#exploring Christianity

[nerdyprincessgirl]

QUEEN OF SHEBA

THE CRUSADES

THE REFORMATION

THE PURITANS

THE TEUTONIC KNIGHTS

CATHOLIC HISTORY

HISTORY OF CHRISTIANITY

THE APOSTLES

EARLY CHRISTIANITY

THE KNIGHTS HOSPITALLER

Captivating History

[presswoodterryryan]

Understanding Paul’s Message in 1 Corinthians

by Ariel Hey there, awesome friends! It’s Ariel, and I can’t wait to tell you about something super cool that our family has been discovering together! Have you ever thought about what it means to be part of something really big, like a superhero team? Well, that’s what Paul talks about in 1 Corinthians 1:1-9, and trust me, it’s like getting a giant, cozy hug that makes you feel amazing! In…

[doesephs]

ronan lunches pen has exploded for the trillionth time that week 🚬🚬😬

[mybeautifulpoland]

All Saints' Day, Pilzno Cemetery, Subcarpathia, Poland by Krzysztof Kosowski

[reliand]

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

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

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

[canisalbus]

Do you ever get attacked by homophobes about your art?

A lot less than I had initially feared. I think the only times when I've gotten some purposefully homophobic comments on twitter is when I've drawn my dogs looking very clearly in love while mixing in religious elements in some particularly transparent way. But even then it's been more like displeased grumbling than a direct attack. For the most part people have been remarkably chill, I hope it stays that way.

[fictionadventurer]

For all the talk about bad Christian fiction, I've seen several different ways that Christianity can be well-integrated into the story.

The story is about something unrelated to Christianity, but the characters are Christian and their faith affects their outlook and daily life. I recently stumbled across Wormwood Abbey by Christina Baehr, which is a light, fairly forgettable cozy fantasy that happens to do this really well. The story is about a woman who learns that dragons exist around her family's estate, but as the daughter of a rector, she often mentions prayer, sings religious songs, or thinks of Bible verses that relate to things she experiences. The Christianity feels organic to the character, and thus enhances the story rather than distracting from it.

The world is a Christian world where Christian beliefs are shown to be the correct framework through which to view the world. This happens in good Christian fantasy, like Lewis and Tolkien, but there are plenty of real-world stories where the themes line up with Christian truths, and this can make a story Christian whether or not religion is explicitly practiced by characters within the story.

The characters wrestle with how to apply their faith in their daily lives. Regina Doman's Fairy Tale Novels often feature this, as the characters struggle to deal with plot problems while living out their faith. Amy Lynn Green's work often features this as well--characters hold certain values (like, for instance, a Quaker pacifist) and have to figure out how they apply or don't apply to specific situations, especially when they conflict with other values, or they have to figure out how to live out their values (such as forgiveness) in moments where it seems impossible or even ill-advised. Charlotte Yonge's best works (specifically, what I've read of The Three Brides) do this as well--instead of preaching the one right answer, you have characters trying to figure out what the best answer is as they figure out what's right or wrong in this specific situation.

Characters face the revelation that there's a spiritual world that exists beyond our ordinary world, which can cause terror, but also provide comfort and hope. Elizabeth Goudge's novels often exist in this space, with very internal stories of characters coming to embrace the truths that come with living in a spiritual world. To a lesser extent, I'd say Amanda Dykes' work often fits here, with characters ultimately find comfort and hope from philosophies that line up with Christian truth. In less-cozy works, there's also the possibility of stories where an entirely secular person encounters God and has to figure out what that means for their life.

So our options are Christianity as character, Christianity as setting, Christianity as theme, or Christianity as plot. The ways this is integrated most seamlessly is when Christianity (or the ways they struggle with it) is a vital part of the character, so the plot that arises from it lines up with a Christian worldview. It also works well for the characters to just exist within a world where Christian truths are the way the world works. It doesn't even necessarily require the characters to be explicitly religious. Truth is something that everyone is searching for, and stories that honestly showcase truth or the search for it are going to resonate with a wide audience, even if they aren't Christian themselves.

[kimabutch]

Finally watched EXU Divergence and mannnn what a great story and a great love letter to Matt's creations and also I want to write an entire essay on the parallels between the emergent faith of the Divergence era and the development of early Christian theology (especially faith-centred Pauline theology) and theologies of divine kenosis (ie. self-emptying) and relational theology that emphasizes god-human partnership (which is incidentally represented so well in TTRPGs...)

[jesuisnilunnilautre]

soooo fucked up of mdzs to have a character called the lightbringer be among the most unimpeachable untouchable good and rule abiding place (with a reputation for repetition of principles and prayers even, with famous commandments written in stone even), and he’s the Most beautiful and the Most beloved and Most perfect disciple until you put One man in front of him and suddenly he refuses to do ANYTHING his leaders demand of him! he will not! he is unrepenting! and he is punished to the point of disfigurement and he still will not bend! and he says if you will not see the truth i will make everyone else understand that i am right!!! i will move across the world in subtle ways and after i speak to your children they will side with me!!! fuck!!! maybe lan wangji and lucifer have some shit in common. perhaps. lightbearer save me.

[illustratus]

Prince Henry the Navigator during the Conquest of Ceuta by Jorge Colaço

[nerdyprincessgirl]

MEDIEVAL KNIGHTS

THE KNIGHTS TEMPLAR

MEDIEVAL CHRISTIANITY

THE GREAT SCHISM

Captivating History

[shutterandsentence]

 "So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow."

--1 Corinthians 3:7

Photo: Morton Arboretum, Illinois

[redamancy6]

I'm so heartbroken 💔 seeing all the news about the recent terrorist attack in Pahalgam, Kashmir. This is just so sad and sinister to target civilians based on their religion.

The murder toll (yes, I will use that word, cause they were murdered !) has reached 27 as of now!

Om Shanti | Rest in Peace, for the departed.

WHEN IS THE FUCKING LIMIT ?!

HOW MANY OF US WILL HAVE TO DIE BEFORE THE GOVERNMENT (STATE & CENTAL) WILL TAKE SOME CHARGE ?!

💔🕊

[mybeautifulpoland]

Our Lady of Tourists Catholic Wayside Shrine, Gorce Mountains, Poland by Jerzy Górecki

[gingermintpepper]

So, one of the most interesting things that's come from my recent exercises in writing the Olympians as young deities is all of the very fun and somewhat painful conversations that come from the young deities acquiring and consequently settling into their domains.

Apollo and Artemis especially have been really fascinating under the microscope. They start off identically, with extremely similar interests and similar domains over the hunt and wilderness. They spend their days under the stars and foraging for fruit and dancing and singing in the fields, two rustic god-children exploring and learning together. Then Apollo goes off on his own to slay Python.

Now, a lot of things change when Apollo kills Python. That is the act which transforms the bow from a tool of survival and sport to an instrument of murder, bloodshed and ultimately war. It is Apollo's first act of wrath which separates him from Artemis - both spiritually because she has not yet shed blood herself as a goddess and physically because it leads to his exile. Most importantly however, the slaying of Python is the act that grants Apollo his knowledge.

If violence is what first separates Apollo from Artemis then it is knowledge which keeps them apart.

This can refer to a lot of things; that Artemis continued to be at home with the wild beasts of the forests and mountains while Apollo grew to prefer the domesticated sheep and cattle, that Artemis continued to avoid mortals while Apollo grew to know their ways and endeavoured to teach them more. The point that has been the most interesting to me however has been Artemis, who remains free of slaughter, and thus remains pure and Apollo, who becomes acutely and entirely too aware of it, and thus must be constantly purified.

Apollo's infatuation with medicine specifically is the place where this becomes most apparent. When he leaves for his exile to travel as a mortal, without nectar or ambrosia, without power, Apollo is without the privileges of the divine for the very first time. He sweats, he smells, he grows weary when he travels, he grows hungry and thirsty. He experiences fatigue and nausea, the fever of sickness, the chill of infection, the delirium of poison. The blood Apollo shed does not only make him impure spiritually, it strips him of the purity of his birth and station. Likewise, medicine is not a divine practice. What use do the unkillable immortals have for something as finicky as medicine when they have nectar and ambrosia? Apollo however, knows of the pains of the flesh and the suffering of the mortal coil. He pursues medicine in all its horrors and difficulties because of the knowledge he gained with blood.

Artemis then, cannot understand the medical Apollo. When her brother returns possessed by this spectre of ill-gained knowledge, she does not recognise him. Who is this boy who scores the deer and studies the shape of their intestines before he cooks them? What good is there in rescuing a chick with a broken wing? The Apollo-of-the-Wild in her memories would have done the correct thing and left the thing for dead - let the forest take what is its due. Who is this Apollo whose hands are always stained to the wrist in the blood and gore of the living? What is his fascination with the mechanics of mortal bodies? Artemis does not know and Apollo does not tell her.

That has, by far, been my favourite effect of the whole Python watershed moment to explore recently.

[yorksnapshots]

An Anglo-Saxon stone cross at St Mary the Virgin Church, Masham, North Yorkshire, England.

Believed to have been carved in the 8th or 9th centuries. The Cross is 6ft 9" tall and 2ft wide, used to be known as the Paulinus Cross and is decorated with early Christian carvings.