one of those places where the religious commentary mixes with commentary on environmental/climate change issues...Alan Jonah’s plan is standing in for, well, y’all know what kind of environmental rhetoric, the “humans are the plague, burn it all down so the earth can heal” type. They’re making a point about the inviability of that kind of goal, that you can’t just kill everyone and start over and hope the earth will fix itself, because it won’t (and, here, trying to make it work like that actively makes things worse--Ghidorah has no interest in *fixing* anything), and that gets mixed with the religious imagery in fun ways. 

It could also have to do with the “false king of the monsters”/“Antichrist stands in the place of Christ” idea--Ghidorah is taking the role, as the one breaking and remaking the world, that in Revelation is assigned to God, but he’s more the Devil. 

And that plays into the image of Ghidorah as the false Christ, the false prophet, the Antichrist--releasing him is supposed to cleanse the world of “humanity’s” sins (and this movie doesn’t explicitly go into the problems with that kind of approach--that it’s not humanity it’s capitalism--but I might argue that it’s implicit--that killing off humanity as an approach is explicitly criticized, it doesn’t work, it fails spectacularly), it just...doesn’t work that way, actually 

Revelation 1:8 “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.” 

I’m inclined to link this (and the idea is repeated a few times in Revelation, and elsewhere in the New Testament, this is just the clearest example) with the “they were here before us and they’ll be here after us” theme in KOTM. 

One of the major things that happens in Revelation is the opening, one by one, of seven seals on a scroll, each opening followed by a new disaster. I’m inclined to link this to the unsealing and release from stasis of the Titans (supposed to be one by one, although of course Ghidorah disrupts this). 

The Storm Theme

Luke 10:18 I saw Satan fall from heaven like lightning.

Rev. 11:19 Then God’s temple in heaven was opened, and within his temple was seen the ark of his covenant. And there came flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, an earthquake and a severe hailstorm.

Rev. 8:5 Then the angel took the censer, filled it with fire from the altar, and hurled it on the earth; and there came peals of thunder, rumblings, flashes of lightning and an earthquake.

It’s not clear from that quote, but what’s happening here is the opening of the seventh and final seal (mentioned above). 

While Ghidorah’s primary weapons were originally gravity beams, here they more resemble lightning or electricity (or that has consistently been my impression, anyway). This image is reinforced by his/their identification with a tropical storm. I may be reaching with this, but in context of what I’m talking about below I don’t think it’s unfair to bring up the Luke 10:18 quote in this context, as well as the storms and lightning tied to apocalypse more generally.

This is, or leads into, one of the places where I really like how the climate change apocalypse symbolism I’ve been assured by other people is in there is folded in with the religious apocalypse symbolism. 

Ghidorah represents both something that is unnatural, not part of the established order, a destructive force the planet is not prepared to handle (specifically in the form of destructive weather patterns--which has been pointed out to me as climate change imagery, although I didn’t initially pick up on it myself) and as both Satan and Antichrist from the Book of Revelation.

First, Ghidorah-as-Satan:

The motif of a fight against a multi-headed dragon is in itself arguable as Revelation imagery; Satan primarily appears as a dragon. 

Rev. 12:3 Then another sign appeared in heaven: an enormous red dragon with seven heads and ten horns and seven crowns on its heads. 4 Its tail swept a third of the stars out of the sky and flung them to the earth. 

...

Rev. 12:7 Then war broke out in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back. 8 But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven. 9 The great dragon was hurled down—that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him. 

Here specifically we get the notion of a malevolent, multi-headed (and crowned--this one’s more metaphorical but checks out with the “false king” thing) dragon being thrown down from the sky, and also the forces more sympathetic to humanity triumphing over the dragon. Also, there’s more “star(s) falling from Heaven” imagery elsewhere that feels at least as relevant, but that gives me feelings. 

Ghidorah as Antichrist

It’s not explicit in the Bible verses I’m working with (or particularly anywhere in the Bible), but I should have a little bit here before I start talking about it too much about what exactly the Antichrist is. The Christian concept of the Antichrist is someone who opposes Jesus and sets himself in the place of Jesus/God, and thus leads the world astray. 

Wikipedia: “Antichrist is translated from the combination of two ancient Greek words αντί + Χριστός (anti + Christos). In Greek, Χριστός means "anointed one" and the word Christ derives from it.[6] Therefore, an antichrist opposes Christ by substituting himself for Christ.”

I want to point out the “substituting himself for Christ” piece here especially, in relation to Ghidorah’s status as the “false king of the monsters.”

Also, it should maybe be noted that a lot of interpretations don’t have one singular Antichrist figure (or even two), but rather an institution, a group, or many people can be meant by the Antichrist (e.g. in a lot of heretical and Protestant traditions the Catholic Church may be Antichrist). Here I’m treating the term Antichrist as referring to one singular figure, who is interchangeable with the Beast, because in the movie we get a specific character in the role. ALSO, the term “Antichrist” is never actually used in Revelation, and may or may not refer to the same thing as “the Beast;” my interpretation, a fairly standard one, is that the Beast is the Antichrist, but YMMV on that. 

For convenience’s sake, I am going to be using “Antichrist” or “The Beast” interchangeably

and “the False Prophet” for the other beast; the terms are a little wigglier in actual usage. Additionally, the figure I’m calling the False Prophet is often conceptualized as a second, lesser or “mystical” Antichrist whose coming presages the “great” Antichrist (the Beast).

One of the slightly off things about these parallels is that while in Revelation there are three separate figures, Satan/the dragon, the Beast, and the False Prophet, in KOTM there are only two, Ghidorah and Rodan. Thus, Ghidorah derives his authority from himself alone, and not from an additional external figure (which also jives with the Satan connection, IMO; Satan’s whole thing in some interpretations is claiming authority for himself).

I’m going to repeat the introduction we get to the Beast here in full. There’s not a ton of physical similarity between the description we get of the Beast and Ghidorah besides the multiple heads, and, as mentioned, Ghidorah grants himself authority, not any external power, but there are other significant parallels:

Rev. 13:1 The dragon stood on the shore of the sea. And I saw a beast coming out of the sea. It had ten horns and seven heads, with ten crowns on its horns, and on each head a blasphemous name. 2 The beast I saw resembled a leopard, but had feet like those of a bear and a mouth like that of a lion. The dragon gave the beast his power and his throne and great authority.  

13:3 One of the heads of the beast seemed to have had a fatal wound, but the fatal wound had been healed. The whole world was filled with wonder and followed the beast.

We get this explicitly, which is the first piece of Revelation imagery that was pointed out to me--Godzilla bites off Ghidorah’s third head, which regrows (right before he claims the throne fully). 

 4 People worshiped the dragon because he had given authority to the beast, and they also worshiped the beast and asked, “Who is like the beast? Who can wage war against it?” 5 The beast was given a mouth to utter proud words and blasphemies and to exercise its authority for forty-two months. 6 It opened its mouth to blaspheme God, and to slander his name and his dwelling place and those who live in heaven. 7 It was given power to wage war against God’s holy people and to conquer them. And it was given authority over every tribe, people, language and nation.

This is, again, Ghidorah fully claiming the title of king, and being obeyed/followed by (most of) the other Titans. 

Rodan as False Prophet

Rev. 13:11 Then I saw a second beast, coming out of the earth. It had two horns like a lamb, but it spoke like a dragon. 12 It exercised all the authority of the first beast on its behalf, and made the earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast, whose fatal wound had been healed. 13 And it performed great signs, even causing fire to come down from heaven to the earth in full view of the people.

Here we do get something for the physical description; I think it’s interesting that KOTM Rodan doesn’t quite resemble older material!Rodan (who as far as I can tell, and certainly in Jurassic City which is the other thing I’ve seen with him in it, tends to be basically just a weird red giant Pteranodon, “giant bird” comments from characters in-universe notwithstanding) as much as the other non-original characters. For the most part they just made him a lot birdier, and I don’t think “match the Bible description of the second beast” was like, a driving force in that, but he does sort of have horns. That’s mostly beside the point, anyway; if we’re taking Ghidorah-as-the-Beast as a given, Rodan is clearly the other Beast acting as essentially a second-in-command and herald to the first one. The fire coming down from heaven thing is significant; you could also take “coming out of the earth” to apply to his emergence from a volcano. 

14 Because of the signs it was given power to perform on behalf of the first beast, it deceived the inhabitants of the earth. It ordered them to set up an image in honor of the beast who was wounded by the sword and yet lived. 15 The second beast was given power to give breath to the image of the first beast, so that the image could speak and cause all who refused to worship the image to be killed.  16 It also forced all people, great and small, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hands or on their foreheads, 17 so that they could not buy or sell unless they had the mark, which is the name of the beast or the number of its name. 18 This calls for wisdom. Let the person who has insight calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man. That number is 666.

Most of this doesn’t really say anything new for the parallels I’m reading into it, and there’s no equivalence to the idolatry or the Mark of the Beast, I just really like the false prophet as a figure, and it reinforces the “given authority under the first, higher-ranking Beast” thing. 

Miscellaneous other things

Thessalonians 2:7 And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will destroy with the breath of his mouth, annihilating him by the manifestation of his coming. 

“The lawless one” is another common descriptor for Antichrist. I want to point out “destroy with the breath of his mouth” in context of the ending and Godzilla’s atomic breath. 

Additionally, Godzilla’s own rise from the brink of death (after having been nearly killed while acting in a capacity helpful to humanity (fighting Ghidorah), at that) parallels a very central motif in Christianity (the rise of Jesus from the dead). 

Rev. 5:15 Then the kings of the earth, the princes, the generals, the rich, the mighty, and everyone else, both slave and free, hid in caves and among the rocks of the mountains. 

This gives me feelings re everyone who can going to hide in bunkers.

I’m not going through the whole movie again looking for illustrations for this, it’s probably long enough as is, but I have this one saved anyway and I think it makes the Christianity theme REALLY blatant:

Just the framing of the shot here, the cross in the foreground, and Ghidorah’s pose kind of mimicking it, is telling.

I also want to point out this verse in terms of the visuals here: 

Rev. 8:12 The fourth angel sounded his trumpet, and a third of the sun was struck, a third of the moon, and a third of the stars, so that a third of them turned dark. A third of the day was without light, and also a third of the night. 

We very much do tend to get dark sky.

Rev. 8:7 The first angel sounded his trumpet, and there came hail and fire mixed with blood, and it was hurled down on the earth. A third of the earth was burned up, a third of the trees were burned up, and all the green grass was burned up. 

this feels like More Rodan Imagery Things

Rev. 8:8 The second angel sounded his trumpet, and something like a huge mountain, all ablaze, was thrown into the sea. A third of the sea turned into blood, 9 a third of the living creatures in the sea died, and a third of the ships were destroyed. 10 The third angel sounded his trumpet, and a great star, blazing like a torch, fell from the sky on a third of the rivers and on the springs of water— 11 the name of the star is Wormwood. A third of the waters turned bitter, and many people died from the waters that had become bitter. 

The first part of this, and the bitter waters, feel reminiscent of the Oxygen Destroyer idea (though that was taken from the original Godzilla, so I don’t think they stole this bit outright so much as they found a place they could mix Bible parallels with the older material they were working off). Also, there’s a volcano, probably. And “star falling from heaven” is again always a Ghidorah vibe for me, given the whole “alien descended to earth” thing; same thing with this next line:

Rev. 9:1 The fifth angel sounded his trumpet, and I saw a star that had fallen from the sky to the earth. The star was given the key to the shaft of the Abyss. 

And also, I can’t remember if the thing about his responsibility for the K-Pg extinction event I’ve seen around a few times is a fandom thing or suggested in the movie, but if it is canon--that’s another place that folds the Biblical imagery in with the scientific mass extinction imagery. 

Rev. 9:19 The power of the horses was in their mouths and in their tails; for their tails were like snakes, having heads with which they inflict injury. 

This isn’t necessarily actually a Ghidorah vibe but “tails like snakes used to inflict injury” does make me Feel Some Things in that regard. 

There’s also some other stuff I Think might be readable in that direction, but I’m not as certain about any of it and this is really long as is. 

My conclusion is basically just...they went fucking ham with the Revelation imagery in this movie, both to play into the more major theme of environmental destruction, and I honestly speculate as a response to the criticisms of some other American Godzilla stuff as “taking the God out of Godzilla”--if that’s the case, they’d be putting a sense of spiritual reference into the movie that would be more familiar to a lot of Western audiences compared to the hints of that in the original Godzilla. and i love it and i’m always a slut for the book of revelation 

Thank you very much for reading.