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astroscientia · 1 year

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🌊Neptune in the Houses🌊

1st house:

You choose how to act and project yourself to others based on the subconscious cues that you acquire from them. Your identity is often based on how others see you and talk about it. There is a degree of loss when it comes to self-expression- the unheard child learns to perform to express identity.

2nd house:

Poor with managing, organizing, and structuring finances and possessions. Overly generous with resources. Might make money in nefarious ways if Neptune is poorly aspected. More positively, these natives might profit from pharmacology, marine biology, medicine, or NGO work.

3rd house:

The local environment has a Piscean element. Early school years also were characterized by daydreaming and escaping from learning. The loss of a sibling to unknown or sudden causes is likely in some cases (depending on the aspects). It could suggest that your siblings/cousins/classmates that are close to you are artists, singers, or dreamers. In a negative sense, this might attract escapist friends with a heavy victim mentality.

4th house:

Issues with water, pipes, and flooding in the home. Home near bodies of water. Your mother or a potent female figure in your life might be sick and require care from you or your family members. In this case, the gist is that the family might cause you to feel neglected and forgotten, making you want to escape the domestic setting through art or physical separation. These natives are quite nocturnal- they sleep all day and stay up all night to avoid their families in some cases.

5th house:

Death of children. Loss of lovers to illness, substance abuse, prison, crime, or mental disorders. Lovers might be absent while present either because of their own commitments to helping someone old/vulnerable or through escapism (drugs, sex, alcohol, etc) or poor health.

6th house:

Watch out for the immune system. Habits and routines might not express a desire for a person to live well. Poor habits. Disorganized. No discipline and routine when it comes to eating, working, exercising and taking care of oneself at the bodily level. Neglected as a child and did not learn to properly care for themselves.

7th house:

Attracted to partners that aren't really "there." This sense of absence in presence can be because of the following things: frequent travels, substance abuse, prison, mental illness, philanthropic work that takes the person's time, religious fidelity, etc. You might "lose" a partner to their vices and blame yourself for it.

8th house:

Potential for misunderstandings in transactions (financial) with others. Deception when it comes to money that you get from others. There is vagueness and gullibility when perceiving people's sexual or financial advances toward us. Be careful of who you let into your life sexually or romantically.

9th house:

Confusion regarding beliefs, higher education, and vision for the future. If in university, the campus might be located near water, or you might study subjects related to the pharmaceutical industry, oil, gas, pharmacology, parasitology, virology, marine studies, psychology, or you might enter esoteric fields (astrology, tarot, etc.) or you might study theology.

10th house:

Confusion about future and career. Fear tied to career prospects and the father. The father might have been absent or neglectful which manifests in an inability to be stable in a job.

11th house:

Friends slip through your fingers. We may need clarification about our hopes and life goals because Neptune here makes our ideals changeable. So, our vision for life is usually mutable and influenced by external forces that people rarely have the self-awareness to explore. This is also a highly intuitive placement.

12th house:

This is a good placement because Neptune is comfortable in the 12th house. Intuition is good. Sleep is very essential for you. Heightened motivation to get to know yourself through self-reflection, meditation, and spirituality, and project these learnings to heighten your empathy.

Thank you for reading!

#astrology #astrological observations #neptune #neptune in the 1st house #neptune in the 2nd house #neptune in the 3rd house #neptune in the 4th house #neptune in the 5th house #neptune in the 6th house #neptune in the 7th house #neptune in the 8th house #neptune in the 9th house #neptune in the 10th house #neptune in the 11th house #neptune in the 12th house

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not-so-superheroine · 19 days

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Happy Restoration Day! Here is my Book of Mormon Testimony

Blessings everyone, I am @not-so-superheroine, and this is my testimony of the Book of Mormon.

I am a convert to the restoration. So the Book of Mormon was new to me. I had heard about it. I had held one before that I saw in the drawer of a Marriot hotel room, I didn’t open it until I took an interest in the Restoration.

At that time, I was sort of agnostic. I grew up in a mainline protestant denomination but had grown disillusioned. I was introduced to Mormonism through people who were deconstructing from the belief. Naturally, the first things I saw about it were debunking it’s location and historicity. But my mind was being opened to possibilities I hadn’t considered before. When I was younger, it didn’t make sense to me that there would be no more scripture from God. That the author of Revelations could say “that’s it.” for scripture, as I heard some argue. I wondered why God interacted so directly with those in ancient times and why such things wouldn’t occur with us now.

Eventually, I was curious enough to acquire a Book of Mormon. I was admittedly cautious. I knew what the book said about a “skin of Blackness” and how that had lead to mistreatment of Black and Indigenous persons in different parts of the Latter Day Saint Movement. I was also fairly certain it was a 19th century text. I knew neither of these things discounted the Book as scripture.

So I went into the scripture without the burden of historicity or author authenticity. Not to see if the book was “true”, but to seek after the truths within. I approached the text and I looked for the presence of God. I prayed and asked God to guide me in my reading of the scriptures. Millions before me found these precious truths and Divine Inspiration in this book and I thought perhaps, if i went in openly, I could find it myself.

And did I. And I am glad that I did.

The Book of Mormon provides further light on issues the Christian community was facing at the time. It seeks to heal and to unify. A theme throughout the scripture and the bringing forth of the Book of Mormon speaks of Continuing Revelation. The heavens were open then and are open now. From what I learned, there is no reason why God wouldn’t provide us further light or would limit who God delivers Divine knowledge too. In fact, I learned that God does just that. It’s just up to us to ask, listen, and discern.

The Book has also strengthened my relationship with my Creator. When I was a child, I thought deeply about, and questioned, the theology and doctrine I was taught in Sunday School. Sometimes this questioning was not always welcomed. I learned that for some, Ignorance is preferable to doubt. That doesn’t work for me. The Book of Mormon encourages me to be a diligent seeker. My time spent studying the Book of Mormon has been filled with questions. Questions without shame that I encourage to seek after God’s truth.

Much like Nephi, I Was desirous also that I might see, and hear, and know of these things, by the power of the Holy Ghost, which is the gift of God to all those who diligently seek him, as well in times of old as in the time that he should manifest himself to the children of men; for he is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

(more from 1 Nephi 3) 29 For he that diligently seeks shall find; 30and the mysteries of God shall be unfolded to him by the power of the Holy Ghost, as well in this time as in times of old; 31and as well in times of old as in times to come.

This scripture inspires me and shows me that God wants me to seek after God’s mysteries and the mysteries in the universe God created for us. That thought is absolutely liberating. We should not fear knowledge, God wants us to grow and understand. And my faith is stronger now with this understanding. Questioning and Seeking is needed for spiritual growth.

I find the Book of Mormon to be empowering in reminding me of my moral agency, encouraging me to grow my faith, and work with God to hone my Spiritual gifts to be used in service to the Divine and to my community. The Book of Mormon affirms the Living Christ, Christ’s love for all humankind, no matter where and who they are, and that people of all nations receive light from the Divine and are a part of God’s sacred story. And there is so much more. The Book of Mormon speaks to me about the effects of poverty and addressing wealth inequity. This matches with Christ’s mission to tend to the poor. The Book of Mormon goes into how we should live amongst each other and on building sacred community, on how to be Zion as a people. There are so many lessons packed in there that I believe God wants us to ponder on and to take action with. The Book of Mormon is responsible for changing the way I read and apply sacred scripture to my life. This has changed my life for the better and changed my life outlook. I see myself as an active part of God’s plan carrying out Christ’s mission.

I thank God for the Restoration

I thank God for continuing revelation and the Book of Mormon

And I thank God for my community, the people of Zion

#BoM Testimony #book of mormon #tumblrstake #queerstake #latter day saint #restoration day

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drdemonprince · 11 months

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What is your religion?

People who are far better read in theology than me have convinced me that even the category of "religion" is unhelpful for understanding the wide variety of cultural practices and relationships to spirituality that exist in the world.

When we call something a "religion" we are more often than not transposing a Christian and imperialist idea of what faith is onto completely different practices, beliefs, cultural norms, traditions, and personal experiences. This can happen even if we are not personally Christian or even Christian in our background, again because of imperialism and just how strongly American & European Christian culture has been forced onto the whole rest of the world, and along with it, many of our words and concepts.

Put another way, it really makes no sense to put Shintoism, for example, in the same categorical bucket as Christianity. Doing so actually makes it harder for someone who has a Christian reference point for what a "religion" is to understand Shintoism than if they were considered as their own distinct things.

years of working for various Catholic and Christian organizations has left me with no interest in and little respect for organized Christianity. When I was a child in Sunday School I developed the strange belief that God actively wanted me to be an atheist. And that's about all I can say on the subject.

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dazed--xx · 10 months

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Cardinal (Series Preview)

Series Summary: If there was one thing God could say he’s ever regretted creating he’d explain there were 8. The 8 Evil Thoughts. Vainglory, Avarice, Gluttony, Wrath, Lust, Pride, Envy, and Sloth are currently spending their exile living it up in the mortal world; spreading their sins into Gods most beloved creations so with determination in his heart he sends for the only things that can stop them….Their Virtues The Humility twins, Generosity, Temperance, Love, Chastity, Kindness, and Perseverance. Join them on a journey through morality, obsession, and temptation in Cardinal….

Genre: Angst, Smut, Fluff, Demon Au!

TW: YANDERE, Demon AU!, Cardinal Sins, Themes of Catholicism, mentions of religion, mentions of God, Blastphemy, smut, use of demonic powers, non-con (in some parts), more to be added as each part is posted.

A/N: So I’m officially off Hiatus 👋 so HIYA but I’ve been inspired for this for a while and I have been obsessed with the seven deadly sins since my theology class in high school and just now thought to write something about them but I’m super excited about this and I hope you guys will be too. Also anyone that has requested something your requests will be posted before this series and before one more time chapter 2 so keep an eye out cause I’m probably going to start posting those this week or next week anyway hope you enjoy the preview.

Bang Chan: coming soon

Vainglory; the sin or vice of one who immoderately desires renown, prestige, or the praise and respect of others. The desire of these things is not necessarily sinful but becomes so when it is immoderate and disordered.

Virtue: Humility

Summary: Belial, now reborn as Bang Chan as punishment for his most cardinal sin is happy with his prosperity as the CEO of Stay corporation. His employees worship the ground he walks on; his word holds more weight than almost anyone in all of South Korea, that is until a familiar foe threatens to take everything he’s built away. Now, Chan must face his largest feat yet…corrupting his virtue, Humility.

Minho: coming soon…

Avarice; an insatiable desire to gain and hoard wealth. It's similar to greed but goes even further, encompassing such things as selfishness, entitlement, materialism, consumerism, and hoarding.

Virtue: Generosity

Summary: Mammon, now cast away living his life disguised as mortal Lee Minho enjoys his days as the COO of Stay Corporation. From his many houses to the collections of automobiles he adores his cardinal sin. He indulges in his wealth, power and fornication as he so pleases bringing chaos to rain free wherever he so chooses until he’s faced with whom he only thought a myth…his virtue, Generosity.

Changbin: coming soon…

Gluttony; the over-indulgence or lack of self-restraint in food, drink, or wealth items, especially as status tokens.

Virtue: Temperance

Summary: Beelzebub, spends his days as Seo Changbin a world-renowned chef, wandering the cityscape bouncing from each flamboyant club to elegant restaurant he sets his sights on. He’d spend those days if it weren’t for the thorn in his side his virtue Temperance, a feisty archangel with a knack for ruining his fun he makes it his mission to corrupt the virtue and be the first of the sins to create a fallen angel.

Hyunjin: coming soon…

wrath; the inordinate and uncontrolled feeling of hatred and anger

Virtue: love or charity

Summary: Satan, now trapped in his mortal form Hwang Hyunjin by God due to his cardinal sins is forced to spend his eternity with his virtue, Love at his hip in every waking moment. He finds her mysterious call to his mind and heart infuriating as it drives him wild with wrath and infatuation. When he loses his ability to sense her presence everything is flipped into a world of Chaos, disparity and Wrath in which he did not cause. So, with a blood oath he sets out to locate his other half and destroy those that stolen her away from him.

Jisung: Coming soon…

Lust; defined as immoral because its object or action of affection is improperly ordered according to natural law or the appetite for the particular object (eg sexual desire) is governing the person's will and intellect rather than the will and intellect governing the appetite for that object.

Virtue: chastity

Summary: Asmodeus, now Han Jisung, a Has corrupted the strongest willed priests and popes in history. His love for his cardinal sin has him sharing the euphoria with almost every mortal he meets, that is until he comes face to face with his virtue, Chastity; the embodiment of everything he couldn’t have cast away by his own hands at the turn of the century. Her influence reaching a select few in his favorite personal hell. Vowing to show the object of his affection the true lengths Lust and absolute pleasure can take you; he embarks on a journey of fornication, heartbreak and persuasion.

Felix: coming soon…

pride; excessive belief in one's own abilities, that interferes with the individual's recognition of the grace of God.

Virtue: humility

Summary: Lucifer, hates his exile as Lee Felix under the demon Belial. He was far more intelligent than his current supervisor, he loathed his deity and their fear of anyone having a mind. He spent his days in a bore, missing his time in heaven he spends his days with visions of the precious virtue, Humility. He admonishes those that blindly follow their predestination, he detests his creator for condemning him to walk amongst these…. creatures that is until his twin brother presents him with a deal find and seal his beloved's fate…...corrupt her and get back into heaven.

Seungmin: coming soon….

Envy; sin of jealousy over the blessings and achievements of others

Virtue: kindness

Summary: Leviathan, lives his life as Kim Seungmin resenting his fellow keepers of the sins. They’re virtuous extravagant lifestyles to their most wildest dreams being fulfilled. While he had to stand there and watch, watch as the pesky humans around him found their way, watch as his brethren became successful in both hell and the mortal world. The Demon kings names bringing an icy chill up their spines at the power and influence they possess; if a demon king sets his sights on you, your soul becomes tainted with their sin until it eats the being alive and sends your soul straight to hell. He hates as his sin is the one full of disgust and had such a bad wrap, envy is what built civilization itself yet they worship Belial and the wretched deity that cursed himself, that is until he is greeted with something he’d never experienced before his virtue….Kindness

Jeongin: coming soon…

Sloth: a spiritual or emotional apathy, neglecting what God has spoken, and being physically and emotionally inactive. It can also be either an outright refusal or merely a carelessness in the performance of one's obligations, especially spiritual, moral or legal obligations.

Virtue: perseverance

Summary: Belphegor, enjoys his days as Yang Jeongin, the laid back neglectful floor manager of Stay Corporation. If you were to ask any of the mortal employees under his leadership they would say he was always at work but he was rarely ever working. His reputation was a positive one despite his hidden identity, he enjoyed watching as his floor scrambled to get report’s together for meetings he’d never mentioned until the day before. He adored sprinkling small bits of his sin around the office and watching as the floor became bored, underachieving and understandably tired. The only thing he would say he’d enjoy a change with is one particular little itty bitty thorn in his side; the one thing that he cannot stand more than actual work that sat right outside his office. His virtue….Perseverance.

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calliopescorner · 10 months

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New Rome rewrite!

Hello! I wanted to post this about New Rome before I start to write about the Roman gods as well, because while the Greek demigod sanctuary bears a fair amount of resemblance to its book counterpart, New Rome is completely re-imagined. So let’s talk about that!

LUPA’S WOLF PACK:

Lupa’s pack functions as a way to bring Roman demigods to New Rome. The pack travels with usually very experienced demigods, and they make trips with Lupa to pick up different Roman demigods around the country and world. They act as ambassadors for New Rome, and can communicate with the demigod (and in some cases, their mortal families). The demigods are given the ability to communicate with Lupa, and the journey gives the new demigods a way of getting used to the dangerous life of the mythical world. However, the wolves they meet also swear to protect them, instead of trying to actively kill them.

CLAIMING:

Claiming is done through the process of bringing demigods to different temples based on what powers they display. At the temples, they can make a sacrifice to specifically summon and talk to their godly parent, and thus they can be claimed. There are many places around New Rome to get supplies to show their godly heritage, like pins, patches, shirts, and tattoos.

JUPITER ACADEMY:

Jupiter Academy is a school-year based program to help teach demigods about the myths, monsters, and tools they need to survive. It also teaches them a lot about history, basic healing for when in combat, and many different fighting styles. Demigods can also go into tracks at the age of 15, where they can choose what kind of position they want to have. These tracks end when they are 18, and thus they can take up a job in New Rome, or go back into the mortal world. Also, with the school functioning during the fall, winter, and spring, demigods can spend the summer with their families. The academy uniform is a purple sweater with the SPQR symbol on it.

The tracks include a combat track, a research track, a medical track, a craftsmen track, a religious/theology track, and many others that fit into things that are needed both in New Rome and in the outside world. The students are given badges for their grades and skills in school, though if a demigod wants to go into the outside mortal world again, they can sometimes struggle to catch up with mortal systems of education.

All the demigods stay in dorms, usually with demigods of the same age group and/or track. They are able to customize the dorms, and it offers them a lot of safety and peace and quiet.

NEW ROME

Many demigods go into the combat track, which leads them to become the main source of defense for the city. While New Rome is blessed by Janus, it does not have the same magical barriers that Camp Empeiria does. Thus, it needs guard patrols regularly, as monsters attack quite frequently due to the amount of demigods in the same space. Combat track demigods can hold positions similar to the ancient Roman military system, which can also grant them some political positions in New Rome as they get older. The other, much rarer track of religion/theology offers demigods in it a similar political position.

Tattoos and piercings are common for demigods in New Rome, but they are never required.

Demigods that retire (who can retire after 5 years) are usually able to go into a different craft if they please, and many are given houses around New Rome.

I hope this makes sense, and really makes New Rome feel unique (and not just a slightly odder clone of Camp Half-Blood from the books!).

#new rome #pjo #hoo #toa #camp jupiter #cj #pjo camp jupiter #pjo roman gods #roman gods #rome #demigods #rewrite #headcanons #pjo rewrite #hoo rewrite #percy jackson #demigod #roman demigod #bea's rewrite

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kleenexwoman · 4 months

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You seem like the sort of person who has opinions about the His Dark Materials series.

Yeah, I read it when I was in Middle School and I loved the concept of Dust. I would say that probably impacted my conception of the way physics of spirituality works in some ways it probably did not affect many other people.

I loved the concept of Experimental Theology, and because I was not raised in an especially oppressive religious environment (I was raised by a reform Jewish dad and a lapsed Catholic mom, both of whom were quietly atheist and encouraged critical thinking), I really loved the idea that you could just think up ways about the way the world and God might work and go ahead and try it out.

It made perfect sense to me! If God was just some dude in the sky, then obviously you could talk to him and negotiate with him like anybody else, and if God was some kind of force that permeated the universe and was inside everything, then obviously it was like science and you could experiment with it.

I missed some of the more complex and emotional stuff about the way that religious fundamentalism and oppression affects people, probably, but then again I also took it for granted that the Church was kind of an oppressive institution which forced people to adhere to laws, dogma and socially restrictive policies that were generally about seeking power for the heads of the church and not about the best interest of the people that they governed. So that part wasn't really weird to me, it was just like oh yeah the Catholic Church is a bad guy again okay, that tracks, after all they did do the Spanish Inquisition.

The idea of Dust, an actual physical metaphysical property that collected on people because of their ability to be conscious and self-aware, was a hugely brain rewiring idea for me. I loved the idea that there was something physical and measurable, if not something that humans could observe directly on their own, that corresponded directly to something intangible like the expression of consciousness.

To some extent I kind of do believe that. I conceptualize the energetic body as patterned flows of qi energy, which I see as being similar to your body's plasma. Motes of what Pullman called Dust and which I like to call ergosi/ergosum, individual units of consciousness (from the Descarte saying Cogito ergo sum, or I think therefore I am) are like red blood cells floating in the qi and making it stronger. These ergosi, produced by individual moments of conscious thought, all work together in the body's qi streams to keep the process of consciousness going.

On a personal level, THE ENDING TO The Amber Spyglass WAS BULLSHIT AND MADE ME SAD. THEY CAN'T JUST BE FORCED APART LIKE THAT! FUCK YOU! NOT AFTER ALL THEY'VE BEEN THROUGH! Obviously they managed to get back together the first time they sat on that bench and lived happily ever after in the best parts of their worlds, okay? Yes. Obviously. Good. I'll hit you if you tell me otherwise.

#personal #metaphysics #paganism #his dark materials

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droids-in-disguise · 9 months

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Good Omens 2 making me think a lot about religion and religious deconstruction.

For context, I grew up Baptist, went to Catholic school for jr. high, and attended a private Christian school for my undergrad.

I grew up being told that the Bible was the ultimate source of truth, that is was the guidebook for our lives as Christians, and that, most importantly it should be taken literally.

I started wrestling with the concept of queerness when I was in jr. high. By then I had joined tumblr and had a best friend who was openly pan. But it was still a problem, because my church's reading of the Bible was that being gay was a sin. I existed very much in that "hate the sin, love the sinner" space that so many Christians seem to think is the appropriate answer. I also realized that despite being told that my church was doing Christianity the "right" way, these Catholics seemed to be just as sure in their conviction that they were doing it the right way.

In high school, I could sometimes privately admit to myself that the label "asexual" felt good, but more often than not I would lie to myself and say I was just too busy with grades and extracurricular activities to commit time to dating boys. I certainly never came out to anyone.

Ironically, it was the theology classes I took in college combined with the freedom of living away from my parents that helped me to finally realize that the Church as I knew it did not have the final say.

I learned that Biblical canon was not always set in stone and that it varies from denomination, that Hebrew and Greek words can have more than one translation or even no direct translation in English, I learned about liberation theology, and about womanist/feminist interpretations of scripture. Outside of theology class I took classes focused on Islamic history and literature. I had conversations about faith with my Muslim, Jewish, and Pagan peers. I met queer people who were both queer and Christian and who didn't see these identities as conflicting.

I had an old, hardass British lit professor who said something once during our study of Paradise Lost that I'll never forget, and that was that he believed God was like a diamond or some other precious gemstone, and that that all the different groups of Christians, Jews, and Muslims were all just seeing different facets of the same thing. Apparently this statement was something he had once told university higher-ups and it nearly cost him his job.

Despite all the deconstruction and the private acknowledgement that the church I grew up in did not have a monopoly on truth, I still went to church for years after. I did have the good sense to stop going to my parents' church and found one that was much more progressive and openly accepting of queer people, but even still it was hard to separate how much of me was there because I wanted to be there and how much was out of obligation or some sense of needing to reclaim my now tarnished view of the Church. I'm not sure where I sit now, only that I don't think I can be the one to create change from within, I am too damaged and tired for that.

All of this is why I think I relate so deeply to Aziraphale and the journey his character has undertaken, and why claims that he behaved out-of-character in the finale or that his coffee was drugged irritate me so much, because in another universe where I'm Aziraphale, I could see myself doing and saying the exact same things.

Letting go is hard, it's been painful and traumatic for me, I can't imagine what it would be for a being like Aziraphale with a much longer history.

There's such a strong desire to believe that it's only some of the Church that's bad and that if we have enough good people on the inside we can change it for the better.

Aziraphale has been hurt by Heaven and he's realized that Heaven is just as capable of doing bad as Hell (in many ways what Heaven does is more sinister because they won't admit to the bad and hide behind the façade of goodness and moral superiority), but he's a people pleaser and he's been an angel for so long, he can't just let go of his community and everything he has ever known no matter how poorly he has been treated by said Heavenly community. So then he gets this offer, work for Heaven, be in charge, make a difference. He can keep Heaven and Crowley, have his cake and eat it too. Of course he takes the job.

Crowley has had the outsider perspective for longer, he was the first to start asking questions. Perhaps there was a time when he too would've said yes to the Metatron, but now he knows better.

"We don't need Heaven, we don't need Hell. They're toxic!"

Aziraphale hasn't reached the same level of understanding that Crowley has, that no matter how many times he goes crawling back, Heaven will never truly accept him or be the place for him.

They way this story has been told over the past two seasons has been magnificent. Just as I can pinpoint all the different moments in my life that have helped to unravel what I thought I knew, we as the audience get to watch Aziraphale have these revelations too. In the first season we have the ineffable plan and this idea that armageddon is necessary and that Aziraphale shouldn't be the one to question it, but he does question it because he loves humanity, sees their goodness, and can't understand why a good God would allow them to be destroyed.

In season two, I found the bits surrounding Job to be especially poignant. First the shock that Heaven would condone the killing of children, then the realization that Crowley wouldn't kill the children or the goats going against his demonic "nature" proving Aziraphale's assumptions wrong, and finally the fear that lying would make him into a demon and the surprise when this turned out not to be true.

I have a feeling that by the end of season 3, when we get it, we will have the satisfaction of seeing Aziraphale and Crowley finally on the same page and I for one can't wait.

#good omens #good omens s2 spoilers #good omens 2 #good omens spoilers #good omens season 2

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peach-and-bugs · 11 months

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I have been wondering what you think the girls would study in college (if they were teenagers in 2021 and no crash happened) (including Jackie obvs)

oooo! This is actually such a fun idea!!! I'm also adding Laura Lee bc she deserves it and I love her! I also kinda went into what they would do with their degrees after school

What would the Yellowjackets study and major in college (no crash)

tw: religious themes with Laura Lee

Jackie

✰ So, Jackie is a hard one. She's the kind of girl who goes into school thinking she's got the world figured out, only to realize that no, she doesn't, and get hit with quite a rude awakening

✰ She'd go in choosing something rather ambitious, having a hard time with it, and possibly taking a gap year to figure herself out

✰ Ultimately, I could see her as an early education major. She didn't think it would be something she'd enjoy, but to her surprise, she does, and eventually, once she graduates she becomes a kindergarten teacher at Wiskayok Elementary

Laura Lee

✰ Laura Lee Is so dedicated to her religion, and I have to have respect for that. But I could easily see her going into youth ministry with a degree in theology and possibly a minor in religion studies

✰ However, I could also see her minoring in music because of her piano! While she doesn't like her teacher much, I really do think Laura Lee enjoys the piano itself and I could see her leading a youth choir in her church

✰ She's definitely working in a progressive church. personally, I think she was raised to be more conservative, but in a world where she gets to go to college and grow more away from her family, she developed her own opinions and becomes a far more open person, viewing god as someone far more excepting then what she was initially taught

Lottie

✰ I fully see Lottie going to college knowing from the start that she wants to study teaching/education. She'd go back and forth about wanting to teach little kids and older kids, but she'd ultimately settle on teaching middle schoolers

✰ I could see her being an English teacher or possibly a history teacher! She loves connecting with kids and giving them a voice and lending an ear, especially with them being at such a frustrating age

✰ I can also see her minoring in French! Yes, Lottie isn't supposed to be good at French, but I think that's a complete lie. If her school doesn't have a French program, she'd 100% start an after-school club or run summer classes for students interested in learning

Misty

✰ I could see Misty sticking with nursing, but she's also a giant theater kid. She seems like the type to go to a small liberal arts school for musical theater or improve with huge dreams of acting on stage

✰ I really think she'd find a great community in a theater/arts program because even though she's always gonna be a weirdo, she'll definitely find more weirdos to be her friends (this is coming from someone who has theater majors as friends)

✰ This could be some of my own self-projecting, but I think she'd get really involved in the nightlife of college and eventually frequent the drag scene with her friends. She's also always going to rocky horror. Ultimately that's how she realizes she's gay

Natalie

✰ I think the only way Natalie is going to school is on a full-ride scholarship, but even then, college doesn't seem like her thing. I could see her following one/some of the girls to their college campus to screw around and figure herself out, living some of the college life without actually going to school

✰ Natalie would try to pursue a music career, no questions asked. She's shown to have a love for music and she already looks like a rock star, so it just makes the most sense for her. She'll crash on couches, eventually getting her own apartment while she writes her own music and I think she could eventually really take off

✰ she'd get a band together and eventually tour, writing music kinda along the lines of classic rock and grunge with some riot girl in the mix. Think pearl jam, foo fighters, and le tigre (all great groups that I highly recommend)

Shauna

✰ Shauna is 100% getting a Literary Arts degree, no questions asked. Or an English degree with a focus on creative writing

✰ She gets to explore herself, take her semester abroad in Paris like she'd hoped, and eventually she becomes a New York Times bestseller for her works of poetry

✰ She'd also delve into fiction and I could even see some of her work getting turned into limited series or films eventually. She's quite humble and lives a quiet life, though she enjoyed being in the spotlight for her work

Taissa

✰ I still think Tai would study law and become a Lawyer and potentially still go into politics. But part of me kinda wants to say she'd take an interest in environmental science and possibly become an environmental lawyer?

✰ I really don't know why I thought of that, but I think it would be really interesting for her. I think she'd still end up with Simone and Sammy and she'd go to New York for work a lot of the time

✰ If she did run for office again, she'd have a heavy focus on environmental conservation. I could also see her getting into National Park works

Van

✰ So, originally I kinda thought Van would be a dropout, which sounds bad, but I was thinking about her store. But then I realized that she'd only got her store because she was stuck trying to relive her life before the crash, so no crash, no store

✰ Ultimately, she's a film major. She's either getting a film studies or production degree. Van loves movies and would want to get involved with that world, creating movies like what she grew up watching, like The Goonies and Alien

✰ She absolutely hates remakes and remasters, so if she's directing or writing her own films, they're going to be originals that still hold the nostalgia of the 80s and 90s

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godotdotdot · 5 months

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just watched 2001 space odyssey and have some shower thoughts. This is me processing wtf i just watched

I've been studying theology lately and the genesis narrative bc I had to read paradise lost for school; im thinking about how this film starts us off with the dawn of man (scientific narrative as opposed to the christian one) and still this operates as a genesis narrative; here we see how the ancestors of humanity lived; what instincts were natural (the eros drive as seen by the children-> reproduction makes sense, the thanatos drive as evidenced by their defense/warring over resources)

I think much in the way the biblical genesis narrative focuses on virtue and morality, the scientific narratives about how we came to be are always interested in what is base instinct to us and what instinctual practices "then" seem familiar to us "now" (at least, that's what i was focusing on during the movie); and one of the questions concerning human evolution is how did we evolve to the point we are at now, coming from ppl who are rlly just animals in an ecosystem? And i think of the classic conspiracy that aliens had an input or smth which obvs... is relevant here

The first monolith is unknown but I think it has the symbolic purpose of harbinging technology, which makes humanity more familiar bc we know humans are unique in how much theyve harnessed technology ((why the bone transition to a spaceship makes sense)).

Near immediately following this invention of the weapon, we see the first murder; it is brutal, it is violent, it is scary, and the people who commit it are scared of it too

I think this sets an important precedent. Thruout the rest of the movie, every death we see is a murder: HAL kills an astronaut, Dave kills HAL, the monolith kills(?) Dave.

But the last part isnt a death, bc it isnt a murder. not entirely, at least. I think the sequence to retrieve that floating slab in space -> led to the odyssey across space-time (the trippy sequence) and in it i was thinking about how overstimulating it would be to pursue smth with sm energy, so much information, being constantly emitted, and how small man would feel in attempting to comprehend the universe and that it's ever-expanding, and I think those thoughts are appropriate to that journey

I also think this heavy energy is why Dave projects an ego into this space to comprehend the flow of time in a place that's not-comprehendable. And why that ego develops into older and older daves bc time is passing in this not-space but also he is a being that will die

I think the reason for the fetus at the end is that the monolith doesnt kill him, nor does he die of natural causes like aging, but bc he is in the presence of this altering agent that seems to consistently transform the course of things it is around: i think it sort of imbues him w that massive energy and that's why he turns into a fetus instead of dying? He also cannot die bc he cannot be murdered... perhaps he procreates w himself and transforms into the baby? life and death drive intertwined...

And then along w the transformation into a fetus of all things comes symbolism of how humanity goes on and also that the ppl on earth who are endlessly researching this monolith cannot comprehend it and so will never experience this en masse (and is it okay that that is so? all those risks and for what: an understanding? A transformation? Is that rlly the human idea of fulfilling-- and i think how satisfying that ending is to us will tell us our own personalized answer)

#analysis #2001 a space odyssey #essay

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takeme-totheworld · 4 months

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Love and Fear

(cw: religious indoctrination, religious trauma, hell theology and evangelism)

By the time I was old enough to comprehend concepts like "hell is real and people who don't believe in Jesus the right way will go there forever," I already loved the church.

I think this may be one of the things that makes my experience hard for some people to understand. Even people who have no personal experience with religion, I generally find, are familiar with the idea of "putting the fear of God" in someone. Falling in line because you've been openly terrorized is a behavior that makes sense.

It feels a lot harder to put into words what made me so devoted to my church. It was a complicated mix of love and fear that even an adult might be hard pressed to recognize as manipulation and indoctrination, if they were vulnerable enough. As a kid being raised in it, a kid with untreated anxiety, a stressful home life, and a general predisposition to be a Good Kid and seek adult approval wherever I could find it? I didn't stand a chance.

"Insidious" is a word I've heard used to describe it. Toxic positivity. Buddy Jesus vibes. Lots of upbeat music and kid-centric programming. Everybody smiling and being almost aggressively friendly and solicitous and talking about love and joy and having Jesus in your heart. I ate it up. I loved church, I loved Jesus, I loved it all. So by the time I was old enough to comprehend concepts like "hell is real and people (like my dad) who don't believe in Jesus the right way will go there forever," a big part of my eight(?)-year-old mind simply glossed over the horror and accepted it without question.

Because I loved the church and the church loved me, and my Sunday school teachers were good and kind and always told us the truth, and they were teaching us about God and God loves everyone, they had always said so. So this simply couldn't be as horrifying as it sounded.

Of course, the horror sank in over time, as I got older and smarter and more anxious and less able to repress and compartmentalize. But by then they were teaching us to evangelize. Yes, it is horrible, but you can do something about it! Go tell everyone about Jesus! (The underlying implications were never stated outright, because they didn't need to be, but if they were they might have gone something like this: And if you don't go tell everyone about Jesus, because you're a coward or too embarrassed or whatever, they'll die without being saved and go to hell and it will be your fault. Aren't you glad we care enough to teach you how to bring people to the faith so that you can keep your loved ones from going to hell?)

Of course, if you actually unpack the implications like that, you see that it's massively fucked up and wrong. But I'd been taught to love the church and put my faith in them my whole life. And I did. My love for it was genuine. So I didn't have the mental or emotional tools to realize that it was massively fucked up and wrong. In fact, at that point I was so emotionally invested in the church and my loyalty to it that I was extremely motivated to rationalize everything they told me, to make it all make some kind of sense even when it clearly didn't.

No putting the fear of God in me required. At that point, I was doing it for them.

#religious indoctrination #religious trauma #personal #exvangelical

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u3pxx · 2 days

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hi, this is maybe strange or invasive so if it is feel free not to answer 😭

but i know you’ve mentioned going to a catholic college, and i wanted to ask how that’s been, esp being queer. college stuff is approaching for me and a lot of my options are like christian colleges and while i don’t really have a problem with that, i fear getting annoyed with the culture or encountering way more homophobia or racism than i do currently. in that sense, has your college met/let down/surpassed your expectations?

no worries! now, i can only speak for my experience going to uni in the philippines, but most of the "big-time" unis in my side of the archipelago are catholic so lots of people from different walks of life attend there, meaning that it's not that rare to meet a classmate/schoolmate who are queer themselves! (hell, i even have a prof who's an atheist which kind of surprised me lol) i'm very fortunate to be in a section that's explicitly pro-lgbt so there wasn't really any fear from me about being "found out" i suppose. so, definitely have not been let down by my peers.

the only time i ever really encounter homophobia is during my theology classes LMAO, which, i'll give a little grace to my professor as he does relay that "this is a catholic school so i will have to teach lessons based on the catholic doctrine. you don't have to believe in it, you just have to learn it. treat it like any other lesson."

i do get annoyed listening to the lessons but only bc some of them are what you expect from catholicism and i don't think he's that great of a teacher; some of his beliefs are kindaaaa backward and off LOL so i guess expect some teachers with opinions that suck ass but you can always just "goes in one ear, goes out the other" listening to them. make sure you don't fail any theology classes bc you'd never wanna go through that shit a second time pftt

tldr: the peers in my uni are kind, cool, and accepting and if you have theology classes, im sorry but there will likely be some lessons there that will be homophobic and also some professors suck ass but you can always just tune them out

#sunnysideanswers #frillishpink

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meguwumibear · 9 months

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okay wait im not done yet a continuation of these two pieces from Touya's pov

Touya Todoroki hasn’t gone by Dabi for a very long time. Not since he bit off more than he could chew chasing down some S-rank villain all on his own just to prove himself to his piece of shit dad and burned away most of his body.

It took less than a minute for his skin to catch and burn. He was painfully conscious for most of it. Black and bitter smoke blurred his vision, but he could still make out when the first bit of flesh liquified and sloughed from his bone like wax dripping down a candle.

He watched himself melt away until the pain was too much for him to bare, slipping slowly asleep.

Three years.

That’s how long he was in his medically induced coma.

Three fucking years.

And he remembers none of it. One thousand ninety-five whole ass days gone. Like he had simply blinked on top of that damn hill and somehow teleported himself into the future. It feels like no time has passed at all. It feels like a whole lifetime has passed him by.

The nurse nearly dropped dead when he opened his wet stinging eyes. He would later learn this was due to his tears, which weren’t very tear like at all—not the crystalline and clear droplets normal people cry—but thick crimson blood.

Back in school Touya took a theology class to piss off his father. Enji wanted him to take a chemistry or biology or even an anatomy elective to learn more about the properties of fire and how his own flames may impact his body, but Touya refused. He wrote a paper for the class about weeping statues, with a particular emphasis on the weeping Madonna who several decades ago no less than sixty people testified to have seen cry blood.

He wonders if the nurse who witnessed his own tears knows about the statue. He wonders if his pain and suffering bring him closer to his own version of holiness or enlightenment—whatever the fuck that’s supposed to mean. Touya’s never been particularly spiritual, and he’s even less so these days.

His family was the first to stop using his moniker. Enji provides many updates to the public about Touya’s health. Figures no press is bad press, and practically goes on tour, accepting every opportunity to interview and tell the world that Touya is finally awake and in stable condition.

The public never seems to stop though. No matter how many times Enji emphasizes Touya’s government name, the headlines never change.

NUMBER THREE HERO DABI ALIVE AND WELL

PROHERO DABI UNDERGOING HIS THIRD RECONSTRUCTIVE SURGERY

RETIRED HERO DABI SPOTTED LEAVING PHYSICAL THERAPY IN A RAGE

He isn’t sure what’s worse: Enji’s insistence on reminding him who he is now, or the public’s insistence on reminding him that he was once something more. Both names seem to rub salt into his already itchy wound.

What’s in a name? Are they meaningful? Do they have value? Who is he without one?

“Dabi…please.”

He liked the way his name sounded on your lips. All breathy and desperate from kissing. Soft and safe like home. No one has ever used his name like that before. You’ve never said his name like that before.

Only Dabi isn’t his fucking name. Not anymore. He’s Touya to those closest to him, and, well, if you didn’t have the good sense to call him that, you must not be very close to him at all. Which, hey, that makes sense. You’re his perfect little brother’s perfect little girlfriend. You’re not his. Even if he wants you to be.

It’s stupid to text you, but he just can’t help himself. Especially once he learns the two of you have called things off. Shouto doesn’t say why but he knows his brother has seen the hickey he sucked into your neck. He thinks about telling him it was he who marked you.

He doesn’t.

He misses you. Even works up the courage to tell you. He isn’t sure why. Again, it’s not like the two of you were ever that close.

It shouldn’t surprise him that you don’t text him back, but it does. You always text him back, even if it’s just to tell him to fuck off. Surprise quickly gives way to anger, however if only because he has always masked his hurt with fury.

It burns through him just like everything else in his life. His flames and his fury all are he ever seems to have. They’re the only two constants in his life. He’s scorching. He’s on fire. He is Dabi and Touya both. He will never be Dabi or Touya again.

#dabi x reader #touya todoroki x reader #dabi x you #touya todoroki x you #bnha x you #bnha x reader #mha x you #mha x reader

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misc-obeyme · 1 month

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So I'm a Christian and I play obey me, and I can't help but wonder if this is somehow sinning? Since it has to with the ones that has Defied him and stuff, even if it just a game?

Hi there, anon.

Since this seems like a genuine ask, I'm going to give you my personal opinion on it, but first I need you to know that I'm not a Christian. I was baptized and went to church & private school when I was younger, but I haven't been a Christian since I was a preteen.

However, it's my opinion that it is absolutely not a sin to play a video game.

I don't know which denomination of Christian you are, but generally I think the consideration of "sin" is more about your intent. It's a sin to kill because you deliberately took the life of another human, thus causing them harm.

Obey Me is only very vaguely based on Christian theology. And even if it was more accurate, it's just a fictional story. You're not harming anyone by playing it.

I don't know if I'm the best person to answer your question, as I have some serious issues with Christianity in a general sense. It's hard for me not to let that creep into my response.

You're also talking to someone who doesn't believe in sin, so that also makes it difficult.

But I honestly believe that it isn't a sin to enjoy this game. It's just for fun, it's a light-hearted silly otome game. It isn't meant to be taken too seriously and I think it's for this exact reason that they've made its story only kind of inspired by Christianity. So that you know you can play it without concern.

I think it might help to think of the whole story as just a story - those are just characters. If the problem is the defiance, well, wouldn't that also include any fictional character who ever sinned ever?

Hmm. I hope some of that makes sense. It's hard for me not to just say that I don't believe in any of this stuff and I think it's all nonsense lol. But I also believe deeply in everyone's right to believe in whatever religion makes the most sense for them.

In the end, you have to do what feels right to you. I hope you're able to find that answer!

#man it's hard not to devolve into my own religious experiences lol #and again I haven't been Christian in a long time #so I may not be the best person to ask #obey me #anon asks #misc answers

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jazz-bazz · 3 months

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The background stuff of the Lab Coat AU bcs @alwaysjustmina made me think of if they're ghouls or not and whatnots... and then @sexy-sea-basss mentioned hannah montana kinda thing and... yeah... we have a Human Ambassador Office in Hell now...

Under the cut :)

The university these specific set of ghouls work in is located in the same city as the ‘Vatican’ of the satanic church, making it one of the safest space for ghouls, even if not many humans know of the existence of ghouls. Humans might sense that there’s something different about them, but not what, it’s mostly because their instincts recognise the threat that these ghouls are to humans, they are, after all, literal demons from hell, whose job usually entails punishing guilty souls.

But being summoned to earth, in support of the Church of Satan, gives them a new start, a chance to live and learn and grow, and most of all, love. As long as they never forget their roots and their mission to spread the gospel of Satan, everyone in the Church are chill with the ghouls exploring the human world and getting as much knowledge as they could, and this particular university is a favourite. There are of course others, usually located near the branches of the Church too, but this one is like the capital, the ghouls that get accepted here would be ‘closer’ to their Unholy Father. Their powers would be boosted by the stronger connection to the Pit, the source of their magic.

Most of the scientists here are humans even though more than half of the professors are ghouls, probably because this is one of the few safe spaces in the country, considering the deans are directly related to the Sister Imperator of the Satanic Church. The profs are mostly from the first batch of ghouls, some says the ‘trial batch’, they were the first few who ventured to the surface, with permission from the Dark Lord of course, at first to help the Church when it was new, but then the Church took off, they got many human siblings helper, the ghouls got more free time and they got bored and curious.

It inspired the other ghouls too, because sometimes on holidays they’d go back down to visit their friends and family, then there were more ghouls applying for ‘Surface Permit’ to the Human Ambassador Office in Hell, who’d then make fake documents so these ghouls could apply for jobs, go to school, whatever it is they want to do. One of the conditions for each ghoul who want to go up top is to check in with the Church or one of the branches, each month, just to make sure they’re doing okay.

The head of the Church are always the Papa and the Sister Imperator, the current Papa is Nihil and Sister is… Sister. Primo mostly stays in the Church assisting Papa and Sister, as he’d be the next Papa when Nihil retires or kicks the bucket, but he has a degree in Botany and History (don’t ask, he had too much time back then). Secondo is the current Dean of the Science Faculty, Terzo runs a diner while taking online Theology courses just for shits and giggles, and Copia runs a bar, Zenith, and some days shadowing Primo on his duties at the Church.

Of course there’s a bit of inside man kinda thing going on, because ghouls and sinning go hand in hand, but they also try to be fair to the humans too. And they don’t just take in anyone, the ghouls also have to have the right qualifications or a passion in that area. For example Dewdrop tried applying to do his Bachelor’s degree research in Mist’ group with Rain in organic chemistry, but after one look at his transcript, Mist had a talk with him because she sees that his notes in physical chemistry are much better, and he admitted he’s more interested there too, it was his second choice after all. But he figured he’d at least tried to get in the same group as Rain.

#lab coat au #my hcs #bex keysmash

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jeannereames · 9 months

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WHY YOUR MORALITY IS MY PROBLEM: modern holdovers from ancient theology

James Dobson, founder of the ultra-conservative Focus on the Family organization, reputedly said of the 2012 Sandy Hook mass shooting, “I think we have turned our back on the Scripture and on God Almighty and I think He has allowed judgment to fall upon us.”

As heartless as that sentiment sounds today when addressing the murder of 20 first-graders (and 6 adults) at an elementary school, it reflects a once-common theology that emerged about four thousand years ago in the ancient near east (ANE*), then bled into the Mediterranean basin and developed an astonishingly long half-life. It’s why some Christians (et al.) are so, so concerned with what their neighbors are doing behind closed doors. Or on their front lawns with all those Pride flags.

In some ways, ANE and Mediterranean religion had a lot in common, being traditional and focused largely on sacrifice/action (orthopraxic). Over time, some orthodoxic religions also arose in that area. So, first, let’s do some quick defining.

Orthopraxic religions focus on what one DOES, not what one believes. Performing the sacrifice correctly, honoring the gods/ancestors appropriately…that’s how one shows piety. Infringing against purity laws or other affronts to the gods (impious actions) can result in expulsion from the community. Fights over correct practice can lead to schism in a community.

Orthodoxic religions focus on what one BELIEVES. Thus, they need some form of authoritative text to determine what IS right belief, resulting in the emergence of a canon (e.g., Zoroastrian Avesta, Jewish Tanakh, Christian New Testament, or Muslim Qur’an). In Orthodoxic religions, wrong beliefs (heresy) can result in expulsion from the community. Fights over correct belief can lead to schism in a community.

(There’s yet a third focus, orthopathic, but that largely doesn’t apply here. “Orthopraxic” can also apply to ethics-based religions, but here, it applies to ritual/cultic behavior.)

Most religions have elements of all three, but it matters where the weight falls. Yes, religions can emphasize two sides of the triangle more heavily, less on the third, but even then, one point will be the chief measurement of devoutness among followers. This also helps us understand why two religions might not understand each other very well sometimes. They’re trying to impose one set of “What religion is for” ideas on another, with entirely different assumptions.

The religions of the ANE and Mediterranean had much in common in terms of the purpose of religion: to maintain the health of a community. This depended on the piety of that communities’ members. Their gods weren’t moral in the modern sense, but could be jealous, fickle, and petty.

Why were they gods then?

Because they were immortal and more powerful.

Yet an important difference between (many) ANE and Mediterranean religions were the concepts of sin and “mesharum” (divine justice/equilibrium). If the latter existed (sorta) in Mediterranean society, “sin” really didn’t. Impiety differs as it can include ritual matters too. So, if murder (especially kin murder) created uncleanness anywhere and is a moral/civil matter, menstruation and sex also created uncleanness, but were not moral/civil matters defined as “bad.” So “unclean” ≠ “sin.”

To be unclean is a matter of cultic purity, different from moral purity. Yes, ANE religions also had ritual uncleanness, to be sure. And yes, some things that make one unclean also have intimations of “badness” without being so extreme as murdering someone. Yet I want to underscore the difference because it’s very real and too often ignored/misunderstood/unfairly conflated.

Many Mediterranean religions did not have “sin,” just unclean and impious. MORAL/ETHICAL matters were dictated by civil law and later, philosophic discussion. Not religion. Yet in the ANE, moral infractions were affronts to mesharum (divine order) and were therefore a religious matter. This oversimplifies, but smash-and-grab works for now. We find actions (like iconoclasm) in the ANE that didn’t often apply in the Mediterranean. (Iconoclasm is the deliberate theft, or in extreme cases, destruction of religious icons or structures.)

Yet what both groups shared was a sense that the gods had, well, “bad aim.” If people in a community were impious and/or sinful, that might draw the ire of the gods. Plagues were often seen as divine retribution for the impiety and/or sin of one or more members of that community, but not necessarily all of them. This led to the exile of impious individuals, as well as the ANE “scapegoat” ritual, et al. (If you’re familiar with the plot of the Iliad, Apollo punished the entire Greek army for the impious actions of Agamemnon.)

I could DIE from your impiety/sin committed in my town/community.

That makes your morality my business.

In addition, especially in the ANE, war on earth was believed to reflect war in heaven. Gods had cities and peoples, not the other way around. They chose you, you didn’t god-shop—hence Israel as a “chosen people.” Well, yeah, pretty much every ethnic group was chosen by some god(s). But as a result, if your side lost in a war, then—theoretically—your gods were weaker. Maybe you should go over and start worshiping their gods. Yet that didn’t sit well with most groups, so by the Middle/Late Bronze Age, we see an emerging idea that my god isn’t “weaker” than yours, rather my general “set forth without the gods’ consent,” or my god permitted the other god(s) to win for whatever reason…usually due to sin or a lack of piety among his (or her) people. Of course we find this in the prophetic literature of the Hebrew Bible, but it’s in a lot of other ANE literature too. Nabû or Marduk didn’t lose, they “went to live with” Ashur for however many years—although the winning side will portray the victory as Nabû and Marduk traveling to Nineveh to bow before (e.g., submit to) Assur.

Again, this is simplified, but we don’t see this sort of language used in Greece where Hera would bow to Athena because the city-state of Athens defeated Argos, even if, as promachos (foremost in battle), Athena might be expected to win in any conflict between the two (as in Euripides’ Children of Herakles). Hera is still queen of the gods, and—even more—these are shared deities. We also don’t see it because notions of “sin” don’t apply and only a handful of wars were ever called “sacred”—all of them concerning Delphi and cultic purity. At least one of those is mythical, the second probably didn’t happen, and the third (which certainly did happen) was labeled “sacred” only by one side. Greek gods just weren’t seen to uphold justice in the same way. Roman gods were more concerned with such things, but still not as we find in the ANE.

Ergo, the ANE faced the problem of theodicy: if god/the gods are good/just, why does tragedy happen?

Early explanations for tragedy were simple: those who suffer must have earned their suffering, sometimes referred to as Deuteronomic Theology: “good things happen to good people”/“bad things happen to bad people” (and maybe their neighbors too, by chance).

Pushback against this notion emerged around the same time a more nuanced view of loss in war emerged. People began to ask the corollary: “Why do bad things happen to good people?”

The (c. 1700 BCE) Mesopotamian Ludlul bēl nēmeqi (The Poem of the Righteous Sufferer) attempted an answer. About a thousand years later (600s-500s BCE), the Jewish Book of Job took it on as well. In both, the protagonist asks, “Why does Marduk/Yahweh punish me when I’ve been a faithful servant?” Both protagonists were previously wealthy/powerful, which was seen as divine approval. Losing that wealth/health suggested they had offended their god (and are being punished). Yet each one claims he did not sin—so why?

The answer in both works is similar: there’s not really an answer. Marduk restores Šubši-mašrâ-Šakkan, who ends the poem with a prayer of thanksgiving. Job has a chat with Yahweh, who essentially tells him, “You’re a measly mortal, don’t question me.”

The KEY element in both, however, isn’t the answer, but the assertion that a good person can suffer. They didn’t earn it; it just happened. They remained good and, eventually, their god restored them to their prior station, and then some.

Ergo, if you’re suffering, just be patient. Don’t curse God and die. (As Job is advised to do.)

Today, we may find such an answer wanting but need to recognize it for an advancement on the theology of tragedy.

Some, however, get stuck in these time-locked answers because they can’t allow their religion to grow. Or rather, they can’t acknowledge that their religion/theology evolves over time, because if it evolves, it wasn’t perfect from the beginning. And that challenges their understanding of their god.

Yet the real fly in the ointment is the notion of a perfect and infallible canon.

This brings me back around to what a canon is. It just means “an authoritative text,” but how that text is understood has nuances. INSPIRED ≠ INFALLIBLE. Most all followers of a canonical text believe it’s inspired by God, but not all (or even most) believe it’s infallible. (Islam is its own category here, note.) That creates some problematic GRAYS.

If it’s only inspired, written by humans with human foibles and history-locked understandings, interpreting it becomes complicated and can lead to disagreements. Taking a literalist view sweeps away the messiness. “God said it; I believe it; that settles it!” Black-and-white.

Those who believe in Biblical literalism/inerrancy (which includes a good chunk of conservative Christian Evangelicals and all Fundamentalists**) will argue ALL the Bible is true. If it’s written by God, it must be perfect from the get-go. Thus, a clash is created between simpler versus more nuanced views: Deuteronomy vs. Job. If an earlier view must be as true as any later one, that reduces everything to the most elementary version. It can’t evolve/grow up, yielding what feels to most like a very archaic (and often harsh) worldview.

In any case, both the traditional orthopraxic and orthodoxic religions of the ANE/Med Basin believed God/gods punished people who offended them. AND these punishments might “spill over” onto family and neighbors.

Ancient divine collateral damage.

Ironically, this is WHY early Christians were prosecuted by the pagan (e.g., traditional) Roman and Greek religious establishments. Christian failure to participate in common civic religious cult could earn divine ire. For their first two/two-and-a-half centuries, Christianity was labeled a religio illicta (illegal religion)—in part for “failure to play well with others.” E.g., make sacrifices to the appropriate Greco-Roman deities. Thus, when disaster struck, a scapegoat was sought. Those antisocial Christians are to blame! They don’t sacrifice to the gods and so, offended XXX god, who is now punishing ALL of us with YYY.

Classic ancient religious thinking, but it’s one reason I find current conservative Christian opposition to Teh Gays, trans folks, etc., enormously ironic. The persecuted have become the persecuting.

I want to emphasize that large sub-groups of Jews, Christians, and Muslims have evolved past such theologies. Yet others have not and stubbornly cling to ancient mindsets. That’s why they argue the mere presence of LGBTQI+ people will bring down the wrath of God on ALL.

Talk of “grooming” and “protecting children” is just an attempt to make palatable a belief they know won’t fly with most people, who they consider deluded by The World (e.g., the devil). Trickery is therefore required. As they’re deeply afraid themselves, they understand fear and use it to motivate others. Many are perfectly happy to make their beds with “unbelievers” long enough to get their agendas passed. God will forgive them.

This, too, is rooted in ancient ideas (discussed above) whereby a people’s own god might employ the enemy to punish them (or others). Thus, a sinful person can be utilized on the way to righteous ends because the victory of God wipes away all else. Using the enemy to effect God’s will just proves that God is in final charge of everything after all. It’s the ultimate PWN.

I hope this helps to explain where these ideas come from, how they originally emerged, and why a subgroup of people still cling to them.

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* While Egypt influenced the ANE, as well as Greece and Rome, and is often shoehorned into the ANE, I consider Egypt as NE Africa. It deserves to be treated on its own, or in relation to neighbors such as Kush.

** Fundamentalists and Evangelicals tend to be equated but are not the same. Also, not all Evangelicals are conservatives (although all Fundamentalists are, by definition). Enormous variation exists between Christian denominations, which range from ultra-conservative to (surprise!) ultra-liberal. There is as much of a hard Christian Left as there is a hard Christian Right. We just tend to hear far less about them.

#iconoclasm #mesharum #deuteronomic theology #book of job #poem of the righteous sufferer #ancient theology of tragedy #theodicy #ANE theology #ancient Mediterranean theology #Classics #ancient near east #ancient religion

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