Do you think christians are portaited badly?

many laws are against violence. does that stop people from committing murder?

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Yup 100%, I mean Iā€™m a Christian and Iā€™m not homophobic, and Iā€™ve noticed that most Christians in the stories Iā€™ve read are blatantly homophobic and/or hold other types of prejudice. But when I see things like that I just stop reading the story all together :roll_eyes:

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I have only read 2 stories that include Christian parent characters that are important to the plot (that I can think of), and after reading this thread itā€™s made me realise - both stories portray the parents as uptight and cruel in a way :thinking:

Definitely eye opening as it wasnā€™t something I had ever thought about or even noticed before.

I could have read more than just 2 but I can only think of those, religion in stories isnā€™t something I notice to be honest.

I grew up Catholic, so I know that being Christian doesnā€™t mean youā€™re a bad person, or that youā€™re intolerant, or bigoted (Because being a Christian should (if people followed the Bible) be the exact opposite)ā€¦ However I cannot deny that, throughout my life, the people who have done the most horrible things, and have been the most horrible people, have been Christians using their religion as an excuse. Now, I havenā€™t personally suffered from the things theyā€™ve done or said, but I could perfectly understand why someone from the LGBTQ+ community or someone that lives a life condemned by intolerant Christians would paint them in such a bad light. And itā€™s not like Christians do not get plenty of representation literally everywhere else. Soā€¦ While I donā€™t condone painting all Christians as horrible people, I understand why people do it. And, if you live in the Western Hemisphere and know anything about history or the current state of the world, so should you.

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I am not Christian I am Jewish, but what I have seen in episode stories does often portray Christianity as this very homophobic religion. And I donā€™t think thatā€™s fair because I know a lot of Christians who believe in gay rights and are part of the LGBTQ community and have families who accept that.

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Iā€™ve grown up as a Christian my whole life, Iā€™ve also been surrounded with people who are similar. But as Iā€™ve grown, Iā€™ve met soo many different people with different beliefs and morals. Although Iā€™ve been taught about Christianity my whole life, Iā€™ve always learned to accept everyone, no matter how different they may be. Recently someone in my family came out, and even though it was rough for some of my family members, they all soon came to their senses and learned to accept him for who he really is. Although some Christians are strict like that, not all Christians are like that. Many are actually accepting and understanding, although it may be rough for them in the beginning. I also wish others would understand that. But, I completely understand their point of view, because it is reality too.

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Yeah same with my babysitter, sheā€™s a really religious Christian and her daughter came out and it was really hard for their family but in the end they came around and and the daughter still has a really good relationship with her parents!

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Well said, girl. I am Roman Catholic and it honestly hurts when I see people out there portraying us Catholics as homophobes. You canā€™t talk smack about a religion you donā€™t know anything about. If they did know anything about Catholicism, they would know that we donā€™t hate homosexuals, nor do we discriminate them. Why? Because as Catholics, we are supposed to do these three things: love all people, do not judge because only God can, and ask ourselves ā€œwhat would Jesus do?ā€. If Jesus didnā€™t agree with something, He would speak up about what he believes, but He would never hate those who disagreed with Him, or discriminate them. After all, didnā€™t He eat with the tax collectors and money changers, those considered ā€œimpure and against Jewish teachingā€ at the time? We Catholics just believe that God willed marriage to be between those of opposite sex, thatā€™s all. We all have our own beliefs and people gotta respect that.

I get that the people in Episode in those Episode stories want to write a story about something they support, like lgbt for example, and thatā€™s cool, I completely respect that, but donā€™t try to turn those with different beliefs than you into bad guys, especially when you are not clearly informed in what they believe in. Feel free to express your beliefs in your stories, but be respectful of others who donā€™t completely agree. Firing shots at them is not fair, itā€™s hypocrite.

And by the way, for those who didnā€™t know, itā€™s not condemned to feel attracted to the same sex in Catholicism. They donā€™t condemn those who feel those desires, they totally understand. They just tell us that God doesnā€™t hate us or anything. We just have to pray and practice purity in order to deal with it. I came out bisexual to my mom last week, and she was surprisingly calm about it. I thought she would react in a ā€œhomophobicā€ way, but she did not judge at all.

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I agree with you 100%! Christians arenā€™t as bad as people think they are. However, some of them do act way to religious (I know people who are like that). A story doesnā€™t have to portray Christians as bad people because many of them arenā€™t so ā€œholier than thouā€. Some take it to the max.

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This is a very touchy topic to discuss ā€¦ But, at the same time, I am willing to learn how people of different religions feel :slight_smile:

They are. Being a Christian, I feel like most stories are either about people running away from Christianity or simply portraying Christians wrong. Sometimes we are portrayed negatively and shown as people who force others to believe as well. Coming from a mostly atheist family, some people really do take Christianity in a bad way. When I revealed it to my parents, it was like I told them I killed somebody. They were disappointed. Upset that I was believing in religion. If it wasnā€™t for God and if I hadnā€™t started believing, I donā€™t know where Iā€™d have ended up. Prayer is something I personally find very comforting, maybe not to eveybody else. I accept all religions, whether youā€™re Atheist, Muslim or Christian, we should all be portrayed in a non offensive way. A personā€™s religion doesnā€™t make them good or bad. A persons religion doesnā€™t make them dumb or smart. Religion is simply something you believe in. I hope authors realise all Christians arenā€™t just religious church cults who throw belief into peopleā€™s minds like evil magic.

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Yes, and I try to avoid those stories that portray Christianity in a negative light, or a plot device (like in the story Georgia) for the MC to question her faith because she falls in love with some bad boy. Of course, some Christians are very judgemental, but not all. We are humans with flaws, just like everyone else. The MC in my story is a practicing Christian who defends her beliefs instead of sacrificing them just to fit in or be accepted. Religion should not be used as a plot device, but instead as part of what makes the character who they are.

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As a Christian, I think weā€™re portrayed fine. Becauseā€¦thereā€™s more than one type of Christian, and youā€™ll see each and every type if you look for them. shrugs just like anything else. Theyā€™re portrayed fine. Sometimes, Christians can be very hateful. Sometimes, they can be ignorant or misunderstand a lot of things or not want to. Some donā€™t, and you see all those kinds in media. Just like everything else. You see all the different kinds of people in media, especially if youā€™re looking for something specific.

I donā€™t think people see movies with a hateful Christian and assume that everyone that believes in Jesus is like that, LOL. Thatā€™s elementary shit, fam. <3

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I agree with you on this one. Itā€™s sad how people rip out on the rational Christians because of their religion. I donā€™t have a religion myself but I donā€™t care what religion you are as long as you donā€™t shove your beliefs down my throat. But yeah, itā€™s really sad that Christians who are rational get very mistreated in these stories.

As someone who came from a Muslim family, I find it very frightening that I have distant relatives who are radical Muslims and they would do anything to make women & girls suffer. And yes, women can be misogynistic too! Like my auntā€™s mother-in-law.

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Can you stop getting vexed? Itā€™s a discussion - and we arenā€™t misunderstanding your point. Youā€™re saying that itā€™s against the bibleā€™s readings to be gay or support it - however, there are tons of Christians who support gays and are gay, and so weā€™d just like to see more of this in Episode stories. I totally agree with you that many Christian families would disown their children for being part of the LGBTQ+ community or even just supporting it. Our point still stands - weā€™d like to see more accepting Christians in Episode stories.

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Well said my friend :slight_smile:

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Totally agree with you. Religion should always be used in character development because thatā€™s what your character is. Their beliefs can make up who they are as a person; nothing wrong with that. Even if they are fictional characters, they can have beliefs and morals because itā€™s all character development.

How would you define an accepting Christian? Iā€™m curiousā€¦ I want to know.

Nope.

I am part of a Christian family, and they are all a bunch of homophobes because of their religion. I went to a religious school all my life, and just when I started what many of you call middle school, we were practically brainwashed to be like that, too. In fact, I was one of them until I decided to turn my back on religion for this and many other reasons unrelated to the issue at hand.

Should all Christians be portrayed this ā€œbadlyā€ in Episode? Of course not. I have met plenty of them who are open-minded and accepting in real life, but if some Christians are portrated the way I just described them, portrayed ā€œbadlyā€, how can that be bad portrayal, when it actually happens? :woman_shrugging:t4:

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