#on the sect and on the church itself

[karinyosa]

okay the website of my local church w the pride flags out front actually really slaps they have like 5000000 choirs and a page on their specific beliefs that is pretty slay actually, unfortunately for the part of my brain that thinks choosing to do this is insane for me

[theragamuffininitiative]

😅

[himedanshicult]

there is something so on the nose on how there are soooo many little cults all around the u.s that there is an almost dedicated cottage industry of sensationalist cult reporting and documenting, but because many of these cults are actually powerful institutions with millions of followers, they are all couched in such a way as to avoid offending people who are affiliated with said sects, ie repeatedly accusing cult leaders of actually not being religious and just being in it for the money, and or repeatedly stressing the difference between zany evil cults and good god fearing, uh, *checks notes* mormons and southern baptists, and also regularly enlist "experts" of the "anti-cult movement" - which is, itself, a violent policing arm of various hardline fundie sects that's primarily concerned with being legally able to kidnap and confine people they accuse of being "brainwashed" - who have a vested interest in not talking about any elements which makes cults uniquely violent and controlling than a simple religious group, because those same aspects are shared by the church they're a pastor at

[woeworld]

You have yourself said: the early Christians would not have thought it proper to contact pagan gods or the spirits of the dead. Every Christian who held to the creeds throughout history would agree. No specific sect do I reference here, but the whole Christian body. You may say, "we have found evidence of charms as traditional to this Christian culture", but since when are the deeds of men the dictators of the laws of God? Shall we similarly say that, because Christians (if they may be called such) in some places practiced adultery, adultery is permissible? Certainly not!

It may be true (I only say "may be" because I am not knowledgeable enough in greek or greek culture to confirm one way or the other) that the apostles cast lots as a divinatory practice. But that does not mean necessarily that it is permissible. You will notice, this passage occurs before Pentecost. Christ is no longer with them, but neither has the Holy Spirit arrived to instruct them. Their state, in terms of Divine Communication, was similar to the Hebrews in the Old Testament.

For the Hebrews, lots were apparently permissible, and the same here. But the descent of the Holy Spirit is a distinct theological division. As it may be true that they were permitted lots in Acts 1, so might it be true that we are no longer permitted (perhaps because of the more intimate connection to the Spirit found within us)

Ideas about witchcraft and sorcery surely have developed as the theology of the church has developed, but opposition to it (whatever "it" is) is pretty universal. But here is the rub: christian Witches are not practicing some nebulous things that sometimes are considered magic and sometimes aren't. They are practicing Witchcraft, as they themselves label it. They have decided to rebel against the Church as a whole, by purposefully choosing the title of Witches.

To return to the adultery example, perhaps a heterodox group decides to do polygamy. Is this acceptable? maybe, maybe not. But then they decide to style themselves "Christian Adulterers". It is a different matter! They have set themselves against the Church, because whatever the Church believes on polygamy, it cannot approve of adultery!

It is the same way with christian Witches. Perhaps you believe in casting lots or tarot, or compelling the Spirit by use of incantation. I'd think you're wrong to believe in that (very wrong, in fact), but maybe I am wrong. But to call yourself christian Witches is a knowing act of rebellion.

A big, huge, honkin' problem with saying "Christianity forbids witchcraft!" as if that's a statement that actually means anything is- 1. How are you defining "Christianity"? 2. How are you defining "witchcraft"? Most people who state that "Christianity forbids witchcraft" are probably imagining their own sect of Christianity, which they probably assume is valid because they have an extremely skewed comprehension of its history, and of Christian history in general. The thing is, if you think it's "obvious" that any specific sect of Christianity is the One True Christianity, or even the Most Valid Christianity, you don't know the history of Christianity. You've been taught propaganda. People who state this also aren't aware that the words translated as "witch," "witchcraft," "sorcery," etc. don't always refer to the same things we picture today. They could have much broader or more narrow definitions than the ones we're using, and trying to impose our modern notions onto these texts will only distort and obscure whatever the writers were actually trying to say. You cannot possibly claim to definitively know what an author meant unless you find the original word used in the original text and find out how that word was used in the specific time and place the author lived. It's as simple as that. Many modern people will immediately class a spirit board as witchcraft - and yet, we cannot assume that early Christians would have done the same. While it's a safe bet that they wouldn't have thought it proper to contact pagan gods or the spirits of the dead, it's entirely possible that they could've seen it as a perfectly fine way to communicate with the Holy Spirit. According to The Acts of the Apostles, lots were cast to decide who would replace Judas as one of the twelve. That's right - the author of Luke records that the apostles used divination to determine God's will in a pretty serious matter. Again - if you think you know what the Bible's referring to when you see words like "witch," "witchcraft," "sorcery," and so forth - unless you've studied the languages and cultures of the authors, you don't.

[atheistcartoons]

“Of all the animosities which have existed among mankind, those which are caused by a difference of sentiments in religion appear to be the most inveterate and distressing, and ought to be deprecated. I was in hopes that the enlightened and liberal policy, which has marked the present age, would at least have reconciled Christians of every denomination so far that we should never again see the religious disputes carried to such a pitch as to endanger the peace of society.”

George Washington in a letter to Edward Newenham, October 20, 1792.

“History, I believe, furnishes no example of a priest-ridden people maintaining a free civil government. This marks the lowest grade of ignorance of which their civil as well as religious leaders will always avail themselves for their own purposes.”

Thomas Jefferson in a letter to Alexander von Humboldt, December 6, 1813.

“The civil government functions with complete success by the total separation of the Church from the State.”

James Madison, 1819.

“And I have no doubt that every new example will succeed, as every past one has done, in shewing that religion & Govt will both exist in greater purity, the less they are mixed together.”

James Madison in a letter to Edward Livingston, July 10, 1822.

“Every new and successful example of a perfect separation between ecclesiastical and civil matters is of importance.”

James Madison, 1822.

“When a religion is good, I conceive it will support itself; and when it does not support itself, and God does not take care to support it so that its professors are obligated to call for help of the civil power, it’s a sign, I apprehend, of its being a bad one.”

Benjamin Franklin in a letter to Richard Price, October 9, 1780.

“As I understand the Christian religion, it was, and is, a revelation. But how has it happened that millions of fables, tales, legends, have been blended with both Jewish and Christian revelation that have made them the most bloody religion that ever existed?”

John Adams in a letter to F.A. Van der Kamp, Dec. 27, 1816.

“What influence, in fact, have ecclesiastical establishments had on society? In some instances they have been seen to erect a spiritual tyranny on the ruins of the civil authority; on many instances they have been seen upholding the thrones of political tyranny; in no instance have they been the guardians of the liberties of the people. Rulers who wish to subvert the public liberty may have found an established clergy convenient auxiliaries. A just government, instituted to secure and perpetuate it, needs them not.”

James Madison in “A Memorial and Remonstrance”, 1785.

“Congress has no power to make any religious establishments.”

Roger Sherman, Congress, August 19, 1789.

“We have abundant reason to rejoice that in this Land the light of truth and reason has triumphed over the power of bigotry and superstition. In this enlightened Age and in this Land of equal liberty it is our boast, that a man’s religious tenets will not forfeit the protection of the Laws, nor deprive him of the right of attaining and holding the highest Offices that are known in the United States.”

George Washington in a letter to the members of the New Church in Baltimore, January 27, 1793.

“This would be the best of all possible worlds, if there were no religion in it.”

John Adams.

“Christianity neither is, nor ever was a part of the common law.”

Thomas Jefferson in a letter to Dr. Thomas Cooper, February 10, 1814.

“Ecclesiastical establishments tend to great ignorance and corruption, all of which facilitate the execution of mischievous projects.”

James Madison.

“The purpose of separation of church and state is to keep forever from these shores the ceaseless strife that has soaked the soil of Europe in blood for centuries.”

James Madison in an 1803 letter.

”I am for freedom of religion and against all maneuvers to bring about a legal ascendancy of one sect over another.”

Thomas Jefferson in a letter to Elbridge Gerry, January 26, 1799.

“Of all the tyrannies that affect mankind, tyranny in religion is the worst.”

Thomas Paine.

“I wish [Christianity] were more productive of good works … I mean real good works … not holy-day keeping, sermon-hearing … or making long prayers, filled with flatteries and compliments despised by wise men, and much less capable of pleasing the Deity.”

Benjamin Franklin in Works, Vol. VII, p. 75.

[cavegirlpoems]

The Beast & The Church in 'Black Death Rising'

I'm writing a religious horror rpg, in which the End Of Days is in full swing in 15th century Europe. I figured it'd be worth it to talk about that game's religious perspective.

So I'm going to do something inadvisable, and talk about religion from a christian perspective. (religious/setting design ramblings under the cut)

Some context. I'm a quaker; for those less invested in minor christian dissenter sects, I'll give a brief summary. Quakers are a sect going back to the 17th century, with a strong focus on egaletarianism and individual conscience. No clergy or heirarchy, no formalised doctrines, and - historically and currently - a lot of focus on social justice issues. Honesty, equality, pacifism and simplicity as core value. So that's the overview.

This is, you will note, a stark contrast to a lot of what Christianity is currently, and has historically been. Which is to say, quite often on the side of the wealthy, the societally entrenched, and the oppressive.

I am also, as it happens, very openly and obviously queer. As you can imagine, this makes me really quite uncomfortable in a lot of 'christian spaces'.

So. Let's turn our attention to the Book of Revelations, as the various ideas in there are a lot of the game's inspiration. Revelations is written extremely abstractly, with dense metaphorical language rather than a direct accounting of events. There are, needless to say, a wide variety of ways to interpret the text, but I will focus on my own.

A key feature of Revelations is the subversion of religion; the idea of a false prophet turning religion away from its moral/spiritual purpose, and making it a tool for politics, leading to the rise of 'the beast' to power. It's made clear that as the beast seizes power, it goes on to use that power to persecute the outgroup (with whom the text's sympathies lie) and that a church controlled by and reverent of the beast becomes evil and totalitarian, leading to widespread suffering.

The parallels to the state of christianity in the modern day are, to my mind, quite apt. A wide faction - 'conservative christianity' to be polite about it, or christian nationalism to be more blunt - aligns itself with the oppresser over the oppressed, concerns itself with worldly wealth and power, and is actively and openly and inexorably tied to dangerous political forces. That mainstream christianity frequently acts in support of fascism is hard to miss.

There is a particular horror, I think, to seeing representations of one's faith hollowed out and distorted, emptied of their spiritual value and instead becoming a tool for evil. The perversion of what should be sacred has a huge potential for horror.

This is, after all, a particular horror one encounters in a regular basis in the real world. I mean, fuck, one simply needs to see Kenneth Copeland speak for 30 seconds to get a sense of something deeply, deeply wrong.

So, this is the horror the game seeks to capture and accentuate. The sense of what should be holy having been emptied out and used for evil. The twisting of faith to become a tool for fascism.

To this end, the game treats aspects of Revelations quite literally. The Beast is, in fact, the leader of a vast and horrible fascist empire that is the cause of misery on a vast scale. Key to this is the total cooption of the church. The 'pope' is a reanimated corpse issueing proclamations at the Beast's direction, and the church is an engine of propaganda and inquisition that serves to enforce the empire's orthodoxy and stoke hatred against the Empire's outgroups.

This is not to say that faith is absent, but those possessing true spiritual conviction (and with it, in some cases, the ability to perform miracles) are definitively outside the church; actual faith is the domain of religious dissenters and heretics. PC clerics are not members of the church, they're actively persecuted by that church for - essentially - their refusal to spiritually sell out.

(Also, critically, miracles are not the sole domain of christianity; the game treats Jewish and Muslim figures as equally capable of performing miracles, and grants relics associated with those religions equal potency to christian ones; what matters is spiritual conviction, not one's specific denomination).

Other aspects of The Beast's Empire followed from this. Inquisitors and paramilitary agents are common enemies, and the 'seven heads and ten horns' are taken to represent The Beasts inner circle of most powerful servants.

In particular, I've given the Beast's empire it's own form of magic, Defixion, with the name taken from old roman curse-tablets. Defixion is, essentially, the magic of spiritually selling out. In exchange for eroding the user's soul, they become bound to The Beast and his empire; this gives him incredible power over them, but also grants them power based on their position within the Empire's heirarchy. Importantly, it's totally, one-hundred-percent off limits to player characters; playing as the fascists simply exists outside the scope of the game. Instead, Defixion is an explanation for why the Empire's agents have scary monster stat-blocks.

The choice of what to make The Mark Of The Beast was surprisingly easy; it's a cross, the same one that is embraced by fascist groups such as Stormfront.

(This also ties in with the use of the inverted cross as a counter-cultural icon; it's historically been a symbol of humility before God, and in the modern age is associated with strongly anti-church sentiments. In a setting where the church has turned away from God and towards hateful political power, those two meanings can go hand in hand.)

In conclusion: "I know writers who use subtext, and they're all cowards."

[drchucktingle]

DECONSTRUCTING DAMASCUS #4

here we are again talkin on camp damascus and unwrapping every little secret and hidden layer of this book. think of this time together like an old time ENGLISH CLASS where the dang teacher says 'well by THIS SYMBOLISM the author was actually commenting on how good chocolate milk is' only this time we get to talk on TINGLERS and your teacher is the buckaroo himself, chuck tingle.

as man name of chuck i have a lot of easter eggs in my books, and this post is just ONE OF MANY where we pull apart every layer. if you have a reading club for this book it might be a fun companion to trot through once you are all finished. if that is the case you should start with the first deconstructing damascus post. i will leave links to them all here IN ORDER

DECONSTRUCTING DAMASCUS #1

DECONSTRUCTING DAMASCUS #2

DECONSTRUCTING DAMASCUS #3

HOWEVER these deconstructing damascus posts SHOULD NOT BE READ UNLESS YOU ARE DONE WITH THE BOOK. there are heckin spoilers EVERYWHERE in these posts so do not peek at them until you are ready.

alright below this line the dang spoilers begin. BIG TIME SPOILER WARNING. lets trot

DECONSTRUCTING DAMASCUS #4: BIBLICAL CAPITALISM

we have taken lots of time to discuss the various layers of symbolism in this book, but for FINAL POST of deconstructing damascus i would like to talk about the literal layer, specifically ONE BIG THEME that weaves throughout the story of rose, saul, willow and kingdom of the pine.

that theme is CAPITALISM.

kingdom of the pine, the church in this story, is intentionally NOT THAT STRANGE in their beliefs. it would be very easy for me to write a book where the christian sect are revealed as some twisted monsters performing all kinds of dark rituals in the name of evil itself, but when the big reveal comes it is something much more HORRIFIC and unexpected.

kindgom of the pine members are not snarling, oozing, otherworldly, creatures. the members are just people, and their beliefs are horrifically STANDARD. kingdom of the pine worships CAPITALISM.

these church members believe in the traditional tenants of CHRISTIANITY along with the traditional tenants of BUSINESS. what makes them scary is that they whole heartedly believe that 'the ends justify the means'

lets start with prophet cobel, the founder of the church. his visions came during THE INDUSTREAL REVOLUTION, occuring when he was injured by a manufacturing machine and lost his hand. the coma from prophet cobels accident is where he received his message from god. he realized that, for a church to succeed, it needed to act like a BUSINESS.

many buckaroos have asked 'WHY is the church called kingdom of the pine?' and this is EXACTLY WHY. many churches are named for spiritual aspects. this sect could have easily been 'kingdom of the holy word' 'kingdom of the spirit' 'kingdom of HIS name' EXCEPT prophet cobel knew the importance of MATERIAL and CURRENCY and GOODS. he is not just worshipping JESUS, he is worshipping THE CROSS ITSELF. so 'the pine' in kingdom of the pine is symbolic of worshipping through a PRODUCT, in this case the little wooden cross that you might sell during a fundraiser. not kingdom of the son, the father, or the holy spirit, but kingdom of the PINE. THE WOOD ITSELF. THE PRODUCT.

by combining christianity and capitalism, prophet cobel created a monster, but not one that creeps through a dark swamp with sharp teeth and red eyes. he created something much more existentially dangerous AND not all that unheard of in reality. this isnt an imaginary monster that lurks under your bed. IT IS A MONSTER THAT IS ALREADY HERE.

capitalism is the answer for ANOTHER big question regarding camp damascus: why are the demons wearing red polos?

demons in this story are dressed like minimum wave workers at a big box story because THAT IS EXACTLY WHAT THEY ARE. yes they spend their time torturing unfortunate folks in their dungeon, but NOBODY IS FREE FROM THE CAPITALISTIC SYSTEM NOT EVEN ON OTHER TIMELINES LIKE HECK ITSELF. the demons are AT WORK. some buckaroos do not notice that kingdom of the pine counselors are always in green and white (the pine material GREEN and the holy spirit WHITE, like we talked on earlier). meanwhile demons are in RED because they are contracted out. THEY HAVE BEEN HIRED IN THEIR OWN WAY and when you consider the collars around their necks, THEY ARE NOT TREATED FAIRLY BY THEIR EMPLOYERS. THEY ARE CONTROLLED IN A SYSTEM OF THEIR OWN AND COMPELLED TO WORK.

this is why they have name tags. THEY ARE AT WORK.

this is why they are constantly smiling until the collars come off. THEY HAVE CUSTOMER SERVICE SMILES.

okay buds. thank you for reading the deconstructing damascus series it was very fun for me to go deep on this book for anyone who enjoys this kind of analysis. i hope it puts a little more joy into your trot, and now if someone says 'this part of camp damascus didnt make sense to me' you can said 'LETS TALK BUD'. i am very much looking forward to doing this again when my next horror novel BURY YOUR GAYS comes out. keep a dang eye out for that one.

i will end with one more thing that did not really fit into the other catagories.

question of: is there any meaning behind willow being a big wu tang fan?

you mean besides her being the crocodile (which has ticking clock in mouth in peter pan) so rhythm itself is a very important part of her character? (as shown in her steady clicking camera shutter and the steady beat of her musical preferences?)

WHY YES CHUCK BESIDES THAT.

well now that we've discussed the theme of INFANTILIZATION in deconstructing damascus part one, and how all the young people in kingdom of the pine are kept childlike as long as possible as the FOREVER CHILDREN of never never land, i will point you towards this iconic quote from the wu tang clans ODB at the 1998 grammy awards:

LOVE IS REAL thank you for reading buckaroos - chuck

[girlactionfigure]

WHAT IS ANTI-ZIONISM?

To understand what anti-Zionism is, we must first understand what Zionism is. Zionism is the movement for Jewish self-determination in the Land of Israel. In practical terms, this translates to support for the establishment and continued existence of Jewish sovereignty in the Land of Israel. 

In the First Zionist Congress, the participants defined Zionism as “Zionism seeks to establish a home for the Jewish people in Eretz ­Israel [the Land of Israel] secured under public law.”

Zionism is not support for any Israeli government, Israeli policies, or even any particular solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Likewise, anti-Zionism is not opposition to any Israeli government, Israeli policies, or any particular solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. 

Anti-Zionism is opposition to Zionism. In other words, it’s an “anti” ideology that’s not necessarily “for” anything — other than to oppose Zionism. That means that virtually anyone who opposes Zionism is an anti-Zionist, whether they be Ilhan Omar or David Duke. 

Just as Zionism is not support for any Israeli government, Israeli policies, or even any particular solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, anti-Zionism is not opposition to any Israeli government, Israeli policies, or any solution to the conflict. Rather, it’s opposition to Jewish sovereignty in Israel in and of itself. 

THE FIRST ANTI-ZIONISTS 

Early anti-Zionism can be divided into two categories: Jewish anti-Zionism and non-Jewish anti-Zionism. 

Zionism was, initially, of very little consequence to the non-Jewish world, which paid little attention, or regarded it cynically as a “Jewish trick.” But it was cause for rigorous debate among Jews. Jewish anti-Zionism itself can be divided into two categories. First were some Orthodox Jews, who believed a Jewish state should only be established upon the coming of the Messiah. Some fringe Orthodox sects, like the Satmar (not to be confused with the Neturei Karta), still believe this. The second group were those who believed that Zionism was a far-fetched, “reactionary” idea, and that the best course of action for Jewish survival would be for Jews to integrate into full members of their societies. 

The earliest non-Jewish anti-Zionists were European antisemites. Wilhelm Marr, the antisemite who coined the word “antisemitism,” wrote of the First Zionist Congress, “the entire matter is a foul Jewish swindle, in order to divert the attention of the European peoples from the Jewish problem.” 

The Catholic Church responded to the First Zionist Congress by invoking ancient antisemitic tropes: “According to the Sacred Scriptures, the Jewish people must always live dispersed and vagabondo [vagrant, wandering] among the other nations, so that they may render witness to Christ not only by the Scriptures...but by their very existence.”

Most notably, the First Zionist Congress inspired the writing of The Protocols of the Learned Elders of Zion, the most influential antisemitic hoax in history, which purported to document the minutes of the First Zionist Congress. 

EARLY ARAB ANTI-ZIONISM 

Until the 1917 Balfour Declaration, most Arabs had never actually heard of Zionism. The Balfour Declaration was a British document that stated, “His Majesty's Government view with favour the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people, and will use their best endeavours to facilitate the achievement of this object, it being clearly understood that nothing shall be done which may prejudice the civil and religious rights of existing non-Jewish communities in Palestine, or the rights and political status enjoyed by Jews in any other country.” While the Balfour Declaration never specified the exact nature of this Jewish national home, it seemed to contradict the promise that the British made to the Arabs just a year prior, in which they promised them a unified Arab state in Greater Syria, which included Palestine. 

That said, in 1899, the Arab mayor of Jerusalem, Yousef al-Khalidi, wrote to the chief rabbi of France, “Who can deny the rights of the Jews to Palestine? Good lord, historically it is your country!…But in practice you cannot take over Palestine without the use of force…” The chief rabbi of France forwarded al-Khalidi's letter to Theodor Herzl, who was quick to send a reply, assuring al-Khalidi that the Zionist movement had no intention of displacing the Muslim and Christian populations. It’s also worth noting that during this time period, Palestine experienced a mass influx of immigrants from other Jewish countries. Thus, it wasn’t immigration that al-Khalidi opposed, but rather, Jewish immigration. 

An anti-Zionist Palestinian Christian newspaper, Falastin, was first published in 1911. It’s worth noting that while Falastin claimed to differentiate between Zionists and Jews, it dabbled in antisemitic conspiracies from the Elders of Zion, described Hitler as “Innocent and Noble, strong and beloved by his people,” threatened the Jewish communities of the rest of the Muslim world should a Jewish state be established, and opposed the Nuremberg Trials. 

It was in the 1920s, under the influence of Haj Amin al-Husseini, that Arab anti-Zionism grew into the mainstream. Al-Husseini mobilized the Palestinian Arab population with false threats that the Jews intended to take over Al Aqsa mosque to rebuild the Temple. This incitement led to a series of massacres. 

NAZI ANTI-ZIONISM

Since the 1960s, there has been a concerted propaganda effort to portray Zionism as a continuation of Nazism. The Nazis, however, made their anti-Zionism no secret from the beginning. 

Hitler wrote in Mein Kampf, “For while the Zionists try to make the rest of the world believe that the national consciousness of the Jew finds its satisfaction in the creation of a Palestinian state, the Jews again slyly dupe the dumb Goyim. It doesn’t even enter their heads to build up a Jewish state in Palestine for the purpose of living there; all they want is a central organization for their international world swindle…”

Shortly after the Nazis came to power, they began breaking up Zionist meetings in Berlin; for example, a 1934 Jewish Daily Bulletin headline reads, “Nazi Officials Raid Zionist B’nai B’rith Meeting in Berlin.” 

In 1937, a Nazi document on foreign policy read, “(1) The formation of a Jewish state or a Jewish-led political structure under British mandate is not in Germany’s interest…(2) Germany therefore has an interest in strengthening the Arab world as a counterweight against such a possible increase in power for world Jewry.”

By 1941, the Nazis officially banned all Zionist activities in Germany. 

Also in 1941, Hitler personally assured Palestinian Arab nationalist leader Haj Amin al-Husseini that Germany “supports an uncompromising struggle against the Jews…[this] would include, of course, opposition to a Jewish homeland in Palestine, which is nothing more than a national hub for the destructive influence of Jewish interests.” 

ISLAMIST ANTI-ZIONISM 

Islamism is, in essence, political Islam. Islamists believe that the doctrines of Islam should be congruent with those of the state. Islamists work to implement nation-states governed under Islamic Law (Sharia), emphasize pan-Islamic unity (in most cases, hoping for an eventual worldwide Islamic Caliphate, or empire), support the creation of Islamic theocracies, and reject all non-Muslim influences. For this reason, Islamists tend to portray themselves as “anti-imperialist,” while in truth they are striving to swap western imperialism with Islamic imperialism. 

Despite what many might expect, the antisemitism at the core of Islamist movements did not originate as a response to Zionism or the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Instead, Islamists justify their antisemitism because of the Prophet Muhammad’s initial conflict with the Jewish tribes of the Arabian Peninsula in the seventh century. 

Nevertheless, Islamists believe Zionism and Israel are “proof” that Jews are in an eternal struggle with Islam.It’s not uncommon for Islamists to conflate the past, such as the Arabian Jewish tribes’ rejection of Islam in the seventh century, with the present, such as Israeli policies they find unfavorable.

Finally, Islamists see Zionist Jews and the State of Israel as “usurpers” of what they consider to be rightfully Islamic land, belonging to a future Islamic Caliphate. 

"ANTI-ZIONIST" AS AN IDENTITY 

In the 1870s, Wilhelm Marr coined the word antisemitism to replace the previously-used term, “Jew-hatred.” This was at the height of the scientific racism movement, when being “anti” the so-called “Semitic race” would be considered a positive thing. As in, “I’m not a Jew-hater, I’m an antisemite!” Surely this sounds familiar.

In the immediate aftermath of the Holocaust, the gruesome images emerging from Nazi death camps shocked the world. Open antisemitism became associated with the evils of Nazism. So the Soviets, who’d long expressed antisemitic views, switched strategies.

In 1969, the United Nations passed the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination. Both the United States and Brazil wanted to add a clause including antisemitism. The Soviet Union, which had been heavily oppressing its Jewish population since the 1950s, worried that such a clause would be used to rebuke them for persecuting Soviet Jews. As such, they included a counter proposal, which was a clause that equated Zionism to Nazism. That way, they could say that they were (rightfully) anti-Zionists, not antisemites. Neither clause passed.

But the Soviets were never covert about the fact that their “anti-Zionism” was actually just antisemitism. In the 1960s, Soviet propaganda made blatantly antisemitic claims, including: “The character of the Jewish religion serves the political aims of the Zionists,” “Zionism is inextricable from Judaism, rooted in the idea of the exclusiveness of the Jewish People,” comparisons of Judaism to the Italian mafia, and claims that Israel was merely a means to an end of Jewish imperialism and world domination.

To strengthen their sphere of influence over Arab and African nations, the Soviets launched a covert operation against Israel, named Sionistskiye Gosudarstva, meaning “Zionist Governments.” According to KGB chairman Yuri Andropov (1967-1982), “We had only to keep repeating our themes—that the United States and Israel were ‘fascist, imperial-Zionist countries’ bankrolled by rich Jews.’”

As the Soviets gained increasing influence over the Palestinian cause in the 1960s, the Palestinian leadership, too, shifted from the overt expressions of Nazi-esque antisemitism of the 1940s to the language of anti-Zionism. 

POST-HOLOCAUST JEWISH ANTI-ZIONISM 

The predominant debate of pre-Holocaust Jewish Europe was whether Jews should pursue their own national aspirations (Zionism) or whether it was best to try to assimilate into their host nations as full citizens, as Jews had only recently become emancipated in Europe. The Holocaust shattered any illusion of integration. 

Today, young Jewish anti-Zionists tend to glorify the General Jewish Labor Bund, the predominant anti-Zionist — or arguably non-Zionist — Jewish group in pre-World War II Europe. The Bund was officially disbanded in the 1920s, as the Soviet Union cracked down on its Jewish population, but its legacy continued through the International Jewish Labor Bund. After the Holocaust, Bundists in Displaced Persons camps advocated for Jewish refugee migration to Palestine. However, the Bund opposed partition, advocating for a binational state instead (something that the Arab leadership of Palestine itself rejected multiple times between 1939 and 1947). 

A minority of ultra-Orthodox sects continue to reject a Jewish state before the coming of the messiah. However, one extremely fringe group, the Neturei Karta, seems to always steal the spotlight. The Neturei Karta are not just religious anti-Zionists but vicious antisemites who have closely allied themselves with the murderous Islamic Republic of Iran, blame Zionists for the Holocaust, and more, so much so that another religious anti-Zionist sect, the Satmar, issued a cherem (“censure,” similar to excommunication) against them. 

Of course, today, there are a number of anti-Zionist left wing Jewish groups, such as Jewish Voice for Peace and IfNotNow. I’ve talked about both those groups at length in other posts. Polls consistently show that between 80-97% of Jews are Zionists. 

WHEN FAR-RIGHT, FAR-LEFT, AND ISLAMIST ANTI-ZIONISM CONVERGE

Recently some people expressed shock that “pro-Palestine” influencer Sneako and journalist Sulaiman Ahmed met with white supremacists Nick Fuentes, Jake Shields, and former KKK Grand Wizard David Duke. To me, this is entirely unsurprising. People who openly hate Jews will naturally have unfavorable views of a Jewish state. It’s not shocking that they would find common ground with allegedly non-antisemitic anti-Zionists. 

Islamist-Nazi collaboration dates back to the 1930s, when the Nazis helped fund the Muslim Brotherhood. Similarly, the alliance between the Nazis and the father of Palestinian nationalism, Haj Amin al-Husseini, is well-documented. Al-Husseini spent World War II in Berlin working as a Nazi propagandist, visited the concentration camps as the Holocaust was unfolding, and met with both Hitler and Mussolini. 

During the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, both Palestinian Arab paramilitaries — the Army of the Holy War and the Arab Liberation Army — were trained by former German Nazis.The Nazis even formed their own legion, Black International, to fight alongside the Palestinian Arabs against the Zionists. Fawzi al-Qawugji, the leader of the Arab Liberation Army, had severed in the Nazi forces himself. 

In the 1950s, the Soviets, who loudly proclaimed themselves “anti-Zionists,” exported Nazi propaganda films to the Arab world to “inflame” anti-Israel sentiment. These were films that had been produced by the Nazis in Germany during the Nazi regime. 

Wolfgang Abramowski and Willi Pohl, two German neo-Nazis, helped the Palestinian terrorist “anti-Zionist” group Black September plan the 1972 Munich Massacre.They provided weapons, forged passports and other documents, and drove the terrorists around as they planned their attack. 

rootsmetals

no it’s not shocking pro-Palestine influencers met w a former Grand Wizard of the KKK!

[accord-vn]

Major Players in the War Against the Firmament

The Republic of Stauros

The Republic of Stauros is a global superpower that controls the Americas and much of eastern and southern Africa, its imperialist agenda funded by the exploitation of abundant natural resources. This influx of resources means that they have been able to rapidly advance technology, particularly in bio-science, engineering, and materials science fields, and their advanced technology in turn makes for political capital with which they can bully nations into being subsumed by the Republic.

Stauros is a meritocratic oligarchy with republican structures, and presents itself as being a place where the best can rise to the top. It is centrally governed in its capital of Etorios, by a council of (what were originally) six departments that oversee facets of government such as treasury, military, agriculture, etc. These department heads are chosen from among a democratically elected parliament that makes up the upper levels of each department by the previous council. In short, the system rejects change very stubbornly as those who are eligible to lead have been entrenched in the system for a very long time. This entrenchment means that the Republic, while founded on progressive ideals, has now fully embraced the authoritarian streak that has haunted it since its inception.

Most prominent in Stauros's war against the Firmament is the ExoCorps, the executive arm of the Department of the Exterior. The Dept of the Exterior was created in order to protect Stauros's offplanet interests, however in the decades since they have come to rival the power of the Dept of Military, even surpassing it in many instances. The most notable example of this power imbalance is in the ExoCorps' development of Synaptic Transfer technology and the resulting Janissary program.

The Sophic Church

The Sophic Church originated as part of the Third Awakening, a reactionary revival in religiosity coupled with anti-Christian sentiment and strong undercurrents of paranoia brought about by a sharp rise in conspiratorial thought. What were several grassroots Gnostic revival movements came together to form a single ecclesiastical society, united in their desire to dismantle current institutions and build something new. These movements, originally different sects, syncretized their beliefs, though after several decades of transformation, their doctrine has evolved into a largely ahistorical conflation of Valentinianism and Sethianism alongside some entirely new ideas.

The Sophic Church played a key role in the formation of the Republic and rose alongside it, shaping it in the process, and as a result, within Stauros there is a strong presumption that most residents of the Republic are a part of the church.

Naturally, due to this relationship the Church has amassed a large amount of wealth and influence, and has invested this wealth into a number of corporate assets. The most prominent among these is Ascension, a corporation with child companies for mining, manufacturing, logistics, pharmaceuticals, and many other industries.

As a result, the Sophic Church has control over a substantial amount of the economy not just of Stauros, but the rest of the world as well.

The Stereomatos

In 2068, Olympia, Stauros's first permanent Martian research base, collapsed due to mismanagement. Due to the nature of the Stauros Dept of Research's control over the research base, while researchers lived permanent lives on base and even raised families there, leadership was not only appointed from a bureaucracy located on Earth, but also frequently rotated. As a result, most Directors of Operations viewed the position only as a temporary station, and ultimately failed to carry out their duties.

This culminated in 2067, when a failure in the water system caused dozens of people to become ill and 14 deaths. Civil unrest had already started to stir, but now was in full swing.

A nearby ExoCorps detachment was then stationed inside the colony to dissuade uprising, but the additional strain on resources that they caused served only to exacerbate discontentment. Before any violence broke out, the base was declared no longer fit for human habitation and disbanded, its residents either returned to earth or stationed in other colonies. The base was leveled shortly thereafter.

A mere two years later, Synesia was founded on Olympia's ruins. Synesia was intended to serve as a colony and an experiment in autonomous government, as well as a center for Stauros' civic operations offplanet. This quickly expanded into a semi-autonomous satellite state, granted nominal independence by Stauros in return for serving as the governing body for bases and offplanet stations too large and too distant from Earth in order to be effectively managed by a planetary bureaucracy.

In practice, the Stereomatos is a puppet state. Most of its leadership is either beholden or sympathetic to Stauros, and lives under constant threat of dismantlement. Stauros maintains exclusive trading rights with the Stereomatos, and uses the leverage of their monopoly on space infrastructure as means of controlling the nation.

The Firmament

The Firmament is a revolutionary movement across the Stereomatos with the ultimate goal of eliminating Stauros control over space.

The movement is comprised of several cells across both inner sphere and outer sphere colonies and stations, which frequently work together to improve the living conditions of Stereomatos citizens, smuggle goods and resources across planetary boundaries, and wage asymmetric warfare against Stauros.

The Firmament's immediate strategy is to hold Stauros at resource-point through piracy and targeted attacks on military installations so that they'll agree to several key conditions:

The right to self-govern independent of Stauros control, including reforming the government from a parliamentary republic into a syndical state.

Better access to tertiary industry, including the means to utilize synaptic transfer tech

Access to Stauros trade networks in order to carry out trade with other nations with minimal interference

The Stereomatos as a whole may be generally divided in their opinion on the Firmament's methods, however it is an unspoken rule to side with them whenever possible, because the Firmament represents hope for a freer future and an end to overcrowding and military police actions. Even those ideologically opposed tend to avoid speaking out, because the members of the Firmament are ultimately members of their community. A number of Stereomatos politicians have direct connections to Firmament leadership, and work to achieve the movement's aims through diplomatic means.

On Earth, however, the opinion is generally much more divided. Typically the details of their actions are largely reduced to the effect that they've had on Stauros, and are branded terrorists due to civilian casualties from their attacks. Within Stauros, media is sufficiently skewed that those who are aware of them despise them. Outside of Stauros, the Stereomatos is shown more sympathy, and even those who skew more conservative are open to the idea of free trade with the Stereomatos.

Federated Oceania

As climate change ravaged the global south, Aotearoa (formerly New Zealand) successfully pushed back the encroaching ocean with a sea wall, reclaiming additional land in the process. Having secured their new position as a safe haven for climate refugees, they pushed Australia into adopting a similar strategy. As a means of allowing displaced people to retain their sovereignty as well as protect against the threat of a subjugation-hungry Stauros on the horizon, the bloc of Federated Oceania was formed.

With a vested interest in environmental sciences and sustainable energy, Oceania rose to prominence by implementing the first viable fusion reactor and selling off excess energy from successive plants. This paved the way to further successes until it became the non-Stauros leader in technology on a global stage, and served as the first country to challenge Stauros's self-proclaimed "monopoly on space".

As a staunch rival of Stauros, Oceania is one of the few terrestrial nations to openly provide support the Firmament.

The Archon Program

The disappearance of the Caesarea is a mainstay of conspiracy circles system-wide. From independent blogs hosted on the clearnet to chatrooms on planetside LITEs to forums and message boards maintained on Firmnet servers in the belt, no hushed whisper passes through the internet's lips without mentioning its name, and the Caesarea is rarely mentioned without the words "Archon program" in its wake.

However, there is little consensus on what those words mean.  

They say that Archon Program is run by the Dept of the Exterior— no, by the Sophic Church— no, it's the secret Dept of Suppression— as a psyop— actually, it's in order to crush unions (the IPU has NEVER been able to touch Ascension)— no, to serve as a counter to the Firmament's dark matter bomb— and eventually, to dominate the world— utilizing heinous machines that are larger than any Cataphract, that bleed, that drive their enemies and pilots to madness.

When asked for proof, however, the stories converge. A would-be whistleblower from Ascension Aerospace, killed when lightning struck her complex as she was uploading the leak, severing the connection and her life at once. All that was uploaded was the first gigabyte of a single file, titled Archon Program, completely blank except for the image of an A with an ouroboros divided into seven pieces.

Nothing more is known by the public.

[daisukitoo]

In the American civic religion, the traditional role of the church came to be played by, appropriately enough, a corporation. As formal religion waned, the Disney corporation took the reins of hegemonic cultural development, preservation, and transmission.

Pilgrimages to Disneyland and Disneyworld replaced similar holy trips to Rome, Jerusalem, or Mecca in other faiths. The poor would save for years in hopes that they could afford a once-in-a-lifetime pilgrimage. The middle class would go as they could afford. The wealthy would either make a spectacle of an annual pilgrimage or of announcing themselves above such proletarian religious observances.

Like other religious institutions, Disney came to subsume competing mythologies, most often through purchase, as might be expected of a corporation. "Super heroes," a popular American form of demigod mythology, came to be owned by Disney, not just renamed as saints or called aspects of an existing deity.

Like all religions, there were schisms. Take the Pixar sect, officially a part of Disney but usually operating semi-independently, depending on whether the current leadership was promoting conformity or diversity. Pixar is perhaps best known for its paean to the American institution of Cars, a trilogy of stories in which the cars themselves have outlived humanity and formed their own nation on the highways that so long divided Americans from each other.

Pixar's iconography was one of rebellion from the church-corporation that had purchased it. Whenever it could get away with it, Pixar films started with a panopticon image of a self-powered spotlight, crushing the self ("I") from Pixar itself before looking directly at the viewer. The rebellion at Pixar showed this tragic destruction of "I" before showing that "you" are next, before performing their prescribed role of celebrating the culture and the corporation, a mix of the prescribed and the proscribed.

[bee-ina-boat]

hello gay people. i mentioned awhile back about a possible concept for a tma au but its mixed with mythology/religion based stuff. i have since finished this chunk of concept/reference art of the Ceaseless Watcher for this au!!!

im dubbing it: The Magnus Mythos!! please talk to me about it i am insane

putting my rambling au nonsense under the readmore!!!!!

edit!!!: new mythos post just dropped :3

alright- bare with me because my thoughts are everywhere lol

random various au information:

the fear entites are instead more general gods, much like those from various mythologies (greek, norse, egyption, etc.) like the eye, rather than an entity that feeds on the fear of being watched, is rather the god of knowledge and sight!

all of the gods have influence over the world, some mortals will devote themselves to one specific god entirely, others will become devout to multiple, and some will simply be neutral among all 14 and live life out as they please.

avatars are mortals who have been blessed with power by the gods while creatures (like mr spider, the not them, etc) are simply beings who have been born into the world by the gods power seeping into it. artifacts are items that have either been blessed/cursed by the gods or avatars, or have been affected by the gods power seeping into the world also.

theres multiple sects, cults, and churches for each god much like how many real life religions have different sects with their own rules and standards. some have beef, others do not.

the gods themselves are entirely morally neutral, they have their own interconnected relationships with eachother, and kind of view mortals as pets in a way, picking favorites and seeing them as of lesser importance in comparison to themselves.

since the gods here arent necessarily evil and theyre actually sentient beings, their titles are changed to be more fitting (the mother of puppets -> the mother of fate as an example)

the story is set in an era resembling the early 1900s because idk. vibes are neat i guess

thats all the basic world building crumbs for now, ill go deeper into it when i have more art and story stuff ready!

for now- heres some actual lore :3c

Jonah magnus is basically eye jesus. thousands of years prior to the start of the story, the eye favored him and he became a messiah of sorts.

the House of Magnus is a church sect of the eye founded in what is now london. but it doesnt operate JUST as a simple church. many sects of the eye devote themselves to gaining knowledge of the world around them and the House of Magnus is no different there. operating with a library, research centre and all. the research not just on history and knowledge, but also the holy and divine. documenting stories that deal with the divine powers and researching cursed/blessed artifacts aswell.

its a common legend that if one tells their story under the eyes watch (either in a church of the eye or directly to an avatar of the eye) that theyll receive good fortune and foresight, and since the House of Magnus has become a well known sect of the eye, many will come far and wide to detail their accounts under its roof

all of this documentation leads down to the Magnus Mythos, a large archive under the church where the written documents are filed, curated and cared for by the head Archivist. as such, the position of Archivist has become a most sacred role among worshippers of the eye comparable to the head of the church itself.

they arent just revered for their care of the mythos (though the devotees of the eye view the care of documented knowledge to be a sacred and ever important responsibility) Theres a prophecy, hand woven by the Mother of Fate herself, one that states an ordinary archivist will one day be gifted by all 14 of the gods and awaken the great change, bringing about a new and blessed age.

but is this newest archivist even ready for such pressure and commitment? and what if the prophecy is more devious than one might think?

oooOOOOoooOO mysterious lore- i know this is heavily self indulgent but i refuse to apologize for that because im havin FUN. if you read all of that just know i love you so much and i hope you liked it ;w; im very excited and ive been working on archivist +archival assistant lore for the past few days and im excited to do art for them ;_;

[radfemsiren]

I agree with your post about being wary of any religion and that Christianity was also violently misogynistic. I am an atheist myself and especially against all Abrahamic religions.

But just wanna point out that there is something uniquely misogynistic abt one of them in particular that can’t be reduced to poverty/war/violence.

At its worst medieval Christianity still did not have constant honor killings (in fact it was more common to kill/mutilate the adulterous man nor ask regular laywomen to cover themselves in public (which if doen in the most extreme eyes-only way literally dehumanizes you

cf. Tour de Nesle affair (women imprisoned but men tortured and executed. Heloise’s relatives targeted her teacher/abuser Abelard but allowed her to live out her life in a convent as she more or less wished.

But still that is such a low bar.

Hm the first thing that comes to my mind with medieval Europe for me is witch burnings. I would consider that a mass femicide unique to Christianity. Muslims also believe in witches but I’ve never heard of a systemic murder of them like how the Christians did.

It’s funny with the medieval time period, I was really only taught what was happening in the Middle East at that time, going to an Islamic school. It was almost reversed, with the west seen as poor and backwards and bloody, and hotspots of affluence and academia being only in the east. Libraries, universities, hospitals, plumbing, bathing, were all far more advanced … scientists travelled from around the world to share their discoveries, like Indian mathematians going to the library of Baghdad with their concept of “zero”, Al Zahrawi inventing the scalpel, Ibn Sina (or Avicenna) performing successful eye surgieries, Muhammad ibn musa writing kitab al jabr, or the book of algebra, Al haythem creating al-qumra, or the pinhole camera. Ancient Greek texts were translated and passed to the west paving the way for their own enlightenment periods… ironically the Islamic Golden Age time period was so good because the religion itself took a backseat, and society was more focused on science, poetry, literature, etc.

The Europeans were seen as so backwards that we were shown the personal diary of a middle eastern doctor sent to aid them during their black plague. The Middle East did not discover germs yet, but quarantining was already a popular method of treatment, as well as prescribing the sick fresh fruit, vegetables, and rest, so they weren’t as affected as the west was. This doctor traveled to meet with European doctors and was was shocked when he heard their treatment plan: to cut into the patients head and remove their skull, and rub salt on it! Then to put it right back! He watched extreme sects of these people flay themselves in the street to “beat the devil out,” he watched doctors engage in filthy and deranged practices, not understanding sterilizing their hands or instruments, or pain management. He left back home in less than a month! I’ll have to find his name, it was darkly amusing.

This is all just things I remember from school (I love history but have been studying tech more for school) so if there’s any inaccuracies or mistakes, forgive me.

The reason I bring it all up though is I think most people are heavily influenced by what they are taught, and this image of Islam definitely being the worst is because you���re only interaction with modern Muslims/ middle eastern people is probably just from the news, and your interaction with ancient Muslims is tiny paragraph in a western leaning textbook. (If not, sorry for the assumption, but I’m assuming ask is coming from someone with a Christian background)

You have fond memories and good relationships with Christian friends and family, so you have a softer view of the faith, because you see it practiced by humans that you care about, so your interpretation is more generous. You will oversee parts of the faith that command women to be silent in church, obey their husbands, etc and assume Islam is more extreme. Islam is seen as more extreme than Christianity because Muslims refuse to practice their faith any differently than their ancestors 1400 years ago, and also because many of our geopolitical regions are unstable.

The core of the 2 faiths themselves are equally wretched for women… bias only makes us see differently. Now if you want to make the argument Christianity is less terrible because its followers change their practice the second some King feels like it, or currently because the all mighty American dollar is the true god now, so pigskin on a football and beer is now allowed, than I might consider that a fair point lol! The fluidity of Christianity to change with the times can be its saving grace, but also what makes it so hypocritical as a dogma.

Sorry this was a long rambling response, these are some thoughts I’ve been having about all the Christians in my inbox haha. I wish yall would just hang out with Muslims more and see how almost exactly the same masjid functions are to church functions, same judgy aunties, boring grandpas, little kids running around being annoying, youth leaders being corny and trying to make a lesson out of everything. The skin tones are just darker, and the rituals slightly different, but everything else: the boring sermons, the passive aggressive misogyny, the mob mentality, the political infighting, the human faults of judgment and emotional thinking, the rush to hide any faults of abusive husbands or sons, the patriarchal hierarchy of first father, then wife, then child … all are the same and the core of what makes religion an outdated and faulty way to guide your life. It’s hard for me to say one is worse than the other when so many terrible practices or Quranic verses I see from Islam, there are bible verses to match.

[evolutionsvoid]

With its grip on the land and its influence over all, it is obvious that the Church of Divine Wealth is a massive organization. Their reach is far and their power great, having ruled over all as the dominate religion for an era. At such a size, it is only natural that smaller pieces would be found within. Like the divine bodies they worship, any single entity is built upon multiple parts that function in unison to make it all work. As the blessed organa within our own flesh makes us who we are, the Church has a similar arrangement. Sects within their great folds that serve to bolster their numbers, influence and reach. Some were built within the Church itself, while others were absorbed and repurposed, as the Church found use for them while the outsiders chose assimilation over annihilation. Of the many parts and pieces that thrive in the Church in their own special way, there are four who stand out above all. Four pillars that support the Church of Divine Wealth, four organa whose fluids and faith allow this massive system to thrive. How perfect it all seemed back then...

One of the great sects within the Church is the Emerald Court of Eudaia, an organization of wisdom, learning and philosophy. Here was where the mysteries and conundrums of the world were discussed and debated, where brilliant minds came to puzzle and practice. All throughout the kingdoms held by the Church, courtrooms and debate parlors could be found where folk could learn and witness. Those who wished to meditate upon the secrets of the world, or the turmoils of their own existence would find a home here. The popular saying was that the Emerald Court was the Church's trap for those who considered themselves "too smart for religion." Those who debated about the gods, humors and all of existence would wind up here, fueling the Church even as they question faith. With this freedom to discuss and wonder, it painted the entire organization in a favorable light, giving the impression of open mindedness. And with such wisdom and delving into the mind, what better organization to represent Phlegm? A visit to the actual Court of Eudaia will show this beyond the shadow of a doubt.

The Court of Eudaia is in itself an entire academy, a great fortress of the mind. Beyond the walls lies the grand dome of the court, split and lobed like a divine brain. Within lies countless libraries, parlors and meditation chambers, all so one may better explore the mind. Court rooms and meeting chambers designed to hold debates and discussions, where folk may bring their ideas and theories for scrutiny. And in the center of the two halves lies the one and only Emerald Court, where the high philosophers hang in their web of endless discussion and musing. Here is where the brightest and greatest meet and speak, and where it is said the stances and futures of the Church are mulled over. Even the highest members of the Church would send their ideas and problems to this court, to see what these minds would discover. Folk eager for enlightenment would travel entire kingdoms to gain access, so that they could expand their own wisdom. Those with promise would be seen and eventually invited into the fold, so that they too could become a philosopher.

The most common members of the Court are the Philosophers, those who have devoted their lives to the art of discussion and moral quandaries. They take on the robes of green, and spend every waking moment reading, learning and puzzling over certain topics. As their time in the Court continues, they will begin to focus their sights on a scant few topics, putting all their energy into answering these questions. This niche study is what will give them an identity and purpose, and they will aim to be the master of it. Of course, others may choose this same subject, and they are welcome to, as this is where the great debates begin. Any theory, any idea, must be thoroughly discussed and scrutinized. Debate is necessary to find the truth, to cut through personal bias and foolish assumptions. It is expected for all philosophers to go to battle in the parlor, to be ready to be run through the wringer as they present their ideas. All wannabe students are forced to sit through several precedings, so that they may witness what these debates entail. Naturally, many drop their idea of joining the Court once they see these brutal defenses, as it is too much pressure to bear. This is meant to weed out the weak, as those who cannot take criticism or admit being wrong have no place here.

Philosophers start out as any other folk, but as their studies continue and their imbibing of Phlegm grows more and more to clear their minds, they begin to change. Neglect in eating and personal care causes most to grow gaunt and emaciated, eventually fueling themselves purely through hasty broths and Phlegm. Reclusive in studies and dusty libraries make them pale or even gray in appearance, as the dust and malnutrition shrivels them. In time, growing philosophers will see that they have reached the limit the basic human form can attain, and thus must open their minds further. The use of trepanning is the sign of evolution in a philosopher, literally opening one's mind to new possibilities and ways of thinking. It starts with a hole in the forehead, as if carving a third eye, and eventually calls for the removal of the entire skull cap. Outsiders can easily identify the rank of philosophers by noting how much of their green brains are exposed, as these are those who have expanded their minds beyond normal means. Yet, this is still not the end of their growth.

When one truly becomes a famed philosopher of the Emerald Court, their entire head will be cast aside. As it is found out, the senses and mortal wants simply distract from true enlightenment. A mouth only hungers, the ears are bombarded by distractions and wandering eyes take in details that are superfluous to advancement. Thus, a philosopher will eventually reduce their head to a brain, held within a clear orb filled with brilliant Phlegm. Awash in this calming and wise humor, they can truly be in the right state of mind to puzzle out the mysteries of the universe. The only need they must partake in now is the refreshment of their humor, which is needed when it grows cloudy and confused. Not only does this transformation allow for better thinking, it allows for the truest form of debate and conversation. Now they are no longer hindered by meaty tongues that tire and mortal nerves that scramble and fail. By using clearvein, they can hook up their spheres to other philosophers and swap fluids to partake in deep debate. To outsiders, not a single word is said, yet entire libraries worth of musings are released in mere minutes. Entire networks may be linked up as the arguments grow, taking in more and more perspectives. Some rooms may be reduced to a web of orbs and brains, locked in a ceaseless discussion.

The act of linking brains is a crucial one, as the philosophers warn about getting lost in your own dome and ideas. If one only listens to the sloshings of their own brain, then they will easily fall down the path of bias, blindness and assumption. They must connect with others to discover their own faults and get fresh perspectives. Thus, it is considered taboo if a philosopher has not linked up with anyone for an extended period of time, and word will travel that they have succumbed to ego. If they cannot get their ideas

approved by at least three other brains, then the highest levels of court will refuse to even let them present. Many take the logical route of opening discussion with others, but some crooked philosophers, consumed by ego and the want to be right, will go through shadier routes. They will find weaker minds and simpler folk to take under their wing, and then steal their brains. These will be placed in orbs and given Phlegm, but their minds are far from ideal philosopher material. This is fine for the cheater, who wants strawmen to dominate with their arguments and mind. These naive brains will cave to their superior, and become mere yes men to bolster their image and presence. Inside these halls, it is not uncommon to have posses of philosophers who group together and detract foes who "cheat" or undertake topics seen as unworthy. Though physical violence in heated debates between these unofficial factions is rare, the mental warfare going between them could reduce a man to a mindless husk.

When civil war broke out within the Church of Divine Wealth, the Court of Eudaia was quick to separate itself from the violence. This sect wanted nothing to do with the whole affair, and sealed their gates and halls to all. As philosophers, such brutish battles were beneath them and an utter waste of their talents. However, the crumbling of the Church and the ever growing war provided ample fruits of debate and discussion. Now there were new topics to present to the court, and all minds were eager to be the ones to solve these new conundrums. So now, as the war destroys the lands and leave the people fighting for survival, the great court of Eudaia spends its time and resources to prattle on about war, power and what it all means. Many outsiders wonder if there will even be a world left by the time they settle upon a decision.

Those who have climbed their walls and survived their defenses in hopes of gaining audience are never seen from again. In time, folk have abandoned the idea of rousing the high philosophers from their solitude. With the Emerald Court now fully severed from the outside world, they must be hungering for new ideas and perspectives. No doubt those who break in are seen as fresh tomes, ripe for the reading. Rumors are abound that those who enter are taken apart at the seams by the hungering debaters, eager for more fuel to their debates.

Due to the closure of the court and their defenses, many traveling philosophers were locked out, with no way to get back in. Thus they are forced to wander the war torn lands. However, they have taken this turn of events as an opportunity to learn more about the subject and find real juicy debate points out here in the ashes. With the chaos around them and the abandonment by their own institute, some have gone off the deep end. They would believe that if they find the right subject or philosophical view, that they would be allowed back into their home. And sometimes these different points of view come from others, and they know exactly how to get a hold of these new perspectives. And after all, what they are doing is a favor to the common folk. To be shed of all worries and pain, now allowed to join an enlightened conversation! Who wouldn't welcome such a chance? Thus, reports of mad philosophers in the wilds have begun to circulate, leaving behind the empty skulls of those who proved to be "fascinating conversationalists." It should be remembered that while these crazed folk may be physically frail, their mental abilities and mastery over Phlegm can make them deceptive opponents. Armor and weapons are useless when a wave of Phlegm makes you forget how to even use your muscles.

[horizon-verizon]

Daenerys is the Prince that was Promised. When she visits the House of the Undying, she is told she is the child of three, which relates to the three heads of the Dragon. And the child of three/three heads of the Dragon means she is the Prince that was Promised, the Stallion who Mounts the World, Azor Ahai. They are all myths retelling the same story, just in a different cultural lens.

People forget that Martin’s subversion of the Chosen One trope is based on 90s fantasy...which was overwhelmingly male characters and candidates, perhaps the most significant at the time being Rand al’Thor of the late Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time series. No one would expect, at the time, that the Prince that was Promised would be a princess. Most would have argued, as a significant portion of the fandom does till this day, that it is Jon, the standard male hero character. Jon being the Prince that was Promise would be a trope in of itself. Since we have gone beyond 90s fantasies, there have been more female chosen ones (Daenerys paved the way), but she still resides in that 90’s concept of a female Chosen One. (Also ignoring the obvious Jesus parallels such as her walk through the desert, her being born of fire, Bonfier Hasty worshiping the Maiden because of his love for Rhaella, etc).

I note as much ("They are all myths retelling the same story, just in a different cultural lens.") HERE. branwyn-the-half-witch has an interesting thought that that particular title accidentally developed from Aegon seeing a Targ from his own blood ("prince") be needed ("promised") for a future fight HERE.

Which justifies how the TPTWP title/meaning exists in Westeros; no other Westerosi (maester or otherwise) really spoke of it before Stannis, who of course received such from Melisandre and more a restored-but-half-realized knowledge of the original Essoi mythic body of a savior. Said "restored" because the Targs have been isolated from or cut themselves from Essos but were still magically/by blood connected to it...bc their very blood is that source for those dragon dreams.

(Ironically, the Seven faith--meant to mimic Catholicsm and the Catholic Church in its:

dogma

that dogma's rigidity's influence over the whole of Westeros' society (chivalry/warriordom; mores on hierarchy and obedience, childrearing/corporal punishment, the self-mortification of the carving stars in one's forehead [though this is present in many real-world religions and sects, in the West its immediately recognized and associated with Christian self flagellation])

the multiplicity of many aspects of one god, the aesthetics of stained windows or multicolored glass/translucent substances inlaid or making up part of a geometric, architectural structure [not just buildings but crowns of the high Septon and Aenys I]

the structure of High Septon, septons, and septas mirroring Pope, priests/deacons/measters-monks/nuns

the HS/Pope's relationship with monarchs as to sometimes affirm and sometimes condemn and be some sort of religious "check" but also support for the monarchy

"holy days"

the Knights Templar (who were aka "The Poor Fellow-Soldiers of Christ and of the Temple of Solomon") & crusaders inspiring the Poor Fellows & the Warrior's Sons

*EDIT* some rituals, as well

has no element of a Christ-like or a generally mythic savior figure in its mythos. The none Catholic/Seven faiths [except the old gods, but even here there is a hint of a need for saving against the Long night but its just so decreased bc of te nearly lost greenseers and twstsote and the giants] all have this focus on a savior figure instead.)

[thedreadvampy]

I find Americans talking about religion fascinating because they think the weird pentecostal/evangelical eschatology cults are Normal Christianity and not like. a really specific thing.

and that is by no means to say Christianity elsewhere is less fucked up but it's different.

like Americans will say stuff like "like most Christians, this cult believes we're in the end times and have to reclaim Zion to bring about Revelations, but what's weird about their beliefs is..." and it's like???? WHAT DO YOU MEAN LIKE MOST CHRISTIANS?????

like Scotland's still a pretty Christian country. some of the biggest sociopolitical divides are Christian sectarianism. we got Presbyterians we got Catholics we got Episcopalians we got Quakers (hi) we got Baptists and Methodists and Jehovah's Witnesses and so on. half of the population are Christian. but I don't think I have ever met more than a handful of people whose Christian belief is focused on Revelations and the end times. that's weird stuff my guys.

my outside appraisal of American Christianity is that it looks really very samey. there doesn't seem to be a lot of significant theological difference, or tbh aesthetic difference, between a good number of the major churches. worship practise, structure, and the focus on sin, evangelism and apocalypse seem to be way more common threads there than in Europe. and I feel like people grow up in that and think that means all Christianity is the same as that. which like. it isn't.

A lot of folks I know who've been to American Quaker communities, for example, have been really surprised at how much some Meetings in the US are cramming into the same episcpentamethodbaptitradcathevangelist church model - fire and brimstone preachers, our god is a great big god songs, focus on end times prophecy - and it just doesn't. line up with the degree of diversity in practise and focus for different Christian sects in most other parts of the world. where like. those types of churches also exist (the evangelical born-again rapture and damnation churches) but they're one approach among many.

and again that's not cause like. Christianity is only bad in the US and not bad anywhere else. Christianity does a lot of social good and a looooooot of social harm everywhere. but it's wild what Americans, Christian or otherwise, seem to take as the baseline beliefs of global Christianity. like I went to a Church of England school and I don't believe I was ever taught about Revelations, let alone the rapture or young earth ideology or biblical literalist creationism, except, eventually, as a thing some other people believe and it's weird. when the young earth creationists came into my secondary school to prostyletize it was a bloodbath cause every 14 year old in that room was like "what r u talking about m8 that's cult shit".

what I'm saying is: there's not a huge amount of universal Christian beliefs across all sectors except like "God is there. There's some Bible which contains some amount of spiritual value for some amount of literal interpretation. Jesus? Pretty great and important guy. Probably the son of God or actually God or some secret third thing." and everything else there's some dissent on. but of the things that are broadly though not fully universal - maybe like heaven, hell, sin, redemption through faith or deed, the resurrection, a physical/spiritual divide, prayer, some key holidays etc - I don't think that 'weirdly intense eschatology involving reclaiming Zion, global warfare, the Antichrist, decades of torturous end times, physical rapture etc' is in that mix. that's your country's weird thing that it's since exported through cultural colonialism, just like Christianity itself was largely exported through European cultural colonialism.

[morgana-ren]

Hi i had an idea that popped into my head, because I (vaguley) remember that the game talks about a sacrifice in the forest lake someone did (me thinks its the church who sac'd someone) and they may have became the ivory wraith.

So you think the town is cursed, maybe something that amplifies lust or 'sins' because of it?

Oh, something is definitely wrong with the town. Something dastardly and dark happened and is currently happening, though I'm not sure of the extent that the lore goes into it.

The Ivory Wraith actually has a very interesting backstory, if you manage to get them to show you.

To make it quick, it seems like they were some kind of priest or priestess for an early facet of the Faith in ancient times, and they along with others of their ward were kidnapped by some dark, esoteric order and sacrificed in some blasphemous ritual involving monsters and tentacles and some heinous offences to God or whatever.

I don't know if their spirit was corrupted or perhaps consumed by some eldritch lord, but either way, the Ivory Wraith is trapped beneath the ruins of the lake, able to wander the town, seemingly only caring for two things: Its own rare offspring, which it can impregnate the player with, and the lovely ivory necklace that dangles gracefully from its pale neck.

Now lets take a look at the faith.

On the outside, it seems relatively benign, seemingly modeled after modern day Catholicism. Strict and unforgiving, to be sure, but basically just a mirrored image of what we know the more stern sects of Christianity to be.

But take a deeper look. The prayer room, where devout priests are known to go into fits of hysterics and speak in tongues, hallucinating for hours on end as the prayer becomes so intense and somehow, virginity stays intact even after the most defiling of carnal acts. The dark ritual that can take place to an unsuspecting and unconscious player should they pass out at the lake. The fact even the priests and nuns aren't immune to your charms, and will often try to have their way with you against your will and you are expected to be fine with it.

The fact that the church will whore you out against your will if your purity is weighed and found wanting during your chastity exam.

These are the good guys.

Now the town itself, something is very, very blatantly wrong.

On the outside, it's a seemingly normal little town. A little costal paradise that is surprisingly self-sufficient for a small-town community. A lovely little haven cut off from the rest of the world--

For a reason.

It's meta-implied that this town is wrong, and it knows that it's wrong. The people in charge make an active effort to keep their affairs secret from the outside world. There's this lovely facade of a normal society, but the rotting, seedy underbelly is the world's worst kept secret.

If you tell any outsiders what is happening, they don't believe you. It sounds so absurd and so outlandish that they just outright think you're a mentally unwell, attention seeking person. The 'innocence' and 'awareness' bar allude to the fact that people who don't indulge themselves in the darker parts of life in the town are purposefully kept in the dark, so much so that it just flies right over their heads, or they just accept what is happening as normal.

Sirris, for example. They very much love their child. Do you think they would ever raise their child here if they had any true idea of how bad things are here? Chances are that they think this is just life, or they're so kept in the dark about the truth of it that they don't understand what they're subjecting Syndey to.

The people who are unofficially in charge of the town, such as Remy, Quinn, Bailey, and to an extent, Leighton, all have a direct hand in the worst aspects of it. The underground brothel, the underground farm, the asylum, etc.

Every person that heads one of these awful facilities also just so happens to be the only person in charge of such affairs. Harper and the hospital, Remy and his farm, Leighton and his school, Bailey and his orphanage, and so on.

There's a titload of supernatural references here that certainly come into play. The moors, Blackwolf, all the hallucinogens that run rampant, the tentacles, the blood moon-- it all fits together somehow.

We don't have all the pieces quite yet, and your character is gaslit and made to feel crazy if they start to put them together.

Something very, very wrong is happening, and it all fits hand in hand somehow.