Here’s a great post comparing the attitudes people have toward enthusiasm for fandoms vs. enthusiasm for Christianity. Isn’t it a shame that more people seem to be ready to be devotees of pop culture than devotees of God?
I had a sort of epiphany the other day. Someone on Tumblr posted a picture of their new Doctor Who mug. This brought home to me just how far fandom has come, at least as far as comic books, video games, and in some measure anime. Being an otaku, in the mild sense we use it in the States, still isn’t exactly popular, and may be looked down on by some, but it’s garnered much more acceptance now than in past years. And look at Marvel–they’ve brought superheroes and comic books into the spotlight (even if they don’t encourage people to read the comics necessarily).
So now people are shedding their fears and openly, proudly showing their interest in and passion for whatever they like. Doctor Who, Sherlock, Marvel, DC, anime, kdramas, kpop, jpop and jrock–people spend hours reading, watching, listening, staying up late for premieres, going to conventions, lavishing…
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Medieval Otaku 
I pissed off a lot of folks by pointing out that B16 is a total religion geek.
Of course, you can’t fall in love with something you’re never introduced to… Sites like yours have a very good chance of introducing folks who already have a wellspring of passion to a ‘fandom’ that can really enrich their lives.
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Thanks! I do hope that some of my articles attract to religion people who might not otherwise be interested. Though, I suppose Beneath the Tangles might do it best.
You’ll have to explain to me what B16 is. I’ve never heard of it, but I imagine vaguely what it might be like.
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Sorry, the prior Pope– Benedict the 16th. His obvious love and enthusiasm for theology charmed me utterly, even when it was sometimes over my head.
(Sadly, I live out Tolkien’s comment about thinking in shorthand, then smudging it.)
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Definitely! I have not read more than three of B16’s books, but they were great. It’s a shame that more people don’t realize how much more rewarding the contemplation of God is than other pursuits. (I will confess that on some days, I’m not quite so sure of it either. But, we cannot always live amidst consolations.)
They say that Tolkien had a very amusing style of presentation. One had to sit in the front row to hear his mumblings, and occasionally some words with the value of gold would drop amidst those mumblings. 🙂 One of my favorite writers and a very interesting fellow.
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Nice article.
It also shows something I have noticed, the religious component of fandoms.
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Definitely does. But, comment on Nami’s blog too. She’s another strong Catholic blogger.
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Thanks!
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*Laughs*
I post on these sites pretty much because I am an “otaku” of religion and philosophy, and because I try and interpret my world through the lens of various religions and see if it makes any sense. 😉
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Exactly! As for myself, I also like trying to interpret various ideas through the lens of religion–as you see in many of the articles here!
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