#this is vaguely religion flavored

[glitterspeckle]

This never hurts any less. (You’ll come back, right?)

Alt title:

How Many Details Can I Add Before I Go Insane

Some extras

[asktotallyhuman]

"I would like to ask the local cleric more about their religion, as being raised with an open mind to listen and learn (and only told of one legend story for bedtime in my youth)... Father Syrus didn't hold any belief himself, but he was still enjoying listening to others of their own..."

"... but right now, I don't think they would be open to... talking with me just yet... what with my gray skin and all..." ^^;

(Wanted to ask Father Aldurn as Orchid just for laughs)

But luckily, with the magic of her charm, she's able to walk the town freely. Even enter the church, and speak to reverend Father himself.

Father Aldurn closes his book before he continues.

"The Aether, and the Nether, both places one could access with the right resources. Heaven and hell. Death brings one of three options:"

"One: A soul that is virtuous, is given the gift of "creation," spirit awakening within the paradise of the aether, free to fly and create in true paradise for eternity.

Two: A soul that is vengeful, filled with hatred and spite, is bound to eternal damnation. Dread souls to become a part of the soul-sand that covers the nether realm.

Three: Some say, that within the realm of the void exists a form of purgatory. Lost souls wander the barren wastelands of the void and the endrealm, their former beings slowly stripping away, until they become akin to a pearlless enderfolk, screaming in the dark with powers they can't control."

"If you want to learn more, my child, perhaps you would like to attend one of my sermons!"

[kalmeria]

i jusg think that. if you add madara (i am a villain) x mayoi (i am less than human) x tatsumi (i am going to hell)……. it would lead to an interertjng result

[kyliaquilor]

I technically wasn't raised Christian, but I was raised Christian-flavored theist.

And yes, there is a difference there.

[transgenderer]

I should probably finish that book on melanesian religion but like...the big points that you get from the early stuff make the later stuff less interesting

"Cargo cults" in the sense of religious movemenrs that mimic western technology (and use the term cargo) significantly predate ww2 (like, by 50 years)

Melanesian society was like destroyed by western powers using them for borderline (and sometimes literally) slave labor

The male populace was like all in distant plantations and then came back to the villages with broken bodies

White people were mysteriously very rich, this wealth came on cargo ships and source was vague

Revolutionary religious millenarian movements kept popping up the whole time

Preexisting millenarian movements had a thing about the ancestors coming back om boats

These combined to end up with the ancestors coming back and making you as rich as the white people

The magic got "white people stuff" flavored for pretty obvious class/power reasons

As far as I can tell, the idea that cargo cults originated from the plenty received during ww2 is basically straight up American propaganda about how great and generous we are

Uhhh. Yeah

So anyway this makes cargo cults much less sexy. Its just normal magic and millenarianism mixed with western stuff for coincidental reasons about the preexisting religion. Also magic that mimics technology has existed since forever

[dgcatanisiri]

I've seen it said on occasion that it was a refreshing change to have the Inquisitor be unable to persuade and change the minds of the characters around them, that the characters felt "more real" that a brief conversation shouldn't change their entire worldview.

This is bull.

First of all, no one asked for their entire worldview to change, just that they GIVE a little - argue with Vivienne about the merits of mage freedom, be able to point out that fear is learned as much as anything, that the fear of mages has been taught because mages are not allowed to be part of the world that the common folk experience, or even that her view of magic is not shared BECAUSE it comes from so lofty a position in society, as she is a First Enchanter, leader of the Loyalists, mistress to the head of the Council of Heralds. Or, here's one of my personal favorites, the vote to break away from the Circles may have passed by a narrow margin, but it still PASSED, and if Fiona had refused to accept that, she'd have faced a hundred minor revolts instead of a singular organized one, which would have meant that the few who went around, burniating the countryside, would be seen as representative of them all, while have an organized structure to the rebellion allowed them the ability to disavow bad actors.

It's asking Sera to acknowledge that there's more nuance than her definitions of the world offer, or countering to Cassandra that, particularly if she intends to take a position of top authority in the Chantry, she needs to be able to look beyond its dogma and realize that to those who follow a separate faith, the Chant of Light is a herald of death, an omen of doom, because it refuses to allow any who follow a separate faith. It's telling Solas that the Dalish have been forced to build their history from tattered scraps, and rather than condemn them for what they lack, he should acknowledge and appreciate what they've recovered with no more than a vague notion of what the original picture looked like.

Y'know, it's asking to be able to actually ARGUE with these characters, rather than be lectured to by them about how THEIR views are the only proper way to view things, even if those views fly in the face of our experiences as the players, or even just how we roleplay a singular character. BioWare tries to talk up a stance of grey morality and a desire for the answers to be more than black and white, yet here in Inquisition, you ONLY get their stance, and, if you don't agree with it, you are dismissed - which also causes a lot of problems with something like the approval metric, where if you DON'T agree with a character, you'll never manage to unlock their full content - I am generally rolling a male Qunari Inquisitor, and yet I have, in over a dozen characters, only ONCE managed to obtain the rooftop cookies scene with Sera. If you don't get these scenes of character development, then you don't get to have a full view of a character.

And then there's the second and bigger issue - With most of the characters being various flavors of Andrastrian, with most if not all of them buying in to the narrative of the Inquisitor as the Herald of Andraste, a position that is borderline messianic within their religion, why do they NOT listen to the words that the Inquisitor says? If Skyhold becomes a place of pilgrimage as Cassandra notes in the arrival at Skyhold scene, if the Inquisitor is a voice of authority in Thedas like everything the game tells us, why SHOULDN'T their words carry weight, especially with the people closest to them? Why is the Inquisitor NOT persuasive to the people who know them when they believe through much of the game that they have been touched by a divine figure?

It doesn't make sense for the Inquisitor to lack in persuasive ability when the whole game is about how they have become a powerful voice and figure within the world.

So, no. It is NOT a good thing that the characters effectively brush off any attempt that the Inquisitor makes to argue with their stances.

[burnt-kloverfield]

Just saw Heretic, the one with Hugh Grant and Sophie Thatcher and Chloe East, about the Mormon Missionaries.

It's definitely a scary movie. It tried to be mind bending and twisty, and it was, but not in the way it was trying to be. I'm just jazzed that there's a horror movie with Mormons.

It's definitely not a Mormon Horror Movie, just only slightly closer to a Horror Movie about Mormons. I did really enjoy this movie, but it was clear that it wasn't made by Mormons. Like there's a certain flavor of behavior that mormons have that the missionaries just didn't have.

Like I'm Mormon. I was a sister missionary. I was a dang good sister missionary. These missionary characters only vaguely resembled the sister missionaries I served with. Like, they've got the cardigan down. But otherwise?

I literally leaned over to my brother in the theater and went "these are really bad missionaries." Like they didn't actually even open the Book of Mormon. They didn't read a scripture. They didn't even start with a prayer. These gals had horrible conversation skills and absolutely did not teach anything. They came in totally unprepared.

Hugh Grant is perfect and phenomenal in this, and I have met so many people saying the exact same things he has. Countless people with his talking points. (At least until we get to the legit scary parts of him. That was actually scary.)(no spoilers because holy crap)

The last part of the movie felt rushed, and like something was missing, like they cut out scenes or something, but the ending was nice and a relief. Good ending.

It was a good movie. The thing was that the details that it missed were in the cultural aspect of how Mormon missionaries(and mormons in general) actually act. Like you wouldn't know unless it was your culture or religion, you know? Like, they didn't even have a Book of Mormon in hand to give him. Sister Paxton just had her one she had all marked up and sticky noted in her bag(she didn't even have her quad with her?). And the one elder that came looking for them? Where was his companion? There are few things that a missionary gets sent home for and leaving your companion is a big one.

I do appreciate the direction they took with Sister Barnes, of her being smart and logical and sincere and tragic backstory. Very perfect set up and good foil for Sister Paxton who was born and raised mormon in Ogden Utah with 8 siblings. And honestly, I am glad that she got to be smart, too.

But it was very clear that the actress didn't know how mormon behaved or acted. She didn't pray like a mormon. Any born and raised utah mormon is going to fold her arms over her chest and bow her head and start her prayer with Dear Heavenly Father. But Chloe East instead clasped her hands. I rarely ever see Mormons clasp their hands if they're not on their knees at the side of their bed.

Like, it's not like it's a sin to pray that way, it's just that there's a way people who were born and raised a utah Mormon move and act and speak. And this wasn't it. And I could tell and it was distracting.

Like Hugh Grant spoke more like a Mormon than the sister missionaries did. He got the wording and the phrasing and cadence right for certain things. Especially the little Morony vs Moroni mispronunciation thing.

It's just interesting how clear it is to tell when someone isn't actually a part of the culture just from mannerisms.

Sorry for the long post but dang, this movie was good, and could have been so much better, but how do you convey that there's a certain way that utah mormons hold themselves.

[electricalpylon]

Hey! I was interested in your “angel spotted proof of heaven” tag. Between the feminine figures and divine machinery, there seems to be some slightly obscure/vague things you tagged with it. Would you mind sharing your perspective on what angels are to you?

its like halfway between the feeling you get when you see a cool or rare bird that you weren't expecting to see when you're out on a walk and the idea of inanimate objects with personhood placed on them compared to people (usually women) experiencing objectification and having personhood rejected.

all of that is filed under the word divinity both as a source of wonder and corruption and flavored like bronze age mythology and religion and sprinkled with catholic and gnostic imagery

[waterparksdrama]

do you guys really think awsten might be gay or something or did it just become a joke because of the way he acts and the things he says? because I already saw that he once said he was straight but I also said years ago that I was straight and now I discover that I like girls 💞 and I agree with what you said in the other ask about the fact that he grew up in an environment where that It was seen as a joke but anyway it just popped into my head randomly and I don't have anyone to talk to about it

i think awsten being some flavor of gay would explain a lot (and i mean a lot) especially when you consider the kind of poorly executed themes of this entire album cycle that keeps being vague or being too blunt to remind you it's about religion and sex. like the whole "religious trauma interlude" thing at my show i was just like. is he gay or something bc for a guy who has only dated bottle blonde women and has a generally good relationship with his religious aligned parents you'd think he wouldn't feel so traumatized by religion especially when the main thing he's gotten shit for is looking and acting gay right - iz

[moonssugar]

im actually very pretentious about fantasy religions if ur gonna make a fantasy christianity please combine aspects of existing groups and get weird and sexy and insane wit it and please make up your own shit that has never existed and could theoretically but also dont mix up things that are theologically inconsistent or call x group another when theyre clearly closer to y group bc i will know and i will not be pleased that you didnt do basic wikipedia research. you dont have to exaggerate the bad things churches do the real life horrors are way more compelling to explore and need to see the light of day. if i see you taking obvious insp from one denomination and putting it on another with no consideration with how they actually work im suing you for medical damage. cant tell anyone how churches differ theologically? go back to square one. there are no marian statues in a baptist church. no anglicans are not the same church as the catholic one. yes lutherans and methodists are different. no orthodoxy and catholicism arent the same. no most protestant churches dont have priests. no you dont have to copy and paste the cultish aspects of mormonism into your mainline protestant or evangelical church i promise you its already weird enough you just need to look deeper. but please do go apeshit on mormonism though. they all have specific psychological effects and theyre not the same effects literally ask the people that left. the flavors of trauma will differ ex christians are like baskin robins ice cream. and finally if youre critiquing a religion and your critique isnt vague enough to apply to all of it — get specific. dont just throw spaghetti at the wall, talk your shit but talk it well. i should know exactly what bitch youre talking about so dont be afraid to name drop. much to be said about fantasy christian based cults in media but thats another post

[windvexer]

So apart from red flags, history, etc, what is the most important magical thing to learn starting out?

Too vague a question for this morning I'm afraid.

Presumably, as this is a blog currently about british witchcraft flavored sorcery, we're not discussing all of magic but rather BTW, but even that is a large umbrella term.

Why is someone getting into witchcraft? Do they view it as a secular skillset, a spirituality, a religion? What interests them, what do they want to do about it?

IMO once you get past read some history books and don't burn your house down and don't be a nazi, even on accident there's not a lot of things that are universal and would apply to everyone or even large groups.

[dykelawlight]

You may review that last post and say Isa Jews don't have monastic orders and aren't you always posting about Jewish themes in Death Note to which I would reply that I did not invent the insane vaguely Shinto-flavored vaguely Talmudic monotheism (which to be clear is not actually either of those religions and in fact actively contradicts both of them in many ways) that Mikami's psychosis produced just for him at the age of like 15 and he can undergo acceptance of holy orders for his man if he thinks it would be cool. He can do whatever he wants forever he has a permit (piece of paper that says "TERU MIKAMI CAN DO WHATEVER HE WANTS FOREVER - ISA" signed with my full name and bar license number)

[doodlegraveyard]

In the you mention a sea goddess for andros ,Can you explain your thought process with that cause I found it a little random

@seth-the-whalelord Thoughts are vague right now but the thing about me is I’m an anthro nerd and I come at stuff from that perspective. The thing about cultures and societies is that they pretty much always Make Religions (/belief systems). I wanted to have the girls dealing with different flavors of traditionalism and in Aisha’s case I imagined her responsibilities as a princess to be as much spiritual as they are political.

I guess it probably does seem weird to invent a goddess because the Winx world has a mythology/cosmology that is tangibly Real- like no one is claiming the Great Dragon doesn’t exist, yes that’s god, he’s real, used to live in a planet, now he’s missing, we’re a bit worried about that- but also like…I have kind of swung the sorcerers in a direction where they’re basically religious orders who get magic powers from various powerful entities in return for their dedication. There’s surely other large powerful elemental beings in the Winx universe and what makes something a god/religion aside from people believing in it?

I don’t Think I really want a personified form for the “sea goddess” I mentioned, more like the ocean itself they worship. I mean they have a very cool and magical ocean on andros. Kind of makes sense to me

[kewpidity]

i dont really give af about gabbie hanna but i do love watching videos about drama that i dont care about/know about so i have seen her apology video and it absolutely Reeks of AA steps

religion is complicated and personal and im aware of that but im Also intimately familiar with shitty white people born again christianity, (most of my family fall under this behavior) like theres a v specific flavor to it and she's literally checking all the boxes

its so easy to step away from accountability when you can say that you've changed and grown and found god and now you just want to give vague blanket apologies so now people cant be mad at you about it, she forgave herself and more importantly god forgave her so anybody who doesnt must think theyre better than god type shit

anyway good night

[aprofessionalwithoutstandards]

Got any more thoughts on catholic guilt scout?

Tbh while I imagine Scout as distinctly sexually repressed, I don't think it's really predominantly coming from "Catholic guilt." This might just be bc I don't experience a ton of it myself (despite being Catholic and feeling constantly guilty, I feel like most of it comes from having clinical anxiety and the more socially conservative aspects of American society, which can stem from but are not exclusive to Christianity), but I know Tumblr girlies love the concept so I'll bite. Scout tf2 can be easily read into as a person who is fabulously repressed, desperate for attention, and overcompensating constantly. You can analyze this through many lenses if you wish to do so - gender, sexuality, class, and, yes, religion. While not a distinctly Catholic guilt ("hard work" tends to be more of a Protestant thing, anyway), I do think Scout tf2 probably has some sort of "guilt" abt yknow, not being Man Enough, not being some great provider, being the youngest and the smallest and the weakest everywhere he goes, not being un gran varon, if I may. I think this is all easily manifested as some kind of epic Tumblrina vaguely Catholic-flavored angst, AND it can even be "historically accurate" or something too if you want. Add in another layer of being gay or being trans or something, and you're golden. I'm not particularly Into Scout in any sense of the word, but I get why people are, there's totally a lot there if you wanna look for it. Hey, look at me, Ma! Is anybody even payin attention to me?

[cicadasides]

5, 8, 9, 37, 45, 54, 65!! :)

tysm for sending this !!! 🫂

5. Most uncommon pet you've had?

boring answer, but i’ve only had cats and dogs !

8. Roll a d20 or pick a random number between 1-20 and tell me a memory from that age (roll until you get an age you can remember something from)

i rolled 19! my favorite memory would definitely be the sylvan esso concert i went to!!

9. Favorite flavor of juice?

cranberry or apple

37. What do you hope future you remembers?

i always want to remember the sleepovers with my childhood friends <3 they’re some of my favorite memories

45. What's your favorite day of the whole year and why?

christmas eve! my siblings come over and we eat good food and watch christmas movies :)

54. Are you or have you ever been religious?

i’m agnostic and was raised with sort of vague religious beliefs ig? my parents have their own complicated relationships with religion, and it wasn’t really a big part of my childhood

65. What's your most recent special interest or hyperfixation media?

solo ttrpgs !! some recent faves are apothecaria, anamnesis, and ironsworn + starforged :))