#ch: christian yang

[yumeika]

The Sacred Sins of Father Black + Character Names

This book has been bouncing around my head for the past week or so and made me go out in the pouring rain to get my grubby little heathen hands on a copy of the Bible from the nearest bookstore to further understand Christian theology. Therefore, I’d like to get some of my thoughts out here. I’ll start with names here and talk about the chapters and themes in a different post once I’ve gathered more information since this post is already quite long. 

Quentin Day

Quentin of Amiens is a saint who was martyred in modern day Saint-Quentin, Aisne in France during the Diocletianic Persecution. He is the patron saint of prisoners and locksmiths - a fun little thing to keep in mind while you’re reading the prison breakout scene with Hamish in Chapter 19. 

I wasn’t able to find too much information on him, but it seems he’s quite popular in France, with many cities named after him. 

The surname “Day” has many possible roots, one of which is a derivative of the name “David.” I found this interesting - considering how his partner Hamish is portrayed and how a small but methodical act on Quentin’s part leads to the destruction of Hamish’s career and a catalyst for his death, this would make Quentin the David to Hamish’s Goliath. 

Another more obvious reason his name is Day is his role as the Sun at the end of the book. The character design of white hair + honey skin + dark eyes make me think of Yang, in contrast to Father Black’s light eyes + dark hair symbolising Yin. 

Hamish

There are two ways to pronounce this name: Hay-mish and Ha-meesh. The former is the Scottish form of “James,” a name meaning “supplanter.” The latter is a Yiddish/Arab name. I figured Hay-mish was the correct pronunciation for the following reasons:

The character himself doubles as both an antagonist and a symbol for a corrupt, self-serving government taking advantage of its citizens. Considering this story takes place in the US, a way to characterise this would be in the form of a white man who abuses his power. A white man of Scottish descent playing the role Hamish does in the story would be more fitting than having a white man of Jewish/Arab descent in that role.

“For a brief moment... like it was Hamish’s body they were carrying” to the well for a sacrifice. (Ch. 17, page 122). In the end, Hamish does end up becoming the sacrifice, “supplanting” the dummy and the other forms of sacrifice for the well.  

Just a hunch, but I don’t think Hamish likes Jews and Arabs and would go by something else if he had a Jewish/Arab sounding name lmfao

Sebastian Black

Sebastian is another saint that was martyred during the Diocletianic Persecution. There’s a lot to cover with him and I’m not sure where to start.

First, I invite you to look at paintings of Saint Sebastian on your search engine. Do you notice something? That’s right - a lot of them are drawn in an erotic manner for some reason or another. In fact, they are so horny that one of those paintings was the sexual awakening of Kochan, the protagonist of the book Confessions of a Mask.  Confessions of a Mask is an autobiographical account of the author Mishima Yukio’s life, and Mishima himself went on to pay homage to the painting during the later years of his life. Some articles even credit Saint Sebastian as the patron saint of homosexuals. 

Saint Sebastian’s influence on the LGBT+ community is wonderfully summarised here, and you can find various depictions of him drawn by more modern homosexual artists such as David Wojnarowicz and John Keith Vaughan. 

All that to say: it’s a good name for a sexy gay priest. 

Tying in with his association with the LGBT+ community, he is a patron of the plague-stricken - the litany and short film Sancte Sebastian ora pro nobis calls upon Saint Sebastian for protection against pestilence, specifically naming AIDS. I’ve seen a couple of articles saying the gay community in the 1980s also prayed to Saint Sebastian for their sick brothers, but I couldn’t find any primary sources.

While the community of Hopewell doesn’t have a plague, it does have the issue of being a town with little income. In Father Black’s words, “This town is dying.” (Ch 14, page 110), and he considers it his duty to carry on with the wine forgery despite the risks to help his people. 

Going back to Sancte Sebastian ora pro nobis, there is a part that states:

Use your unstoppable energy not to punish but only to humble those who dedicate themselves to oppression and evil.

And we know what happened to Hamish in the end.  ┐(￣∀￣)┌

There are a couple of other parallels I could draw, such as the two martyrdoms of Saint Sebastian and Quentin’s exposure to the forgery papers two times, but I feel like they’d be a bit of a stretch. 

Also, Saint Sebastian is the patron saint of athletes, and Father Black is mentioned to be quite athletic. You know that man is ripped from carrying around all those chairs for Sunday school. 

The surname “Black” could be complimentary to Quentin’s “Day” and Father Black’s role as the Moon to Quentin’s Sun. It is also a colour primarily associated with sin.

Lindsay Woodmancy

This is probably another stretch, but Lindsay’s name is associated with linden trees, a symbol of Freyja and Aphrodite - both goddesses of love and fertility. Like how the name of the bar being “Bacchus” is a nod to the town’s wine and cultural practices, Lindsay’s name is another reference to the non-Christian practices we see in Hopewell. 

But this is also a name you can get from pulling up a name generator, so take this one with a grain of salt. 

[planetesl]

Types of religion in Korea

For many Koreans, the emphasize spiritual aspects of life and religion are a source of strength and support. Statistics indicate that most Koreans have a religion- Christian, 49 percent; Buddhist, 47 percent, Confucianist, three percent; Shamanist, Ch´ondogyo (Religion of the Heavenly Way) and others, 1 percent (CIA, 2000). Historically, kings in the United Silla and Koryo dynasties encouraged Buddhism, while those in the Choson dynasty switched to Confucianism, blaming corrupted Buddhism for the previous kingdoms’ demise. Currently, Koreans enjoy freedom of choice in religion and lead a rather harmonious life despite their diverse religions, even among family members. The various belief systems are mutually reinforcing and do not conflict with values that underlie the daily lives of Koreans. Koreans tend to be open to the teachings of other religions and respect others’ choices, so they are puzzled when violent wars break out over religious conflicts in other parts of the world.

It is not a surprise then, that the beliefs and values reflected in common Korean culture are a sophisticated mixture of Buddhism, Confucianism, Shamanism and other religions. Influences from Buddhism are reflected in attitudes of benevolence toward all living creatures and beliefs about this world and a thereafter in the concept of karma. Confucian influences are seen in ancestor worship and the moral codes for proper human relationships. Shamanism is reflected in animistic orientation and thinking. The Umyang theory (Yin-Yang in Chinese) is seen in folk religious beliefs of the human as an integral part of nature, which requires people to learn the ways of nature and harmonize with them. Confucianism is more a philosophy than a religion, but the teachings of Confucianists pervade the way Korean people have thought and behaved over the past five to six centuries. Many believe that Korea was influenced more by Confucianism than was China, Confucius’ native country. In addition to Confucianism, the lives of Korean immigrants are also heavily influenced by Buddhism and Christianity in ways that are briefly summarized below. Nearly half of Koreans consider Buddhism their religion and think of “Buddha’s birthday” as a national holiday parallel to “Jesus’ birthday,” Christmas. Buddhism is reflected in the beliefs of reincarnation and retribution. For example, all creatures alive in the world must go through an endless cycle of birth, getting old, illness, and death. In the Buddhist belief, disability is part of a natural life process. Buddhists emphasize benevolence and believe in reincarnation, in other words, what you are now depends upon how you lived in your previous life. How you live your life now will decide your life after death. Christianity was introduced to Korea in the 18th century through the Jesuit missionaries. It spread so quickly that the king considered a threat to national unity and actively persecuted the early missionaries. In the late 19th century, Protestant missionaries arrived and established many hospitals and schools. Koreans have embraced Christianity in its many forms. Currently, nearly half of the Korean population is Christian and many of the largest Christian churches in the world are located in Korea. Membership in Korean-American Christian churches also has grown rapidly.

[swanskov]

welcome to almira's fuckboi brigade!!! (i'm kidding only like 1 1/2 of them are fuckbois pls)

just a disclaimer that this is messy and incoherent i don’t know what i’m doing u guys

spencer choi + 25 / jang kiyong / heir

born and raised in gangnam, south korea and moved to australia when he was a young boy after his parents divorced

filthy rich!!! his dad’s ceo of ?? something i haven’t decided on yet ?? probably an oil company lmao but he’s always away on business trips so he never really spent a lot of time with his kids

his mother ?? he has no idea where she is and what she’s doing so

he grew up spoiled as the eldest son and often acted out to get his father’s attention but it never really worked as his father thought constantly changing nannies and tutors would be the answer

if you knew him through high school you would’ve heard his name around since he was p involved with the student council and sports teams (more notably, football and volleyball)

spencer cleaned up his act after graduating and going to university for his undergraduate bachelor’s degree before leaving to a foreign country for his business masters

a former fuckboi??? he fell in love with his best friend and they were super cute when they dated but then they broke up when he left to get his masters and now that he’s back he has yet to face her and hope she hadn’t found someone new 

he’s definitely going to need friends he met during his high school / uni days!!! perhaps fellow wealthy people he meets at galas and charity events all the time?? extended family mb??

justin miller + 20 / kevin moon / film student

justin was born in sydney, australia and was given up for adoption after his parents were deemed unfit to take care of a child

he was adopted by the millers and only ever remembers moving to melbourne and being raised by them

growing up he’s always loved learning!!! books were (and still are) everything to him and he took interest in a lot of the subjects taught in school

certified Nerd with a brain full of useless trivia knowledge

he fell in love with theatre in high school but he was never interested in being the star - he’s more comfortable being behind the scenes and helping with the direction of the show

he just loves filmography on top of theatre??? major john hughes fan, sixteen candles is his Shit

very awkward and reserved at first glance - but once he feels comfortable around you he’ll be witty and spontaneous!!!

very emotional and sympathetic, always willing to listen even if he doesn’t give good advice

pls!!!!! give him friends who have made their way into his life one way or another!!! also i have an idea for a potential biological brother finding him in melbourne??? bc i love familial drama and reuniting brothers????

hetian “christian” yang + 23 / lin yanjun / idol on hiatus

literally ?? the opposite of justin lmao believes he was born to be a Star

he’s a part of a boy group with zeno sinclair and the group has been on hiatus after a scandal involving that member so now christian has flown to australia in search of his member out of boredom

christian honestly shouldn’t even be in australia he should be in korea or china gearing up for a solo promotion or something but nah here he is!!!!

as someone who’s been training since he was in high school he’s never had the chance to relax this much before so uh, thanks australia 

he’s a greasy ass idol who spouts pick up lines and flirtatious compliments and smug smiles accompanied with winks 

he also whines whenever he doesn’t get the attention he thinks he deserves 

if you’re acquainted with him he’s most likely going to call you asking if you want to inhale a shit ton of carbs at 2 am (idol diet ? what’s that ?)

rip i don’t have much thought out for him yet aside from him being an overconfident, self loving dumbass but !!!! mb he has a cousin or someone he can connect with in australia bc rn he’s literally a fish out of water and it’s making him uncomfortable!! also i’d love to have like ... a meet cute opposites plot where mb he meets someone who isn’t all that impressed by him being an idol and he’s just ???? in shock bc what au is he in rn ???

but yes if anyone’s interested in plotting pls!!!! hmu here or on discord @ almira#6481

[mercyandmagic]

Hi, mercyandmagic thank you for answering my asks... :D

Don't know if you remember, but I've asked before of your top 5 fav mxtx characters, and you've answered yours. If you don't mind me asking, can I ask you, why you like those characters (in a longer asnwer)? Sorry, if I ask you similar question again......

Yessss. This gonna be long. We’ll start from 5th and work our way to #1. 

5. Wei Wuxian

First, there’s just something incredibly refreshing about an untamed (ahem) character who says the thing everyone thinks but won’t dare say. It is my second-favorite character trope (We’ll get to the first). Plus, he has a great sense of justice and a self-sacrificing spirit... and yet he is capable of great cruelty, sadism, and hurting others to vent his pain (Nightless City, Wen Chao). Believe it or not, the fact that he has done great evil he cannot undo makes me love him more... because he knows it.  

In Chapter 68, when he’s confronted, he doesn’t deny killing Fang Mengchen’s parents, nor taking Yi Weichun’s leg. He doesn’t show anger at their valid pain; he merely points out that nothing he can do now will undo the damage he caused. 

He also has a low tolerance for BS and a high level of empathy. The fact that he scoffs at the cultivators gossiping against Jin Guangyao, the fact that he isn’t happy they have a new scapegoat, speaks a lot. Plus, he can easily understand why the Hook Hand’s final victim needs to scream (Ch. 124), why Jin Guangyao spared Sisi (Ch. 111) and made the Guanyin Temple (Ch. 110), why Nie Huaisang doesn’t want to admit what he did (Ch. 110), etc. Wei Wuxian is just great.

4. Qin Su

She deserves far more appreciation than she gets. She was involved in the Sunshot Campaign. When society judged Jin Guangyao and Meng Shi for their status, Qin Su never did. She loved the man who saved her life. She was willful enough to be the pursuer in her relationship with Jin Guangyao (Ch. 47), and was open to sleeping with him to ascertain their marriage (Ch. 106). She’s naive and trusting, despite losing her son. She’s loyal AF even to Bicao, even though Bicao literally sold her out for jewelry (ahem, Ch. 85). 

Qin Su. only has a short side role in the larger novel, but she’s a fully developed human.  That’s incredible.

3. Lan Wangji

I relate to Lan Wangji more than any of the other characters. Not being able to communicate, or being afraid to – relatable. Plus, having grown up fundamentalist Christian, I find the way in which Lan Wangji’s stubborn rule-following gives way to a willingness to break the rules when it does no harm or helps those he loves... inspiring. Like, he goes from having himself beaten for being pulled outside the Cloud Recesses (something this scrupulosity-sufferer relates to very well) to giving Wei Wuxian the Emperor’s Smile hidden in the Jingshi (Ch. 65).  

If I may add, I read MDZS around the same time I watched GOT Season 8. There’s a similarity in how Wei Wuxian and Daenerys Targaryen have murderous breakdowns after losing everything and everyone close to them. And yet instead of putting Wei Wuxian down like a dog (side eyes Jon Snow), Lan Wangji takes him away, tries to save him, still believes he is capable of good. In his own words, he’s “willing to bear all of the consequences with [Wei Wuxian].” Lan Wangji believes in redemption, in chance after chance. He’s refreshing in a world that believes one deed can stain you forever. I love him.

2. Lan Xichen

He’s just... good? Like, really good? He has to balance leading a clan with a society that is very Not Good, and this definitely leads to some gray points (The Wens, saying nothing in support of Mianmian, etc). But he, like Qin Su, refuses to judge people for origins. He always has to see the good in others – as Ch. 105 says, “whenever he heard there might be hidden reasons, he just had to hear it.” Lan Xichen wants to know and sympathize with everyone’s reasons. That’s just... wonderful. 

It’s notable that his whereabouts for the First Siege of the Burial Mounds are unknown. Lan Qiren led the Gusu Lan Clan, not Lan Xichen (Ch. 68). Which makes me speculate that while he thought Wei Wuxian was done for, he couldn’t bear to participate in killing the man his brother loved.   

He’s a touch avoidant, as seen when he tells Wei Wuxian he does not want to know why his mother killed his father’s teacher (Ch. 64). (I will also defend him agains the charges that he was wrong to try to reconcile Nie Mingjue and Jin Guangyao – they were his friends and Lan Xichen believed in them. Those two made their own choices, and it was Not Lan Xichen’s Fault). 

Anyhow, he’s good. And he loves Jin Guangyao. I know MXTX said she did not write a romance with them, and I don’t think they ever would have cheated on Qin Su. But that does not diminish that Lan Xichen’s seclusion at the end of the novel, is described as “exactly reversed” from when Lan Wangji was mourning Wei Wuxian (Ch. 114).  

1. Jin Guangyao

My favorite character. trope, the sneaky bastard with daddy issues! What makes Jin Guangyao stand out even among all my favorite sneaky bastards is that... his actions are so very gray that IMO he’s not even really a villain.

For real, what did Jin Guangyao do? Kill his brother who tried to kill him first and was slowly losing his grip on reality and hurting him and Nie Huaisang anyways? (Ch. 49, 50) It was still wrong – and I firmly believe that the motivation was payback for ‘son of a prostitute,’  (as Wei Wuxian suggests, Ch. 104) and not safety – but my point remains. (Plus there’s the implication that Jin Guangshan willed it, too). (Ch. 106).

Married his lover after discovering she was his sister to keep her from being an unwed mother? (Ch. 106) In that situation, I wish he had told Qin Su so she could choose, too, but I fail to find anything condemnable in Jin Guangyao’s actions there. 

Furthermore, when writing “Sentiment” and now “Sunlit Jade,” what I’ve been struck by is that most of his misdeeds end with killing Jin Guangshan. 

The possible exception is Jin Rusong (and since our main source for the idea of cold-blooded filicide and framing of an innocent clan leader is Clan Leader Yao, I am highly skeptical). And Xue Yang remaining alive, but again, we don’t know if Jin Guangyao chose to let him go with a warning/beating severe enough to disable his leg, or if Jin Guangyao truly meant to kill him (I favor the former position, but it’s open for interpretation).

Now, how Jin Guangyao kills and the fact that he does kill his father is wrong. Burning the brothel? Wrong, though I understand his hatred of that place and the people there. Killing the He Clan? Wrong, but 1) it’s on his father’s orders, and 2) he has a rather intriguing reaction when Xue Yang shuts He Su in alive with the corpses. (Ch. 118). 

He looks for something to “comfort” himself. 

This is strange, because he’s previously been a torturer (Ch. 47). What is more torture to him? 

I don’t know the answer, but it speaks to someone who suffers a lot, who did a lot of terrible things in pursuit of a love from his father that never came. And someone who, once he gains power in the position of Chief Cultivator, implements a program to save more commoners’ lives than ever before (Ch. 42).

That’s not the action of a villain.

[Sidenote, and based off a comment that wryhun on AO3 once left me: What I love the most about Jin Guangyao, and MDZS as a whole, is depending on the perspective you take, anyone can be an antagonist or a protagonist.

Jiang Cheng can be Wei Wuxian’s tsundere shidi (reader perspective), or he can be the serial killer of demonic cultivators who refuses to help commoners with spirits unless people have already died (Innkeeper’s perspective, Ch. 92).

Nie Huaisang can be the avenging didi (often a fan’s perspective), or the person who treated the juniors like fodder, killed cats, and sliced up a woman’s body just for revenge (Wei Wuxian’s perspective in Ch. 110, Jin Guangyao’s perspective in Ch. 108).]  

Jin Guangyao is an antagonist because his goals conflict with Wei Wuxian’s. But he’s really no worse than many of the other characters, and in fact, while all have suffered, he’s arguably suffered some of the worst circumstances of all. 

He makes poor choices, although he insists he doesn’t have a choice. I believe that he believes he has no choice... but he does. And that is so very, very tragic. 

I love him and want the world (or really just Lan Xichen) for him. 

[brother-hermes]

THE ALCHEMY OF GENESIS CH. 01

We’re all familiar with the Creation Epoch, but how often do we really get to breakdown the way G-D works here? We know that it starts out with the plural name of G-D, Elohim. Almost immediately we see a reference to “a mighty wind,” in Gen. 1:2 (Ruah- literally, the Spirit of G-D). Yes. That’s the Holy Spirit or the Divine Feminine. Why?

Alchemically speaking, gender exists on all levels of creation . We see them as separate entities and feel conflicted inside. G-D knows no such conflict.Ru’ahh an Yahweh are both parts of a perfected being permeating throughout the Cosmos. Our friends to the East think of Yin and Yang much in the same way.

There are 7 days of creation total. On 6 of those days G-D creates through the alchemical process of Polarity.

1RST DAY-          ...light is divided from darkness...

2ND DAY-            ...waters are divided from waters (above to below)...

3RD DAY-            ...land is divided from the sea...

4TH DAY-            ...day is divided from the night...

5TH DAY-            ...created fish in sea, birds in air (below to above)...

6TH DAY-            ...human beings are created, both male and female...

7TH DAY-            ...G-D rests and polarity is reconciled (unified)...

Granted, once it’s pointed out we can easily see how medieval alchemists tied the creation epoch into the Emerald Tablet of Thoth but there’s a more subtle  code being conveyed alongside the obvious. One that has lead countless mystics on their inner journeys of transformation. 

“G-D SAID”         ...appears 10 times...

“G-D MADE”       ...appears 3 times...

“G-D SAW”          ...appears 7 times...

“G-D (name)”      ...appears 12 times...

This formula shows us something any Kabbalist would instantly recognize, the Tree of Life. There are

10 SEFIROT                                              07 VERTICAL PATHS

03 HORIZONTAL PATHS                          12 DIAGONAL PATHS

Well well well... isn’t that something. Now one can see how the Sefer Yetzirah helped shape the journey of Christian Rosenkreuz in the infamous Chymical Wedding (that is a huge clue). The Tree of Life has always meant to convey the inner landscape our souls journey through, at least at the lower levels of reality. Think of it as a map G-D left to his chosen elect.

Dance that around a bit. 

Study away. 

That’s all for now.

[orideknews]

Warinussy Minta Pemda Manokwari Revieuw Implementasi Perda Miras Yang Terlihat Seperti "Ditidurkan"

Warinussy Minta Pemda Manokwari Revieuw Implementasi Perda Miras Yang Terlihat Seperti “Ditidurkan”

Orideknews.com, MANOKWARI, – Direktur Eksekutif LP3BH Manokwari, Yan Christian Warinussy, SH mengatakan, peristiwa kematian almarhum Daud Wambrauw dan almarhum Hugo Saiduy secara mengenaskan yang diduga keras akibat perbuatan pidana yang diduga pula dilakukan oleh oknum pelaku berinisial CH pada Senin, 04:00 wit di bilangan seputar Transito, Wosi-Manokwari. Kejadian ini, kata dia, kiranya…