#makes one think of the betrayal of Jesus at the hands of judas

[invisiblemonstrosity]

game shows touch our lives - the mountain goats // the taking of christ - caravaggio

#incredible song #makes one think of the betrayal of Jesus at the hands of judas #right? #the mountain goats #tmg #john darnielle #lyrics #tmg lyrics #the mountain goats lyrics #aesthetic #aes #edit #h8 #art #Caravaggio #painting #paintings #the taking of Christ #classic art #words words words #lyric edit #my edit #yeah ok

[melvisik]

The fandom overall seems split in their opinion of this fella:

One one side, there has been so much commentary offering sympathy and love for this poor, currently pathetic rat man. Of course, when using the word 'pathetic,' one might also include the archaic sense - he arouses pity, even if there is a connotation of contempt.

As noted, many have gone to great lengths in illustrating how he fits this definition. Some of their examples (their own commentaries and material directly from the actors and crew) have really hit home, and present a further glimpse into the man's tortured soul. Primarily in their analyses to his relationship with Blackbeard. From recollection, Con O’Neill has made at least two comparisons that have resonate brilliantly with his stans: 1) Judas’ relationship with Jesus in Jesus Christ Superstar. 2) Losing one’s best friend to someone else.

The former is a story familiar to quite a few people - Judas Iscariot started out as a follower of the prophet Jesus, but he ultimately betrayed the man he served and loved to the authorities which eventually got them both killed. In the musical, Judas does this because he’s worried that Jesus is out of control and that his leadership would lead to the group’s destruction. Another (probably more 'biblical') version presents him as a greedy, Satan-possessed bastard who just wants cash in hand, and he later regrets it when 'the devil leaves him.' Yet another interpretation is that (to Judas and many of Jesus’ followers) the idea of a Messiah is a person who will incite revolution against their oppressors (in this case the Roman Empire); but Jesus takes an entirely different path than what was expected of someone with that title. So maybe Judas was disillusioned, or he got spooked, or he thought that his actions could incite a man he admired into choosing a different course.

The Taking of Christ (1602) by Caravaggio Whatever the reason, Judas' name remains synonymous with very concept of ‘betrayal,’ especially in regards to betraying a trusting friend/mentor/leader figure. So... yep. That fits.

Regarding the second point, Con more or less compared it to the circumstance of being incredibly lonely, then gaining a close friend only to subsequently watch them prefer to hang out with someone else. In this case, at least from Izzy's point of view, it almost turns the Judas metaphor on its head, making Blackbeard the Judas betrayer to Izzy’s… well, 'Jesus' in so many words. Guy does kinda have a bit of a god complex.

And that god complex has Izzy trying so very hard to be boss.

He’s an extremely capable person in many ways from what we’ve seen so far – an excellent swordsman, definitely knows his way around a ship, and practically the Head PR Representative to the Blackbeard brand (promoting Ed’s title and making excuses for his depressive states). But where Izzy falls short is a lack of strong leadership skills. They’re not bad so to speak, but the crew clearly hates him. He’s harsh, he makes people miserable, and if there’s any shred of kindness or compassion in him, he has to hide it. He puts up such a rough and tough front that many in the fandom interpret as a fear of inadequacy or an overblown sense of machoism (which amounts to the same thing). More than likely this is because life has taught him to behave that way. Israel Hands probably was raised in a world that forced him to either eat or be eaten. Which makes the second point even more loaded when taking into consideration just to whom Izzy is losing Blackbeard-

This guy.

Izzy a man of some learning, that much we can discern, but it’s highly doubtful that he grew up in a family of the same means as Stede Fuckin Bonnet.

Izzy has reached so high to the top as he thinks he can go - the right Hands and personal confidant of Captain Blackbeard himself, even having the privilege of addressing Blackbeard by his first name. Then comes along a ridiculous fop who not only manages to outsmart him on their first meeting but takes away his idol within only a few weeks of knowing him.

This soft-handed, smiling, upbeat ray of sunshine represents everything Izzy has been taught is weak and pitiful, and yet Izzy’s idol (and quite possibly the man he loves) is enamored with him.

In addition to all his faults, Stede Bonnet seems like a rich twat who’s gotten anything and everything he wants in life because of his privilege. He can literally afford to leave his cushy life and play dress up on a well-furnished ship. Izzy’s cruel reality is Stede’s deluded fantasy.

In short, rich-boy Stede Bonnet effortlessly gets everything that Izzy can never seem to reach, no matter how hard he tries or what strides he makes.   Not that any of this excuses Izzy's pettiness or betrayal by a long shot, but honestly who wouldn’t be driven bat-shit crazy by that? In any case, applause to the fandom's insights on this, and especially to Con O’Neill for being such a professional.   Slay, queen.

#ofmd #our flag means death #izzy hands #israel hands #con o'neill

[loveinhawkins]

Thinking again about theater kid Dustin so naturally I had to come to you 💙 Specifically I’m thinking about Dustin auditioning for a community theater production of Jesus Christ Superstar with an eccentric director who convinces Eddie to audition for Judas. He knows his reputation and thinks his notoriety will add an extra meta layer to the role (and get some butts in the seats he’s gotta keep the lights on somehow). Eddie is reluctant to put himself in the spotlight but ultimately does cause Dustin is excited about it. Also he’s really good? He plays it completely sincerely which no one is expecting, really leans into the interpretation that Judas was in love with Jesus and amps up the tragedy. (Afterwards Steve also asks him if that kiss with Jesus is in the script or…?)

i love this so much, thank you for sharing with me! ❤️ theatre kid Dustin is just so incredibly precious & i just love the thought of him having so much fun with it in his future. like i see him as such a little social butterfly, i think everyone in the theatre group would adore him (i’m always so upset when his peers make fun of him at the snow ball, no, that’s my boy!!!)

and oh my god Jesus Christ superstar yes!!! yeah i can see Eddie being so hesitant about it, like the thought of how certain factions of hawkins might still view him makes him nauseous.

but the director—who maybe knows through close-knit community theatre circles that a very young Eddie once played Action in West Side Story (i love your story so much ❤️)—has one last parting shot which convinces him.

“So you never want to have fun ever again?”

… Huh, Eddie thinks.

he still asks for Dustin’s approval, all too concerned with the thought that this is Dustin’s thing and maybe he’s overstepping or something, or—

“Holy shit, that’s some seriously impressive over-thinking,” Dustin says. “You’re my friend, asshole.”

And maybe he says it with a tone, but he means I wanna hang out more with you not less!

so Eddie takes the role and of course he’s brilliant—okay everyone’s got opinions on the auto tune used in Tim Minchin’s rendition but dear god the depths in his eyes, the acting. also maybe the director does a present day take like that version did & Eddie’s jokingly like “I could wear the hellfire tshirt” & the director’s eyes light up & Eddie quickly goes, “No. That was a joke, it wouldn’t even make sense.”—and maybe there’s something empowering in playing this figure when people once said his name and the Devil’s in the same breath.

Maybe, maybe.

and oh we all know who Eddie is thinking about when he’s singing:

I don't know how to love him I don't know why he moves me He's a man, he's just a man He's not a king, he's just the same As anyone I know He scares me so

and

Does he love, does he love me too? Does he care for me?

And oh on a lighthearted note, Steve asking if the kiss is in the script has me in hysterics, especially if this is pre-them getting together.

just the thought of Steve staring grumpily any time there’s a scene with Jesus & Judas—the guy who plays Jesus is maybe like a couple years older than Eddie, not originally from Hawkins perhaps so he’s kinda not fully aware of Eddie’s history & sure, he’s nice, but he’s just not on Eddie’s radar at all.

So when Steve asks if the kiss was in the script (not that he cares! At all! He doesn’t care! Look at how much he doesn’t care!), Eddie stares at him for a long moment and says, “Steve. Did you think I improvved the Bible?”

Dustin, who is also here—currently doing English homework up on a barstool in Steve’s kitchen while Eddie & Steve lounge on the couch—sighs very loudly and says, “How the fuck am I supposed to know what role dialogue plays in Much Ado About Nothing?”

Eddie waves a hand distractedly at him. “Just make it up.”

“I can’t just because my way through Shakespeare,” Dustin says, adds in a huffy undertone, “this isn’t one of your campaigns.”

Eddie mimes being stabbed in the heart. “Oh, betrayal!”

“So it was in the script?” Steve says.

“Oh for—yes, Steve, it was,” Eddie says. “It’s called acting. Also, it was on the cheek.”

“So?”

“So—ugh, just—” Eddie tugs on Steve’s wrist impulsively, while another part of his brain is screaming in vain for him to stop. “Come here.”

“What’re you doing?”

“I’m just showing you how fucking little it—”

I’m never finishing this essay, Dustin thinks. My home life is distracting and chaotic.

And Eddie kisses Steve very very chastely on the cheek, just to show it was nothing, that’s all, but Steve can feel Eddie’s breath on his skin, the warmth of his lips, and Eddie doesn’t really think it through until he does it and then oh shit, his heart is pounding—

“Oh, yup cool,” Steve says. “That’s—yeah, wow, that’s it? Huh. I need some air.”

“From your own house?” Dustin says, to the front door already slamming shut.

And Eddie’s eyes are wide and shiny, like, did I fuck up, and it takes all of Dustin’s self control to not roll his eyes and slam his face into his book.

Then he softens a bit, remembers looking out into the audience and seeing Steve silently crying while Eddie sang You have murdered me.

“You’re so dumb,” Dustin tells Eddie as gently as he can. “You’re lucky I love you.”

“Uh.” Eddie blinks. “Did I—should I…?”

Dustin sighs wearily, slings his backpack over his shoulder. And he has a parting shot of his own:

“I’m not waiting through another production for you two to get your shit together.”

#i hope this repays even a little bit the joy i had thinking about this! ❤️ #dustin henderson headcanons #eddie munson headcanons #steddie headcanon #steddie hcs #henderfam #steddie #eddie and dustin #steve and dustin #steddie ficlet #dustin henderson #steve x eddie #eddie munson #steve harrington #JCS AU

[graceshouldwrite]

How to Write Devastating Betrayals (Pt. 1)

Here are some elements + tips on satisfying betrayals that will destroy both your characters AND your readers!

1. Relationship Between Trust and Betrayal 

The #1 Betrayal Rule:

MORE TRUST = WORSE BETRAYAL

This is because TRUST implies 2 main things:

The traitor has probably PROVEN their trustworthiness, and now has a shared history + bond with the character they’re betraying 

The traitor probably has access to a LOT OF INFORMATION about the character, whether it’s career-wise or personal. Probably at least some information the character considers STRICTLY confidential 

An act of betrayal undermines Point 1 by manipulating Point 2 to their advantage.

So, if you want your betrayal to DESTROY, have the traitor be CLOSE with the character they’re about to betray. Lets compare examples: 

you are a gang boss. You hire a new recruit who doesn’t really know anything except one insignificant operation, like “today we buy groceries at 2PM”

your recruit tells the rival gang about the grocery trip   

→ betrayal doesn’t really matter that much

you probably didn’t place much trust in a new recruit 

the implications of information leak are insignificant 

→ not much plot weight 

On the other hand:

you find out that the entire time, your RIGHT HAND MAN (also your childhood friend!) has been feeding information to the rival gang and sabotaging your operations 

→ HURTS a lot more emotionally

might ruin everything you’ve built, career-wise, for good 

→ LOTS of plot weight

From a completely SECULAR PLOT STANDPOINT (please don’t come for me, theologians), Judas’ betrayal of Jesus is a good example because:

Judas was one of Jesus’ disciples, a.k.a. the people considered closest to him, and who followed Jesus throughout all of his preaching years

Judas’ information about Jesus’ identity and whereabouts led to Jesus’ crucifixion → LOTS of plot weight (the entire Bible from a Christian standpoint foreshadows this moment, and every point after is spreading word of this moment. Talk about plot implications!)  

ONCE AGAIN, I know all the “Jesus knew and allowed it to happen” “it was the will of God” stuff but this is purely used as a good plot example!!!!

2. Reason for Betrayal

“’Cause it’s super edgy/evil/cool” is DEFINITELY not a valid option. 

All the plot points in a book build towards achieving a goal, and all the characters do things they think will get them closer to what they want. Likewise, the traitor must want a specific thing that ONLY betrayal can get them, or that betrayal can get them more efficiently. 

People generally portray typical traitors as: 

completely selfish with no personality trait aside from infinite ambition and ruthless pragmatism

a hero whose had enough

someone who sees the person they betrayed as a “worthless disposable” or something 

Traitors don’t have to be morally bankrupt, even though betrayal is typically seen as something inherently bad, or just a bad means to a good end at best. 

They can be conflicted about the betrayal (like Macbeth delaying his murder of King Duncan), remorseful about it (like Discord from MLP feeling super guilty after he hands the main protagonists over to the villain), or even do it for the “greater good.”

e.g. Brutus thought Caesar was becoming too power hungry, and would destroy the republic by becoming a dictator, so Brutus betrayed him to preserve the republic 

→ example of a betrayal that was NOT self-serving

However, building on the MLP Discord example, a traitor can also have been manipulated into it themselves. 

(For context, the villain basically promised Discord lots of power if he handed over the protagonists, but then the villain also sucked away Discord’s powers afterwards—won’t bother explaining MLP magic mechanics LOL) 

3. Foreshadow It 

A satisfying betrayal is usually a subtle, looming shadow that creeps over your plot before it makes its grand entrance during the scene when the character realizes the traitor sold them out. 

A good example is in Shakespeare’s dramatization of Brutus’ betrayal: 

Brutus’ loyalty to the REPUBLIC is made super clear throughout. When Caesar starts deviating, seeming more dictatorial, Brutus remains firm.

Their values are CLEARLY conflicting, so SOMETHING has to be done. Either:

they reconcile by both agreeing on either dictatorship or democracy

they turn on each other...and that’s what happens

Basically, planting the possibility in your reader’s mind is a great way to foreshadow a betrayal. 

Other ideas could be: 

traitor begins suddenly acting a lot warmer to the unsuspecting character, or even colder right BEFORE the betrayal

traitor is always TOO obedient and/or sycophantic 

traitor acts suspicious, e.g. caught in lies, using inconsistent body language (ex. pretending to cry when talking about something really bad), caught talking to people they shouldn’t be talking to (e.g. rival gang)

∘₊✧────── ☾☼☽ ──────✧₊∘

instagram: @ grace_should_write

stay tuned for part 2!

Hope this was helpful, and let me know if you have any questions by commenting, re-blogging, or DMing me on IG. Any and all engagement is appreciated <3333

Happy writing, and have a great day!

- grace <3

#writers on tumblr #writing #writing tips #booktok #writer #writeblr #novel #writerslife #writergram #wattpad #betrayal #oc #writing stories #creating characters #characters #fantasy #ya fantasy #ya books #plot holes

[sleepymccoy]

It's strange to me that we have Christmas songs but not Easter songs. So I've put together an Easter playlist for the season! Here is a link to it on Spotify

And here's my thinking for each song, I hope it makes you chuckle. it's only slightly sacreligious

Breadline by Warumpi Band and Wine, Beer, Whiskey by Little Big Town are The Last Supper, where Jesus has his buddies eat his flesh and blood in what must've been a super normal meal for everyone

Then there's a bit of betrayal! Judas by Lady Gaga and Money by Lime Cordial are Judas selling Jesus out. Then we have No No No by TheFatRat is the denied thrice thing that I don't really remember.

We've got Kiss by Prince followed by Red Right Hand by Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, as Judas betrays Jesus with a kiss then feels guilty and kills himself

Now we move onto the Pilate and Herod stuff with Good Morning Judge by 10cc, followed by Whip It by DEVO (thinking about Jesus getting whipped to DEVO is the most sacrilegious this gets imo lol) and Won't Go Down Easy by JAXSON GAMBLE cos Jesus doesn't let up despite the thrashing

Then we've got Camel Walk by Southern Culture on the Skids, which is Jesus carrying the cross through town. You know, carry shit like he's a camel! Sure! Aaand Hammer and Nails by The Bones of J.R. Jones as he's strung up on the cross.

We move into more straightforward religious music with The Lord's Prayer by Sister Janet Mead, and a cover of Chop Suey by Robyn Adele Anderson which ends with Jesus yelling at his dad (God, not Joseph. I hope Joseph visited Jesus on the cross).

And then we have Bohemian Rhapsody by Queen as Jesus calls out to his mum for help, followed by Sign of the Judgement by Cassandra Wilson cos no one comes to help him, and he dies up there to Gallows Pole by Led Zeppelin

Hey St. Peter by Flash and the Pan is a nod to Jesus being dead but being turned away from heaven or whatever admin happened to bring him back. By Myself by FIDLAR is kinda how I reckon he'd've felt just hanging out in a cave being left alone by everyone. It's a mess for Jesus right now, rock bottom. Then This Year by The Mountain Goats cos it's actually a hilarious resurrection song

Jailbreak by AC/DC for when he gets out of the cave. Boys in Town by Divinyls cos our main boy is in town again, but he is absolutely on the way out. Spirit In The Sky by Norman Greenbaum as he returns to heaven and There's A Light by Shirley Ann Lee to remind us there's some real religion going on, and I assume that Jesus and God start getting along again eventually

And then wrapping it all up with Chocolate Jesus by Tom Waits, because chocolate really is what it's all about now

#Easter #playlist #song rec #I've been having so much fun with this

[huginsmemory]

Trigun and Christianity

In lieu of trigun Stampedes choice to make Wolfwood an undertaker instead of a priest (to, well, my disappointment), I thought it might be interesting to look at some of the Christian themes in Trigun, and then also look at why they might have decided to choose for Wolfwood to be a undertaker then a preist, and a potential reason to why Trigun has these Christian themes. Also, btw, this is chock full of manga spoilers so, beware!

To start it off... trigun is actually... pretty heavy on Christian themes. Fuck man, the main character is basically an angel, and in one of the first volumes they literally describe the plants as something divine (although they are later declared to be something humans made... But nevertheless the very clear imagery is there). Also what features very strongly is pacifism and the themes of unconditional love; Vash's refusal to kill coming from believing that going forward, anyone can change, even when he is literally being harmed or attempted to be killed by others. These themes of pacifism and unconditional love are very Christian, and Vash's actions very much centre him as a Jesus-like character. In fact, even the way that he (and knives) was born, a virgin birth, also could be seen as an allusion, as well as the way that he holds a physical form as a human while being more than human- Jesus being considered a 'son of man' while also being the son of God; ie, something in-between, something both divine and human. Knives as well is written in that angelic and divine light, although he is done so in a dark opposite of Vash, with an emphasis on his 'divinity' for imagery as he is obsessed with it. Interestingly, contrast to Knives, Vash, who goes around as a human, is multiple times called a Devil for his reputation, although he is the one that actually is virtuous... This in a way also alludes to him as a Jesus-like figure, as that Jesus was ultimately sought after by the authorities and in some places hated and even driven away by people.

12 disciples

As well, Nightow is pretty blatant that the gung ho guns, of which there are 12, is a allusion to the 12 disciples; hell, Wolfwood calls them straight up disciples when he is at Jeneora Rock. One might argue that then whether that posits Knives as a Jesus figure as that they follow Knives directions, or if one would consider Vash to be the Jesus figure, as the 12 literally seek out, and 'follow' Vash, and of which one of them literally betrays (although, technically, Wolfwoods betrayal goes both ways). However, I don't think that argument is really one that matters, as it's more of the aesthetic of Christianity that Nightow likes in this matter, not the philosophical implications.

As well, as mentioned above, Wolfwood is very Judas-coded; he gets close to Vash, only to inevitably betray him and deliver him up to his fate, while clearly being torn up about it. Vash is not surprised at all when Wolfwood tells him that he was one of the gung ho guns, and you get the sense that he knew about it all along, and knew exactly what he was walking into. Yet he still loves and forgives Wolfwood for all of it. Which... is exactly the same thing that occurs between Judas and Jesus, Jesus willingly going with Judas even though he knew what lay before him.

Wolfwood

As well, quite obviously adding to the heavy Christian themes of trigun, is that Wolfwood calls himself a priest. Although indeed it's part of his front, it's clear Wolfwood in the manga is religious, challenging and calling upon God in response to seeing the Knives born, and his response to the fifth moon incidence where he questions if it was the hand of God (which, actually, is caused by Vash's hand... again alluding to the 'divinity' of Vash and Knives). This clear religious affiliation continues through the series, such as when he is rescuing Vash from Knives, and even praying while he is on the ship with the people that helped vash.

Wolfwood also throughout the series is very clearly is morally wraught with guilt over his choices and sins... Something that's very Catholic/Christian. Hell, the fact that the punisher, the insignia of his murderous profession, is a literal heavy cross that Wolfwood carries with him, is poetic irony; he's literally carrying around the embodiment of his sins and his guilt from his profession and choices, which weighs both heavily on his physical body but also him emotionally. Wolfwood's guilt over his sins and choices comes to its climax when he's about to die when rescuing Vash from Knives, after betraying him; where he questions whether he can be forgiven for what he has done and whether he was wrong, and in response Vash saves him, declaring that he is not wrong; not wrong to go against orders, leaving his vocation of being a murderer behind, in trying to save Vash and moving forward. In declaring Wolfwood that he was not wrong, what Vash (heavily implied divine, Jesus-like character) is declaring is that Wolfwood can be forgiven for his sins, is already forgiven for his betrayal (unconditional love, anyone?), and that Wolfwood can change, that his past doesn't define him, because his future is also a blank ticket.

As well, this is followed up later by Wolfwoods confession to Vash that he hates killing:

The confession and the way he phrases it- seeing all humans as his brethren (although, in this sense he may be speaking tangentially about Livio) is something that also has Christian overtones. (Also, the way that they mention Vash sees the whole of humans as his relatives, also ties into that; except personally I'd argue that's more of a Indigenous view then a Christian, but theres plenty of things that overlap with other theologies and philosophies within the manga that aren't just characteristics of Christianity).

Redemption via acts

There's also a theme of redemption via acts, which both Wolfwood and Vash lean into heavily as a result of guilt from their 'sins', something that is very... Well, again, Christian, especially Catholic. Vash, from being unable to stop Knives and having obliterated July and just his and knives general existence, and Wolfwood from his profession, and so they both struggle with immense feelings of guilt. As a result both are very self-sacrificing; Vash very obviously so throughout the series, and Wolfwood in a quieter way, in choosing to continue to work to protect the orphanage, even though he desperately wants to escape the life he leads and hates killing people. They both don't believe they deserve to be loved because of the weight of their sins, and so they redeem themselves the only way they know how by self-sacrifice; this literally causing Wolfwoods death as he didn't reach our to Vash for help, and is evident in the way Legato looks at Vash at the end and realizes he sees a man that only sees himself as a tool and hates himself. This belief of Vash's that he doesn't deserve love/nice things is something that is also interesting, because he so aggressively pushes the 'blank ticket of the future', ie, unconditional love, while clearly being unable to apply it to himself.

Tldr: the point is, Trigun is very heavily Christian themed, both in aesthetic and philosophy, and the characterization of both Vash and Wolfwood reflect that. The show is rampant with such Christian philosophical themes as unconditional love, sin and guilt, confessions, forgiveness and redemption through self-sacrifice; for aesthetic ones, well, literal 'angels' as main characters, Wolfwood being a priest and carrying a cross, the 12 gung ho guns as 12 disciples.

Wolfwood as an Undertaker

Since Trigun is so heavily Christian themed, it makes it... well, a bit of a strange choice to pull the fact that Wolfwood is a preist out, since him as a preist further emphasizes the moral quandries within the story and the themes of sins/guilt/forgiveness and unconditional love. However, as one other post here on tumblr mentioned, stampede as an iteration of trigun is more directed towards a more modern and Japanese audience, some of which can be seen with the revamp of the character designs to make them more relatable, and I think they mentioned some specific character traits with Meryl. This re-vamping, especially one specifically for a Japanese audience might explain why Wolfwood becomes a undertaker instead of being a Christian priest. Nightow in the back panels in the manga is clearly is very enthralled with American culture- and his knowledge and love of the American genres shows pretty strongly in the themes and the setting for Trigun. In fact, the 1998 anime was better recieved in the west then in Japan, and a possible likelihood for it's higher popularity within the Americas is going to be directly because of the western audience being more familiar with the Western genre, as well as specifically, the Christian themes within the show (since western countries cultures are Christian based, even if one wasn't raised religious). As well, compared to the other typical gunslinging space western anime, Cowboy bebop, Trigun contains more Christian themes, which would make it less relatable, and less popular to the Japanese audience (of course there are many other differences in the shows, so I would be reluctant to chalk it up to just the religious themes in trigun- hell, Cowboy Bebop makes some great criticisms of capitalism that is not present in Trigun). Circling back to them revamping the show, if they are trying to make it more relatable to a Japanese audience, then removing more overly American influences, such as one of the characters literally being a Christian priest, would fit that bill quite well.

Trigun and Christianity... Why?

Also, I personally think that Nightow didn't exactly mean to make a story that is really heavily Christian themed. My sneaking suspicion from reading chapter 0, is the Nightow thought that writing a western with a main character gunslinger that is a pacifist would be a fun and interesting prospect, and then when he began to elaborate on it, he began to pull in more western (both cultural and genre wise) themes and aesthetics into the story, resulting in something that is very heavily Christian themed in the end.

EDIT: it's been raised to my attention by the lovely @trigum, that it says in the wikipedia on Nightow that he was raised buddhist and converted to Catholicism, although there is no source for that information. If so, this would, well, very obviously explain why Trigun is so heavy on Christian themes and negates the paragraph above. I'm not giving him enough credit then, my apologies Nightow!

EDIT 2:

Edit 3 (Feb 3): made a somewhat part 2, specifically looking at the phrase the 'bride of Christ'.

#trigun #trigun spoilers #trigun maximum #trigun anime #trigun 1998 #trigun stampede #wolfwood #nicholas d. wolfwood #vash the stampede #knives millions #feels wierd to write about Christianity #uh. yeah if thjs is incoherent please ignore me hah #also not to say that trigun is a very Christian bit of media but also??? it kinda is? #as ex christian the amount of guilt coming off these characters is so v me in middle school figuring out im queer #also sad about wolfwood not being a preist for both poetic irony but also. let's be honest that poetic irony is hot #also like. nightow best charcter design ever. sorry no one will be able to design a better character then trained assasin priest #who carries a huge cross machine gun and is full of guilt over his sins #and loves children #is this also tangentally vashwood #yes. ignore me #vashwood #if ur like ur writing is rambly sorry! i know a bit of it is repetitive #do i care? nope not any more #nightow slapping both vash and wolfwood: these boys can fit so much christain guilt in them

[offshore-brinicle]

Gregor has been sus to me for a while now honest, I think him being the traitor would be quite interesting, here are some sus Greg things that got this ball rolling for me:

1] We know from Sinclair's jacket that at some point the numbers were pushed down, if they were not than Gregor would've been the 12th sinner - I bring this up as many use Outis being 12th as evidence of her being the traitor, but I believe her as a scapegoat works better.

2] Drawing from how Dante can be seen as a Jesus figure, and how the specific nature of Judas' betrayal involved giving away Jesus' location, I think the 'gift' Hermann gave to him allows for her to know his - and thus Dante's- location/future location.

3] His constant through the mirror worlds is his lack of an arm, whilst all the other sinners have something that stays the same. He could also be said that Pablo is another of his constants instead of just an Easter egg, making him stand out in that aspect too wait what if Pablo is being used to track him. That's probably not what's happening but still

4] Ties to the Library - or at least the tree of life/light - through his base E.G.O, the first mention of it in game.

5] Hermann. Very sorry but literally everything about her makes anyone related to her sus by association

6] His main thing is adaptability, as shown through how drastic the changes in demeanor he has in his IDs, as well as how he survived the war despite his fame AND being a bug known for not dying very easily. If betraying what he has is needed in order to survive is necessary, he may just do it

7] He and Rodion are the sinners that haven't started on their path of accepting the past as Sincle, Yisa, Ish n Heath have done, and the bough he resonated with is the one currently in Hermann's hands. I do not have a good feeling about this

Joke points] He sits behind Dante, the PERFECT backstabbing position. PLUS he's the only sinner with glasses, meaning he's the only one that can do the anime thing of hiding one's eyes with the shine on glasses. Also it would give such a massive emotional damage crit.

OOOK HONESTLY ALL OF THESE CAME THROUGH MY HEAD WHEN THE POSSIBILITY OF GREGOR BEING THE TRAITOR WAS POINTED OUT, BUT NOW THAT YOU MENTION THAT FIRST ONE IT HAS ME -VERY- INTRIGUED (I just didn't ellaborate much of that post as I could because I've been really exhausted these days). I actually did not know about Outis being 12 being used as "evidence" for Outis traitor theories but when you bring up he was the original 12.....

But also the glasses thing made me laugh ngl

#project moon #limbus company #lcb Gregor

[queerprayers]

Hi! Could i ask you about your thoughts on judas please? Do you think he knew he had to fulfill the prophecy? Do you think he went to hell, if so, why wasn't he forgiven as well? Sorry if these are stupid questions, i'm a bit new to bible study and the bible in general

Thank you, beloved, for an excuse to talk about Judas! Here we go! And these aren't stupid questions at all—actually, they're questions continuously debated throughout history by even experts.

*This is a content warning for mentions of Judas's suicide and discussion of its motivations/implications. No explicit/violent details.*

To my knowledge, here are the main interpretations/readings of Judas:

Judas is the ultimate evil. He betrayed our Lord and Savior and killed himself in shame. His possible motivations could be: personal hatred/jealousy, theological/ideological issues, greed, possessed/tempted by devil, political issues/felt a duty to the empire, and/or selfishness (fear of arrest/execution by association).

What was meant to happen happened. Judas was a necessary part of God's plan, and whether he knew it or not, he helped complete the mission. He didn't do the right thing, per se, but he did the necessary thing.

Judas had good intentions—he thought if he willingly handed Jesus over, less harm would be done to Jesus, his followers, and the wider Jewish community.

You could back up many of these views with Scripture. And all of them are valuable to consider. Here are my thoughts:

Judas was handpicked by Jesus. Jesus called those he wanted, that they might be with him and send them out to preach. Judas was not a spy from the beginning, impersonating discipleship or scheming to destroy his Master—Luke says he became a traitor. He had joined Jesus's followers, and became close with his teacher. There is much we don't know about him, but we know he was supposed to be there. I do believe Jesus loved Judas as a dear friend, as well as a child of God. Jesus knowing someone would hurt him did not prevent him from seeking out all the love he know he would also experience—this is a microcosm of his relationship with every human. Jesus seeks out relationships with people he knows will betray him, over and over. "Do what you came for, friend"—even at the end, he was beloved.

In John, Jesus tells Judas, "What you are about to do, do quickly." Some have interpreted this as Jesus wanting Judas to carry out his plan, because it's necessary for Jesus's mission. You could also hear it as a plea, though, and this is how I hear it today. "Judas, I know what you have done, and will do. I know your heart. Go. Do it. Great things will come of it, but it will hurt me. At least do it quickly. Don't sit here with me any longer."

I don't know how much Judas knew. It's clear in Jesus's conversations with his disciples that Jesus himself is the only one who knows the whole story. Killing yourself after a betrayal doesn't scream confidence in the necessity/goodness of the act to me. And killing yourself before the story is over doesn't seem like you know the whole story. Perhaps a prophecy like that can only be fulfilled when it happens, not when someone tries to bring it about. Or maybe he did know. Maybe he sacrificed himself, knowing someone had to bring this about. I don't think we can know.

The Satan/demonic possession angle is interesting to look at. Luke and John both say that Satan entered him—you could be literal, but for me this doesn't describe a supernatural event, but a human one. Satan is the adversary, the opposite of God, evil. Evil enters us all the time, whenever we carry out something that is adversarial to God. Satan entering into Judas is him making up his mind. It's him giving in to evil, the moment of evil overpowering his heart.

Greed as a motivation is present in Matthew, where Judas explicitly asks how much money he would receive if he betrayed Jesus. In the other Gospels, the silver seems to be more of a reward/payment after the fact.

Whatever reason he had, however he convinced himself that it would be okay, whether he wanted money or safety or a new beginning, he had a hand in the execution of a (by most metrics) innocent man, and it wasn't worth it. He was filled with remorse and tried to return the money. No matter how much Satan Judas had in him, he still had love, too. And it wouldn't let him rest.

This is the biggest tragedy of Judas's story, and the reason he sticks with me: if you'll permit me to quote a favorite sitcom of mine, he quit before the miracle happened. He heard Jesus's sentence, and killed himself before the execution. Yes, he spared himself witnessing/hearing about/processing Jesus' death, but he also prevented himself from witnessing Jesus' resurrection. He couldn't deal with the guilt, and so did not witness redemption. If only he had stayed three more days. If only he could have seen that he didn't ruin everything, that there was hope. If only he had reached out to his friends, begged for forgiveness, mourned with them. I do not know what would have happened, or what Jesus would have said to him. He took away that possibility of earthly forgiveness with his own hands. He removed himself from the story.

I reread some relevant passages to answer this ask, and I noticed a couple things I've never considered before. First, that Judas received the first Communion. I guess I just never thought about it, but this strikes me today. Jesus also washed his feet at that supper. And then, reading John, I wept reading all that Jesus tells his disciples after Judas has left. If he had stayed, he would have heard, "In a little while you will see me no more, and then after a little while you will see me." He would have heard, "Now is your time of grief, but I will see you again and you will rejoice, and no one will take away your joy." Maybe his heart would not be changed, but perhaps, later, he would have remembered those words, and held on.

Over and over again, I just think, if only he had stayed. Lingered at the table a few moments more. Mourned his teacher and friend properly. Permitted himself life a few days longer. Left himself open to miracles. May we remember this lesson in our darkest moments.

Oh, a bonus point: We all know Judas betrayed Jesus with a kiss. But in Luke, as Judas approaches him in order to kiss him, Jesus asks him if that's what he's planning to do, and it seems he never ended up kissing him. Forgive me for this lack of commentary, but I can't emotionally process this. Let's move on.

We are not told by the gospels whether Judas is forgiven. We are not told where his soul rests. We're given the facts, but not much else—no clear motivation, no moral, no epilogue. We don't know how the other apostles reacted, or if Jesus visited his grave. He does what he does, disappears from the narrative, and we are left with the pieces.

I have complicated thoughts about Hell, but however we imagine life after death (something I don't think is even possible for us to process) I can't see any child of God being abandoned, much less one picked and known intimately by Jesus. Judas received the first Communion. He embraced the living, breathing God. And yes, he threw it all away, in more than one way, but he is not forgotten.

I sometimes see Hellfire as love that we aren't able to accept. Rejecting life and the possibility of forgiveness the way Judas did, and then meeting God? That would burn. That sounds like the most painful thing of all. 

But there are miracles on the other side. Maybe it's taken him two thousand years to exist with Jesus peacefully, but I pray every day that he is.

Here are some things that make feel things about Judas:

Judas by Jeff Loveness and Jakub Rebelka (graphic novel)

The Last Days of Judas Iscariot by Stephen Adly Guirgis (play)

The Last Temptation of Christ, 1988 (movie)

Jesus Christ Superstar by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice (musical)

Corpus Christi by Terrence McNally (play)

"The Ballad of Judas Iscariot" by Robert Williams Buchanan (poem)

"The Ballad of Reading Gaol" by Oscar Wilde (poem)

"Judas" by The Reverent Marigold (song)

this post by illuminirk

this post by apriki

this post by notbecauseofvictories

everything boykeats has ever posted in his judas tag

"The Betrayal of Judas Iscariot" by overwhelmed (short story) (You're gonna have to bear with me as I link you to a fanfiction website on a Bible post. It's good, I mean it.)

God be with you as you study the Bible, and come as you are. Bring your baggage, and your weird feelings, and your compassion for the villains of the story, and your "stupid" questions.

<3 Johanna

#asks #judas #the wilde poem isn't about judas but it references him and the implications are gay so it's on the list <3

[levmada]

PLEASE tell us about Jesus-Judas / Levi-Zeke comparisons im a sucker for biblical parallels 🧍

(part 1 technically)

UGH THANK U YES!!!!!

this is so interesting to me because there are more parallels than one may initially think - cuz there’s no overt reason for this connection to biblical canon other than connections to other religions in aot guess? (i.e., norse myth and yggdrasil ((the tree of life aka the paths tree)))

there are 3 suggestions why judas betrayed jesus. 1, possessed by demons, 2, money/flattery since jesus was already wanted by roman police (judas was a thief and a conman), and/or 3, difference in belief.

1 - demons aren't relevant, unless we're talking metaphors perhaps.

2 - as long as levi died that was good enough for zeke (the reason he left levi for the mindless titans)😭tho the biggest reason zeke resented him was simply because he kept failing to kill him.

3 - is IT. in biblical canon, the reason judas betrayed jesus was basically because - although they both wanted to make israel an independent kingdom from rome - judas thought jesus was going about it the wrong way by preaching diplomacy/refraining from waging war/not using deceit to orchestrate a coup and such.

it's the same, except neither zeke nor levi wanted to preserve the eldian empire (necessarily). zeke wanted to wipe it out, levi wanted to bring peace - but not by any means necessary. levi didn't agree with the rumbling. zeke on the other hand wanted all eldians to die if not sooner through eren's rumbling, then later.

zeke would betray levi because he found it foolish how he (and the scouts) thought they had any chance of getting peace through diplomacy (a relative to jesus' way); zeke also found all life worthless, while for levi it's the opposite; zeke would commit reprehensible acts of trickery/malice/indiscriminate murder to get peace his way, while levi of course was a “hero” and thought similar to jesus, save for the fact that levi would do those things as long as it contributed towards the peace the scouts sought (see: season 3p1)

the practical reason jesus chose judas to be one of his disciples was to be the treasurer who’d operate their “common purse”. this might be a reach, but you could say zeke played a similar role as a pawn or token for the rumbling (from levi and the scouts' perspective).

and this makes sense, because the reality is jesus chose judas because he knew he’d go on to betray him, and that was fine because it would lead to humanity’s redemption (the crucifixion).

levi didn’t know of course. but it’d be unrealistic to think levi didn't consider betrayal as a possibility knowing he didn't trust zeke to help eldia or the scouts. later on, he was guarding him under the plan of cutting zeke up and feeding him to a titan to preserve his royal blood (after the messengers told levi about eren's escape). aka, an end to the rumbling. aka, humanity's redemption.

but zeke's betrayal would lead to humanity's redemption anyway (the alliance battling eren and ending the titan curse).

zeke betrays levi. except levi doesn't take the betrayal as jesus did and fought to capture him. then took sadistic pleasure in torturing him with plans for zeke to die a slow painful death soaked in his own filth (by getting eaten by a titan).

yelena would go on to rhetorically ask levi much later - as his turn for that reconciliation/sin confession time in the forest the night before - “violence is the one thing you can’t take away from humanity. isn’t that right, captain?”

levi represents many things, including the best of what humanity has to offer (ie, its compassion, its resilience). so yelena is asking that literally in response to the fighting at the harbor, but it should mean in terms of levi's character too.

but, in the world of aot you can’t call levi’s propensity towards violence a sin, in fact it's a huge facet of his strength.

BUT levi began to become everything his old self saw as a weak person with thinking about the past (ie in the forest levi thinking back on his last convo with erwin, which couldn't have been for the first time); giving in to emotion and hesitating (levi hesitated to kill titan varus, seeing varus' face in his titan and generally wondering if all of them were still in there. this almost killed him); in general losing control of his emotions (levi being reckless by torturing zeke in the cart apparently not expecting zeke would do anything to escape, including set off the thunderspear. levi is smart. it's more likely to me he did see the possibility, but he wasn't thinking because he gave into hatred).

and that's exactly the thing. levi's "violence" is to mean his violence used because of blind hatred, violence to be cruel.

BUT THIS IS THE PARALLEL

levi doesn't mirror jesus exactly, he's just a man. BUT levi DOES MIRROR THE LEADER OF THE LEVITES

jacob (levi’s father and the father of the kingdom of israel) said: “Simeon and Levi are brothers—their swords are weapons of violence. Let me not enter their council, let me not join their assembly, for they have killed men in their anger and hamstrung oxen as they pleased. Cursed be their anger, so fierce, and their fury, so cruel!” (genesis 49)

simeon would go on to lead a different tribe, but their sins are the same. simeon is best known for mass-murdering a bunch of a people because the prince of those people raped his sister.

THIS IS SO INTERESTING!!! because this is adjacent to zeke as well. in s3, zeke took pleasure in killing the scouts (w/ erwin's last charge), but he doesn't hate the scouts necessarily; he hates his father, and his father stood for the same thing the scouts do, and a large reason zeke hates his father is because (zeke thinks) he brainwashed eren into the same belief. zeke hates the "prince", thus zeke hates the people of the prince who "raped his sister" - violated his brother's mind.

LEVI REPRESENTS THE SAVIOR FIGURE JESUS IS BUT AS A HUMAN HE SINS AND HIS SIN WAS THE SAME AS LEVI OF THE BIBLE!!!

AND ZEKE REPRESENTS THE THEIF AND BETRAYER JUDAS DOES

THEY SHARE THE SAME BASIC GOAL OF PEACE, AND THOUGH THEY'RE DIAMETRICALLY OPPOSED, WHAT MAKES THEIR “BROTHERHOOD” IS THEIR CRUEL VIOLENCE.

it's important yelena of all people asks levi that question whether she knows it or not, because she sees zeke as the savior of the world. whether zeke is the best of humanity or levi is, their violence is impossible to remove. (which, of course, is a major theme of aot.)

in israel, kissing was a way to greet someone (especially someone you know) and to identify jesus to the authorities, judas kissed him. a really treacherous “fuck you” to their brotherhood.

in the same way, zeke would turn levi’s comrades into titans. zeke both didn’t expect levi to survive this (like judas giving jesus to the roman authorities), and this forced levi to kill his comrades.

this in particular is like that kiss because: the meaning of his comrades lives, alive and dead, is what levi cares the most about at this point. zeke not only "imprisons" them but forces levi to kill them or die doing so.

lastly, judas would go on to commit suicide after jesus’ death. he (literally) throws away a large part of what he wanted being his money. being that greed and sin in the name of money defines judas, which is at the same time a necessity, makes me think this represents zeke's reason for fighting (sterilizing the eldians). he still believes in his plan at the end, but he gives it up.

what's different from biblical canon is that "jesus" isn't sacrificed by the enemy for humanity's redemption, but "judas" is killed by "jesus" for humanity's redemption.

furthermore though, because zeke is only human + represents judas, his death not only redeems humanity and its sins in helping to end the titan curse, but redeems himself and his own sins as well.

and who else is more fitting to execute the redemption other than the savior?

#sorry i couldnt shut the fuck up #part of this is probably reaching but thats my tale🙏 #levi ackerman #zeke yeager #zeke aot #levi aot #levi snk #captain levi #zeke jaeger #aot meta #aot canon #snk fandom #attack on titan #shingeki no kyojin #aot anime #aot zeke #snk zeke #levi rivaille #rivaille ackerman

[expressingexperience]

A Sacrifice

a short story about a girl's struggle with her family's religion. tw for violence

I sit in the church pews; the smell of pine oil overwhelms my senses, and my attempts at prayer are quickly stifled. Though I’ve always struggled with the concept. My sister—has never struggled. I watch from here every Sunday as she sits pretty with the choir board. She is a beautiful girl, a beautiful singer. I envision myself in her place, feeling accepted like she does. I keep my head bowed, trying not to think selfishly when I pray. My eyes are closed so tightly that I see static. My pleas to the Lord have gone ignored for as long as I can remember. However, my sister says I am blessed in ways I can’t yet understand. She’s always saying just the right thing, doing just the right thing. She carries her Bible with her almost everywhere; though it’s pristine, you can tell she’s had it for years. Each page is filled with color-coded sticky notes. She tries to teach me, but it never works. Her interpretations of the word feel like gilded lies. I open my eyes to the wooden details, the tall ceilings with ornate decals. My eyes are pulled to that colorful stained-glass display of Jesus with his wounded head resting on his shoulder. The magnificence of this building can’t be denied, nor can the faith that carried so many to build this church. I yearn for that faith. Yearn for a sign that my sister and everyone else are right. That there is more to these teachings than violence and pain.

Though I feel no comfort during service, the empty church has always brought me solace. Its beauty makes me want to believe. All the people who would soon fill this building are consumed by the word of God, so engrossed in only his gospel that it affects their every action, thought, and manner. I wish to relinquish myself to him in that way. I consider how hard it is for my family to have me, the doubting sinner, always going against the grain whenever the chance presents itself. I won’t say I make it easy for them. A primary tenet of Christianity is to follow the flock. Denying it is to exile yourself. I stand up and walk to the podium, imagining myself as our priest. Celibate and forever chained to the Lord. He seems happy, up here preaching to us all. He shakes everyone’s hands at the end of service and smiles big, toothy smiles that make me wince. I put myself in his shoes to be a leader and a voice for the Lord. To have Him speak to you constantly, sometimes I believe I hear Him. I tell my sister what I hear; she gives me a look she always has to reset, a look of disgust and fear before she tells me to ask for clarity.

Standing on the stage, looking down at the empty pews, fills me with a swirling sense of power and pride. The seat I previously occupied quickly blends with the rows and rows before me. There is a mightiness in this position, a feeling I wish to memorialize for all the coming disciples. I have felt connected to some stories from the Bible. The ones centered around power and anger and greed and lust showed me in his image. All the sins that boil inside me like a teapot ready to shatter. I've related to Cain and Judas, and the betrayals they’ve taken have rebuilt the congregation tenfold. Making each believer stronger and more resilient in their belief. I feel myself begin to shake from the thought of my next actions. Eyeing the gas canister I left by my seat, I pull a lighter from my pocket. This glorious building made to house devotion and love will soon catch my flame and incinerate me with its artful architecture. This is what the Lord has asked of me. A sacrifice. Hellfire in His sanctuary for all eyes to gaze upon. Gasoline invades my nostrils, and I accept it graciously. Deeply inhaling my actions while I listen to the spillage. Our message will be that much more powerful when my charred body is found melded in the evidence of undying faith.

#mine #short story #writing #writers on tumblr #fiction #religion #drama #tragedy #writeblr #writerscommunity

[darkfictionjude]

I got a couple of "Strand" evolutions

(i still think is funny you refer to them as "Strands" instead of Stands)

Sal: Personal Jesus evolves into Personal Judas (Musical reference: Judas from Fozzy)

Appearance: it sheds its devil and angelic persona revealing its self as a human with both a halo wings and horns.

Ability: all the previous abilities but enhanced aswell as a couple of new ones which allows him to gaslight people into doing what he wants and allows for easier backstabs/betraying.

Percy: No Rain Act 4

Appearances: Act 1 lighter and cigarettes, Act 2 flask of alcohol, Act 3 Hookah and Act 4 it takes the form of a flaming bee woman with multiple clones.

Ability: all previous abilities but enhanced aswell as the ability of hallucinogenic smoke the flames are capable of making expensive item and can affect people income by targeting them and put their money in Percy's pocket.

Nia: Crucified Non Betrayer (Musical reference: Betray from Light)

Appearance: it has become a fem fatale both stakes in the stands hands have become chain sword and its color scheme has become white and black.

Ability: all previous abilities but enhanced it now can control the pain it inflicts on targets making them pass out.

I forgot Lorcan and Irme's 😔🤡 here's extra content in apology.

Extra: this is MC's stand the song also fits for (The Player, some of the Characters and MC).

MC's Stand is The Pretender (Musical reference: Pretender from Foo Fighters)

Appearance: [Humanoid Stand Type] it looks like the stand user but wearing black and a cloak their eyes are always covered in shadows.

Ability: it allows MC to transform into anyone using their target's blood aswell as teleport using blood, they can also attack with storm like winds and blood rain if it touches the enemy its capable of making multiple copies of them to attack.

Did I? Hadn’t noticed

Calling Sally a Judas is quite funny I’ll say and for someone who knows things, I do wonder….

Percy likes that it’s a woman, hopes it’s hot but thinks that’s too many vices

Nia likes and hates the idea of a fem fatale. Likes the outfits hates how historical sexist that trope is

I think some mc’s would like to be anyone but themself tbh it would be a dream come true

#stands #the music #we wretched creatures

[pinkeoni]

Will as a Christ Figure Part II - Mike as Judas + Byler Kiss

In part one of this theory, I go into detail about how Will is a Christ figure and how I believe the plot of season 5 may parallel the crucifixion story. Towards the end of that post, I mentioned how part of my theory is that the effective Judas in this story was going to be Mike.

While this may sound bad Byler, this actually helped reinforce Byler endgame for me. I’m also gonna explain how this actually ties into the Byler kiss as well.

So anyways, Judas was one of Jesus’ disciples, and is most well known for betraying Jesus.

There’s much less evidence for Mike being a Judas figure in comparison to Will being a Christ figure, but part of the evidence is his relationship to Will. Judas was one of Jesus’ closest disciples, and sometimes theorized to actually have been his best friend.

I didn’t know this before doing research, but apparently there was a piece of lost gospel recently found that suggests that not only was Judas Jesus’ best friend, but Jesus was the one who asked Judas to betray his identity. Here is a portion of an NPR article that discusses it.

What convinced me of the parallel however is this interesting visual detail from season four episode six.

This is when they are in the Bingham house, and Da Vinci’s The Last Supper painting is positioned behind them in this shot.

Granted Suzie is in Jesus’ position here instead of Will, but I think that is to show that in this moment, she is acting as a savior by helping find El.

But what is interesting to me is that Mike lines up perfectly with where Judas is in the painting.

For those who don’t know, I circled where Judas is from this detail.

He is the one sitting at the table reaching his hand out in Jesus’ direction.

Now I’m going to explain how the Byler kiss fits into all of this.

An important part of the crucifixion story is the Kiss of Judas. This is where Judas kisses Jesus in order to identify him, effectively killing him. Here is Giotto’s painting of the Kiss of Judas from the Scrovegni Chapel.

The Kiss of Judas also made way for a literary trope called the Kiss of Death. Here is part of the TV Tropes article on The Kiss of Death.

So if season five follows the crucifixion story like I am theorizing, then the Judas figure (Mike) would kiss the Jesus figure (Will) before he is sacrificed.

I wanna make it clear, I don’t think that season five is gonna follow this story exactly. These parallels are just parallels, and these are different stories with different characters. I don’t think Mike is going to intentionally give Will’s life away through a malicious act of betrayal. I also don’t think he’s going to have the same fate of Judas as well. It’s not in his character and it’s not the kind of story this is. Here’s the play by play of how I think this will go down:

- Mike kisses Will (Kiss of Judas/Kiss of Death)

- Mike, either due to internalized homophobia and/or something with Vecna, rejects Will (Betrayal)

- After this, Will sacrifices himself (Crucifixion)

- Will then comes back to life to fight Vecna and saves the world (Ressurection)

I’m also a firm believer in Will living and getting his happy ending with Mike, and I think that can not only coexist with this theory, but it almost reinforces it. The parallels support the idea of Will as a martyr but more importantly as a savior.

#byler #will byers #mike wheeler #stranger things 5 #stranger things 5 theory #will is god

[melliotwrites]

i was wondering, why did y'all picked the saints you did for quincy's catholic guilt manifestations? and how did you design their costumes?

Mel here (who was mostly the writer in charge of the Catholicism storyline!) Thank you so so much for asking, I'm so headfull about them. 

The particular saints that represent Quincy's religious trauma (Saint Lucy, Saint Cassian, Saint Lawrence, and Saint Jude), as well as the ones they invoke in Litany of the Martyrs (Saint Sebastian and Saint Francis), were chosen because they are famous Catholic martyrs, and because they are (generally) the patron saints of the things that martyred them! (For those unfamiliar with Catholicism, saints are sort of… God’s message-handlers, and you can pray to specific saints that are the “patron saints” of certain professions or causes to increase the chances of your prayer getting heard).

I think that the whole concept of patron saints of the methods of their martyrdom captures some unique fucked up indefinable quality of catholicism that really stuck with me after I left the Church; this image of Saints interceding on the behalf of the people who killed them, quips on their deathbeds that, in some cases, are all we know them for now, the idealization of a beautiful brutal stoic martyrdom for the faith... etcetera! 

Here's the breakdown of stories by saint (which are a fusion of folk catholicism, historical sources, stories I was told as a child, etc- this is How I Understood Them In An Adamandi Context, but there's many competing hagiographies and unsubstantiated tales about these saints. It's an enjoyable internet rabbit hole if you ever have a free afternoon!)

Details below:

Saint Lawrence, give me strength to never shrink from firey blows - Saint Lawrence was executed by being burnt alive on a gridiron in 258 AD. Apocryphally, after being roasted for a little while, he cheerfully told his executioner, “Turn me over, I’m done on this side!” Patron saint of barbeque and comedians.

Saint Lucy, take my hand, keep my arm steady as it goes- Saint Lucy’s most famous story is that she wanted to become a nun, but instead her father married her off to a wealthy young Roman. To resist the marriage, she gouged out her own eyes to make herself no longer beautiful. Patron saint of blindness.

Saint Cassian, help me smile and ask for more pain than I’ve earned- Saint Cassian was a schoolmaster at Imola, who was condemned to death for teaching his pupils about Christianity. The judge ordered his pupils to stab him to death with their styli, and as they did so, he continued to give them pointers on how to stab him more effectively. Patron saint of educators.

Saint Jude, saint of hopeless causes…I hope your causes burn!- Saint Jude the apostle, who was martyred through beheading. Legend has it that, after he died, early Christians did not pray to Jude for fear of accidentally praying to Judas (Jesus’ betrayer), so he would take on any interventions sent his way. Patron saint of hopeless causes.

Costume-wise, us and our amazing designer Hahnji Jang went with a sort of “See No Evil, Speak No Evil, Hear No Evil” motif. Saint Lucy has eye gloves and eyes in their halo, echoing the traditional Catholic iconography of Saint Lucy holding a platter with her own eyes on it. Lawrence has wax coming from their ears and ears bejeweled onto their halo, and Jude has wax dripping from their throat. Jude also does not speak during the show at all- the implication being that all of the saints have cut off these parts of their bodies, like the hand and eye they ask from Quincy, to expiate their sin. Cassian doesn’t have anything because they represent more of a spokesperson for the saints- the one who ultimately means the most harm for Quincy, and the one who is consciously doing evil.

#quincy martin #quincy cynthius martin #adamandi #adamandi musical #adamandi saints #answered

[jittyjames]

⭐

ok let me talk about john 11:35 for a moment— or jesus wept

this fic is actually more recently written. it originally started as a Valentine's Day fic for the jcs discord server (sun/moon dynamics with jesus/mary/judas) but then it twisted into this big ole fic. you can still see the whispers of the fluff piece it once was, like when jesus compares mary to light and warmth and stares at the stars with judas. so i didn't get to actually join that challenge, but there was an effort!

i think it's quite clear the disciples in this fic were actually a commentary on most modern day religious spaces. like blatantly ignoring the words of jesus to focus on their hate instead? searching for power? having no forgiveness of empathy for even the man they call savior? yeahhhhh. i think the disciples are still sympathetic characters honestly, and they're more traumatized than anything. their perceptions of death are so scattered at the moment. so much so they can't even grasp what it means to die anymore. because jesus came back. he came back after the horrors. he suffered, but yet he's still here. so how bad can death truly be? and they want to ensure their legacies are intact. they want to become legends, just like they always did. but now, two of their own just died at once. they have to scramble to make sure they're leaving something behind. so now, let's talk about the misogyny. we can see it begin to mold. we all know jesus accepted women perfectly well into the group, that it was the apostles and paul who started with the whole "women should sit down and shut up" type thing. but we can see that with mary's treatment. peter is the first person to disregard her when it comes to picking the next apostle. yeah he says it's because she's traumatized, but truly it's because he doesn't think he can handle sharing the spotlight with someone who jesus loves more than him again. (we all know i headcanon judas and peter as jesus' right and left hand). it's not necessarily that he's in love with jesus or anything like that, but he knows how he feels. he thinks he knows what's best at the moment. mary and judas? even jesus to an extent? ruled by their emotions for each other. he sees judas' betrayal as the result of some petty relationship drama. he won't have it coming in again to ruin everything he has planned. but peter is also viewing mary as weak. how can she grieve the man who killed jesus? why is she crying all the time when she should be spitting on his grave like the rest of them? it makes Peter not trust her. and then you just have the period-typical misogyny, too mixing with that. then, we also have matthias not even acknowledging her, even as she stands by jesus' side. she's not important to him or to the story, even if she's jesus' heart. she's already being erased by the narrative. and john making the choice of leaving their relationship as a whole out of his book? rooted in homophobia and misogyny. their version on jesus should be above the likes of mary and judas. i have a lot of disciples thoughts. they're not perfect, but they're not simply evil here either. they have their reasons. like can you imagine watching your friend die bc their boyfriend sold them out to the police, and no one really gives you a good explanation for it? you'd be pissed, too. you'd be hurt.

ONE OF THE THINGS IDK IF ANYONE HAS MENTIONED YET. He had caught sight of him one night, sitting amongst a field of poppies, the darkness encasing the deep red of them, the pale blue of Judas.- POPPIES ARE A SYMBOL OF DEATH. JUDAS WAS SITTING IN A FIELD OF POPPIES NIGHTLY. idk if anyone caught onto it, but i most definitely wrote that with an intention. ALSO i had never utilized feet washing scenes bc i don't want people to think i have a foot fetish but like. there's so much angst potential there, and gerohugerh.

also i tried to sprinkle as much judas imagery as I could (or at least what i find to be imagery) but the more obvious ones like the blue coat and peaches, and the judas tree as the hanging tree. but also birds, spring, and stars. hehe. very sell-indulgent.

my roman empire is mary and jesus moving to kerioth to feel close to judas. i love this idea. i love the picture of it. i headcanon kerioth as just the typical, small southern town. orchards and fields, farms and small schools, everyone knows everyone. i mean is this me projecting my own small town life? yeahhhh.

but something i didn't get to talk about is the issue of simon iscariot. but I think I'll save that one 👀

there's a part of me that want to add to this bc @pinkishflowersilverycoin and i hatched a plot in dms. like judas isn't in hell in this world. he's in heaven. jesus didn't go back, so it's just judas alone up there for the time being. he'll be the one to welcome all the disciples, mary, jesus when they die. (will jesus die?? who is to say?? is it some weird supernatural thing?? maybe.) but we felt like maybe judas would take on peter's supposed role at heaven's gate. he's the first one to get there. they'll all have to deal with him again, so even if the apostles think that he's just rotting somewhere, his will be the first face they see when they die.

also we didn't even get started on jesus and mary's kids (sara and elias of kerioth, respectively). we decided they would be the ones to write some gnostic gospels, wanting to set the record straight about their third hypothetical parent, and tell the actual story of their mourning parents.

and I think this is everything for now!

#director ask game

[clownkath]

ok so a couple of posts ive seen have got me thinking about the jesus and judas metaphors within kenstewy and so here i am, combining these two hyperfixations.

i originally reblogged a post and put some thoughts in the tags but then deleted it because ive rethought some things. because here’s the thing: kendall and stewy do not have concrete roles as judas and as jesus: the betrayer and the savior (though this interpretation can be different, i’ll elaborate on that later). they each are jesus and judas.

let’s first look at the obvious kendall is jesus metaphor. the biblical imagery is really bad, convinced that poor little meow meows might be channeling the suffering of christ in this one /j. kendall has his savior complex and his father is effectively “god” in the bluntest of terms. kendall also is logan’s judas, the rest of the family and/or waystar royco’s top (ie. gerri, frank) acting as apostles/disciples. he’s got the gethsemane moment in the third season when he “wants out.” he’s also got the water motif, and more that i can’t think about right now! jesus coded kendall roy! 

now, stewy as judas metaphor. opposite to kendall even when they are on the same side, logan’s enemy though just a small cog in the machine in the rivalry with sandy (if logan is god then sandy would be what like satan? idk). general greed stuff that the title of judas conjures up. correlation between sins and judas: indulgence, pride, gluttony- all of these things alluding to the depths of hell. also that in many interpretations, judas is the guy that nobody likes, alienated by the rest of the disciples and history itself (screaming at succession to give him more screentime!!!).

when it comes to kenstewy, this stewy = judas and kendall = jesus and logan = god thing has a couple different facets. stewy as judas initiating touch / judas kiss, kendall not being able to reciprocate it blahblah. kendall is living his self fulfilled prophecy and stewy knowingly takes part in it, though he regrets it. their betrayal is somewhat inherent to their dynamic, always edging the line between bros and killing each other. another takeaway could be the obvious logan sees stewy as a parasite and leading his son astray, therefore judas metaphor.

onto the next interpretation, kendall as judas. already he’s a judas because of the whole “i have innocent blood on my hands” and “i’ve betrayed you” things. the guilt weighs him down. in this version, logan could also be god, actively staining kendall’s hands with blood, now remembered as a killer for all of time. kendall is also,,, oblivious. specifically to his own future and to the future of others. meaning that while stewy can see kendall’s doomed cycle (as well as logan), kendall can’t. also he’s damned for all time /ref.

stewy as jesus because he’s been betrayed by kendall but also because he has at least actively tried to “save” kendall by taking him out of the clutches of his father (in this case, satan yeah sure). he’s still attempting to save the person damned by the narrative, still has some love (although it’s very hard to love kendall). also cue that one post of kenstewy with the last days of judas iscariot quotes mwah. stewy holding love and honesty and barely shrouded truth for a guy who cannot take his love because he feels like he will never deserve it. the post makes me chew a bone! it kills me! 

also some of the kenstewy dynamic reminds me of the gospels of judas, which says that jesus told judas the truth basically. it suggests that judas is presumably the only one who cares about jesus, out of the disciples (paraphrasing very heavily here). thinking that they can be vulnerable with each other though they know they are fated to cause each other’s deaths.

conclusion: they are going to kill each other and have the worst time doing it. the guilt will eat them alive.

#succession #kenstewy #kenstew #kendall roy #stewy hosseini #christianity tw #kendall x stewy #i shouldn't be on tumblr #im new to tumblr analysis so please #kill me

[yieldfruit]

I am very unhappy. I sometimes think I’d be better off if I wasn’t alive. I don’t want to end my life, but I don’t want to be alive either. There is so much pain in my life. And I just want it to end.

I hear you, I have felt despair myself. Overcome is the word that comes to heart to share with you.

"Why, then, did you deliver me from my mother’s womb? Why didn’t you let me die at birth? If only I had never come into being, or had been carried straight from the womb to the grave!" Job 10:18-19

"We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters, about the troubles we experienced in the province of Asia. We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired of life itself." 2 Corinthians 1:8 emphasis added

"Then I said, 'What sorrow is mine, my mother. Oh, that I had died at birth! I am hated everywhere I go. I am neither a lender who threatens to foreclose nor a borrower who refuses to pay— yet they all curse me.'” Jeremiah 15:10

"Oh, that I had wings like a dove; then I would fly away and rest!" Psalm 55:6

"I am scorned by all my enemies and despised by my neighbors— even my friends are afraid to come near me. When they see me on the street, they run the other way." Psalm 31:11

"You have taken away my companions and loved ones. Darkness is my closest friend." Psalm 88:18

"My close friends detest me. Those I loved have turned against me." Job 19:19

"Even my best friend, the one I trusted completely, the one who shared my food, has turned against me." Psalm 41:9

"My family is gone, and my close friends have forgotten me." Job 19:14

"You have caused my companions to shun me; you have made me a horror to them. I am shut in so that I cannot escape" Psalm 88:8

You're in biblical company in your despair. Nevertheless, none of these men who wrote those words (Job, Jeremiah, Paul) took their lives. They endured, they overcame. Judas took his own life, he was a betrayer. We do not have clear biblical proof that says taking your own life (murdering oneself) is ever okay; it is to tell God he cannot sustain you, he cannot help you, and I personally do not feel clear that the Bible says you would go to Heaven upon murdering yourself. "You shall not murder." Exodus 20:13. It doesn't sound like you are threatening that at all, you said you don't want to, I think you are in despair. I just want to make it clear that despair happens and murdering oneself should never happen. You can overcome. You will overcome.

Lord, I pray for this soul that you sustain them. That by your Holy Spirit they have will to live, Lord. You give life and you take it away. Restore unto them the joy of their salvation. I pray you will lift the oppression of the mind and heart they are experiencing in this season, and I pray you will give them cause for peace even in the despairing of life itself. May they not fear life or the living, but fear you in godly, reverent fear. You alone give life, sustain life, keep us, preserve us. May we honor you and your Word and look to you for the daily bread to keep living and may we never take matters into our own hands and be an affront to the Giver and Sustainer of life. In the name of Jesus I pray, amen.