Long story short, I had a character that I made Catholic so I don't end up misrepresenting any religions (If you've known me for more than three seconds, you'd know that I am very Catholic), but now I've realized that considering Jesus would've never existed in this world, it makes no sense whatsoever. So now I have to create a religion, but since my homeschool is super biased, I know absolutely NOTHING about religions other than my own, so I wouldn't know what to do to make it seem realistic. Help?
Well, my main man, what type of religion are you looking to make?
Multiple Gods (Like I’ve done)? One God that lines up with Catholicism? No Gods just smaller Titans?
Well, my main man, what type of religion are you looking to make?
Multiple Gods (Like I’ve done)? One God that lines up with Catholicism? No Gods just smaller Titans?
I was thinking of just one God, mostly because then I don't have to do as much work on something that doesn't play a huge part in the story.
Well then what do you need help with? The God themself (I’m really trying hard to not ask really mean questions).
Well then what do you need help with? The God themself (I’m really trying hard to not ask really mean questions).
(It's ok, don't worry, I will not be offended by anything you say) I'm mostly trying to figure out what's common in most religions, different types of worship, etc.
(Okay thank you. If I do accidentally say something offensive I apologize.)
Well my household used to be a Protestant Christian and (no offence to any lingering Protestants) we do basically the same thing. Since it’s… the same religion as far as I know. Worship can vary from country to country and the religion. In Japanese religion people offer praise, money and even food to their higher symbols.
(Yeah, Protestants aren't as different from Catholics as people seem to think, we both worship the same god, the main differences that I can think of are Communion and Confession, and of course, Catholic churches tend to be more decorated, but other than that they are very similar)
(That’s what I thought, thanks for clarifying.)
(If you’re still looking for ideas, this video helped me to think about my world’s religions and I thought it might be useful to you too: https://youtu.be/Wz2H1t5XvP8j)
I'm not sure what route you really want to take. Is being religious a big part of this character? Do you want religion to be a big part of the story? If not, honestly, a vague mention here and there of a deity (or deities) would do… If you want to make a whole religion, stick around for more advice. There's a lot to unpack there. You have to decide on the god(s) you want to use, whether they're benevolent or jealous… plus a host of other things, like what kind of devotion is required to follow the god, how involved they are with everyday life, and what life after death looks like. Of course, that's only brushing the surface.
you could always keep the integral values of Catholicism and change the story, like instead of jesus, there was a different guy called…i dunno, susej or something, and he was like jesus, but different, you know? like an old dead guy who died a martyr and did some cool miracle shit told everyone to be nice to each other and now people worship him. but you can look up the core values of other religions and find common trends. for example, a common theme among religions is they have a rule set that says things like "don't steal, don't kill, don't rape, don't be [insert bad trait here]" and rules on how you should worship, a la the five pillars of islam and the ten commandments. i'm a hindu, and we have the bhagavad gita, which basically tells you "don't be a dick, don't get angry as anger is never productive, always worship the one god (hinduism generally is seen as polytheistic, but there is an idea of a central god), forgive yourself" among others. we also have the three cardinal virtues: charity, compassion, and moderation, meaning give to others, be kind to others, and don't be materialistic and enjoy the physical pleasures in moderation. anyway religions are generally founded on beliefs, and the stories spring from there, meaning jesus had his ideas of what the world should be like before he started doing that miracle shit; so my advice is to pick some core beliefs, build some religious figures, and write their stories, and there you go. insta religion.
(Yeah, Protestants aren't as different from Catholics as people seem to think, we both worship the same god, the main differences that I can think of are Communion and Confession, and of course, Catholic churches tend to be more decorated, but other than that they are very similar)
(Also, if I remember correctly, how Mary is seen and how the saints are seen)
(Yeah, Protestants aren't as different from Catholics as people seem to think, we both worship the same god, the main differences that I can think of are Communion and Confession, and of course, Catholic churches tend to be more decorated, but other than that they are very similar)
(Also, if I remember correctly, how Mary is seen and how the saints are seen)
(we also pray differently)
Ask yourself some questions about the god for your story.
Is there a book like the Bible detailing everything they've done?
Are there just myths like in ancient Greece?
Is your god omnipresent, can they take human form, do they have any children and/or demigods, are there anything like angels that help them, is there even the concept of prayer and saints, what is the creation story, etc.
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