Holy Worlds Christian Forum :: View topic

He's the village priest. He acts like you'd expect a village priest from 1200 AD to act. Most of the catholicism is implied... I don't actually have a religion, there is no allegory. It's a very complicated world, and this seems to be the worst part. I spent a lot of time in my first draft skirting the issue and it shows.

He's Morgon's foster father. He represents the forces of Love. He's the mentor character (who doesn't die, BTW.) I guess he could be a kind of druid character...

The Last Wizard wrote:

The Village priest, Father Matthew, took him under his wing. He took him back to his house and when the lad awoke he kept him there. Little by little he began to teach him. Herbs and medicine, religion and lore, history, geography, and anything else he knew. As Morgon learned he began to open up. As the years went by he became a quiet but confident young man, skilled and compassionate, but no learning could match the magic in his ever-changing eyes. Morgon and Father Matthew grew very close in those years; rare it was that one was seen without the other.

Author:	Constable Jaynin Mimetes [ November 16th, 2010, 12:59 pm ]
Post subject:	Psuedo-Catholisism
looks around suspiciously I'm almost positive I started this conversation before, but I can't find it... It's fantasy. Right? I can't have catholics. And yet, in the Last Wizard, I have a Catholic priest. Now I'm working on outlining it for the second draft, and I'm stumbling over how to reconcile Father Matthew with his fantasy world.

Author:	Rachel Newhouse [ November 16th, 2010, 1:21 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: Psuedo-Catholisism
Question: Why do you need him to be Catholic? Does his religion play a part in his character? If so, how? Take those elements and work them into a new order that fits more comfortably into your fantasy world. It doesn't have to be a religion (especially if you're not comfortable with making up religions); it could be a political position, and honorary position, or a structured order like Boy Scouts (say, monks without the religions implications, for lack of a better analogy). He could be a town elder, highly respected in a certain culture, for instance; or perhaps an advisor to the king, or a veteran of war. If, however, there is an "allegory" of Christianity in your fantasy world, there's no reason you can't have an "allegory" of Catholicism and other real-world religions as well.

Author:	Constable Jaynin Mimetes [ November 16th, 2010, 1:26 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: Psuedo-Catholisism
He's the village priest. He acts like you'd expect a village priest from 1200 AD to act. Most of the catholicism is implied... I don't actually have a religion, there is no allegory. It's a very complicated world, and this seems to be the worst part. I spent a lot of time in my first draft skirting the issue and it shows. He's Morgon's foster father. He represents the forces of Love. He's the mentor character (who doesn't die, BTW.) I guess he could be a kind of druid character... The Last Wizard wrote: The Village priest, Father Matthew, took him under his wing. He took him back to his house and when the lad awoke he kept him there. Little by little he began to teach him. Herbs and medicine, religion and lore, history, geography, and anything else he knew. As Morgon learned he began to open up. As the years went by he became a quiet but confident young man, skilled and compassionate, but no learning could match the magic in his ever-changing eyes. Morgon and Father Matthew grew very close in those years; rare it was that one was seen without the other.

Author:	Willow Wenial Mimetes [ November 16th, 2010, 2:12 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: Psuedo-Catholisism
Is it really such an issue? What parts of his religion do you have to talk about, and is there any way that you could twist them to sound more "fantasy-ish"?

Author:	Rachel Newhouse [ November 16th, 2010, 5:13 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: Psuedo-Catholisism
Do you want to have religion in your book at all? If not, I would attempt to remove references to it. Matthew can be a scholar in something else - folk lore, herbal medicine, magic (if you're using it as a learned art). He would still be wise and in a leadership position, but it isn't religiously-inclined.

Holy Worlds Christian Forum https://archive.holyworlds.org/

Psuedo-Catholisism https://archive.holyworlds.org/viewtopic.php?f=24&t=1497	Page 1 of 1

Author:	Rachel Newhouse [ November 17th, 2010, 12:02 am ]
Post subject:	Re: Psuedo-Catholisism
Does your MC character believe in the religion one way or the other? I actually wonder how many people will question it. If you don't use Catholic-specific terms (i.e., direct references to God, "first communion," Mary, etc.), it will have the feel of medieval religion and probably blend nicely into the background. If this isn't a story where faith plays a large part (as in, the character isn't coming to terms with God), I think it can pass as a facet of the character. It's a religion and strictly that. Just a sort of social order, not a personal relationship. To my knowledge, most medieval serfs were attended by the village priest, but only monks were serious about religion. (Oversimplification, but many people just "go to church" and that's as far as it goes for them.) You may wish to come up with a few fantasy terms for the deity, give him a holy book of some kind, etc. - just to make the distinction.

Author:	Seer of Endor [ December 9th, 2010, 2:28 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: Psuedo-Catholisism
Vanya Katerina Jaynin wrote: He's the village priest. He acts like you'd expect a village priest from 1200 AD to act. Most of the catholicism is implied... I don't actually have a religion, there is no allegory. It's a very complicated world, and this seems to be the worst part. I spent a lot of time in my first draft skirting the issue and it shows. He's Morgon's foster father. He represents the forces of Love. He's the mentor character (who doesn't die, BTW.) I guess he could be a kind of druid character... The Last Wizard wrote: The Village priest, Father Matthew, took him under his wing. He took him back to his house and when the lad awoke he kept him there. Little by little he began to teach him. Herbs and medicine, religion and lore, history, geography, and anything else he knew. As Morgon learned he began to open up. As the years went by he became a quiet but confident young man, skilled and compassionate, but no learning could match the magic in his ever-changing eyes. Morgon and Father Matthew grew very close in those years; rare it was that one was seen without the other. I guess it would only be trolling to point out that most village priests in 1200 AD weren't as well-educated as your Father Matthew seems to be. In fact, if they could read they were doing pretty well for themselves from what I've found in my various studies. Again, irrelevant tidbit, but thought I'd throw it in anyways. I guess from this you could say that there's no need for him to be too similar to Catholic priests since he's clearly more educated than they were.

Author:	Constable Jaynin Mimetes [ December 11th, 2010, 11:34 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: Psuedo-Catholisism
Well, there is that. Thanks for pointing that out, Seer.

Author:	Lady Pilgrim [ August 18th, 2011, 5:51 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: Psuedo-Catholisism
Vanya Katerina Jaynin, I haven't had to deal with this issue, because my world is an imaginary Old World, with a lot of the same elements present--this is an advantage for me. It's really challenging to start a world almost from scratch! But, it might be helpful to remember that you can't make your world completely consistent, as the Lord has done. You must trust your instincts and just tell as much or as little as YOU LIKE. Some things you'll treat in depth, right? Some things will be sketched in or hinted. Your readers will hear your voice and experience your world and step over any potholes. Hope that helps! Blessings as you write! Pilgrim Lady Maria Heb. 11:13

Author:	Airianna Valenshia [ August 22nd, 2011, 4:30 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: Psuedo-Catholisism
Can't you just create your own religion, Katie, influenced by Catholicism?

Page 1 of 1	All times are UTC - 6 hours [ DST ]
Powered by phpBB © 2000, 2002, 2005, 2007 phpBB Group http://www.phpbb.com/

Author:	Constable Jaynin Mimetes [ November 16th, 2010, 10:08 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: Psuedo-Catholisism
wonders how in the world to explain this thinks maybe it's because she doesn't understand it herself It's an implied religion... It is a religious position. He prays, blesses people, conducts ceremonies, speaks over funerals, and is basically the religious leader of the village. He's not the political leader, because later there's a mayor, but he's the accepted head. The one the people go to for help and answers. Their priest. Then, later, there's the college at Brisgard. The College is run by priests; others of Father Matthew's order. So obviously they're the accepted masters of knowledge... sigh I didn't plan this out in advance, you know, and now I'm stuck with it.