GrahamWills
Hero
This has been a good discussion; I appreciate the genuine desire to do the right thing in it. Let me tell you a little about my experience.
I am a Christian from a mainstream denomination; I’ve always been a Christian and I’ve been a role player for 30+ years, of which the last 20 I have been living in the US. I’ve played a lot of games with a lot of people, a fair number of whom are Christian. I’ve helped run a D&D club in my local church and I’ve been involved occasionally at religious services at game conventions.
As @aramis erak says, the first thing I’d note is that antipathy for D&D is no longer a big thing in the mainstream church. I;m not not saying it’s not there — we have neighbors who didn’t let their kids watch Harry Potter because it had magic in it and I doubt they’d be happy with D&D playing (we never invited their kids to play D&D with us, respecting their beliefs). But overall it just doesn’t seem important in the Christian community. Honestly, it really shouldn’t be. Pretty anyway you read the Bible or major theological writings says that Christians should focus on helping other people and be less upset about exact beliefs. There are a hundred clear statements that you should help people in need for every one that says you should avoid contact with sin, so even if you do equate D&D with sin, it should be low on your priority.
Which brings me to my second point; Christianity is more than a belief system, it is also a culture. More specifically, it is a whole set of cultures. In my culture, our church is focussed on inclusivity, and you would be more likely to be condemned for opposing gay rights than for playing D&D (and in fact, several people have left our church because we are vocal in our support of the LBGT community). But other cultures are different. One strong cultural branch of Christianity is centered on trying to preserve a vision of Christianity that focuses on personal morality, on traditional families, on strong gender roles. That branch doesn’t focus on the core message of Jesus, but instead focuses on reacting against change and against what they see as evil influences on society. For them, D&D is another example of an evil influence that they oppose (mostly half-heartedly nowadays, as they are fighting bigger changes).
In my experience, I like the opportunity to see real religion in games. It’s like sex or romance — a powerful and fundamental drive that everyone knows should be fundamental to a setting, but is often left out because it is tricky. If you are running a real-world game, it should have religion in it to be realistic. If you are running a game in an imaginary setting, i’d suggest following the same kind of guidelines as you would for other cultures — be respectful, avoid hot-button topics, don’t consistently associate them with negative images.
So, try and avoid the “all paladins are stupid because their beliefs make them unwilling to compromise” trope. Don’t have a campaign focused on abortion or gay rights, and don’t use religious names in disrespectful ways.
However, do have fun playing with what-ifs! As a Christian I like to think a bit about my faith and enjoy it when GMs pose questions like “so, aliens — should they be saved?” Or “magic is observable, what’s the church’s attitude?”. Adding a big change or a focus like this is an excellent idea because it does two things: First, it engages those of us who are believers. And second, it adds a bit of distance between your portrayal and the actual culture, which helps smooth over any issues.
And really, really, don’t worry about making honest mistakes. Good players support their GMs and do their best to make the GMs vision work; hold Christian players to the same standard and have fun!
I am a Christian from a mainstream denomination; I’ve always been a Christian and I’ve been a role player for 30+ years, of which the last 20 I have been living in the US. I’ve played a lot of games with a lot of people, a fair number of whom are Christian. I’ve helped run a D&D club in my local church and I’ve been involved occasionally at religious services at game conventions.
As @aramis erak says, the first thing I’d note is that antipathy for D&D is no longer a big thing in the mainstream church. I;m not not saying it’s not there — we have neighbors who didn’t let their kids watch Harry Potter because it had magic in it and I doubt they’d be happy with D&D playing (we never invited their kids to play D&D with us, respecting their beliefs). But overall it just doesn’t seem important in the Christian community. Honestly, it really shouldn’t be. Pretty anyway you read the Bible or major theological writings says that Christians should focus on helping other people and be less upset about exact beliefs. There are a hundred clear statements that you should help people in need for every one that says you should avoid contact with sin, so even if you do equate D&D with sin, it should be low on your priority.
Which brings me to my second point; Christianity is more than a belief system, it is also a culture. More specifically, it is a whole set of cultures. In my culture, our church is focussed on inclusivity, and you would be more likely to be condemned for opposing gay rights than for playing D&D (and in fact, several people have left our church because we are vocal in our support of the LBGT community). But other cultures are different. One strong cultural branch of Christianity is centered on trying to preserve a vision of Christianity that focuses on personal morality, on traditional families, on strong gender roles. That branch doesn’t focus on the core message of Jesus, but instead focuses on reacting against change and against what they see as evil influences on society. For them, D&D is another example of an evil influence that they oppose (mostly half-heartedly nowadays, as they are fighting bigger changes).
In my experience, I like the opportunity to see real religion in games. It’s like sex or romance — a powerful and fundamental drive that everyone knows should be fundamental to a setting, but is often left out because it is tricky. If you are running a real-world game, it should have religion in it to be realistic. If you are running a game in an imaginary setting, i’d suggest following the same kind of guidelines as you would for other cultures — be respectful, avoid hot-button topics, don’t consistently associate them with negative images.
So, try and avoid the “all paladins are stupid because their beliefs make them unwilling to compromise” trope. Don’t have a campaign focused on abortion or gay rights, and don’t use religious names in disrespectful ways.
However, do have fun playing with what-ifs! As a Christian I like to think a bit about my faith and enjoy it when GMs pose questions like “so, aliens — should they be saved?” Or “magic is observable, what’s the church’s attitude?”. Adding a big change or a focus like this is an excellent idea because it does two things: First, it engages those of us who are believers. And second, it adds a bit of distance between your portrayal and the actual culture, which helps smooth over any issues.
And really, really, don’t worry about making honest mistakes. Good players support their GMs and do their best to make the GMs vision work; hold Christian players to the same standard and have fun!
