Supernatural is everywhere!!!!

[zara_zee]

So this evening I was at the Catholic Confirmation of a family member and I'm not especially religous, so there I was trying not to zone out when the Bishop mentions that Catholicism is a supernatural religion. My ears immediately prick up because, hey, he said 'supernatural.'

"Now," the Bishop continues, "when I say 'supernatural' I'm not talking about that television show I sometimes like to watch with the two boys who drive around fighting evil..." and I didn't really hear the next bit because I was too busy thinking, 'Oh my gosh!!! The Bishop watches Supernatural.' And 'I can't even go to a Confirmation without mention of Supernatural!! Supernatural is everywhere!' 

So, my night = made. :)

Comments

[kalliel]

LOL, this is the best thing ever. I love that not only does the Bishop watch Supernatural, he actually brought it up at a Confirmation. :PPP A+ BISHOP. Were I Catholic, I would get him to do all of my religious services and passages!

[zara-zee.livejournal.com]

Yes, pretty pop-culture savvy! After I recovered from my squeeing, I actually started listening to what he was saying and he gave a really interesting talk about the history of the rite, really engaged the kids on their level, and he was very inclusive too, making positive mention of other religions. Got my respect. :)

[kimberlyfdr.livejournal.com]

It really has permeated the mainstream culture now, with the amount of non-fandom people watching the show. [Quite a feat for a show in later seasons!]

[zara-zee.livejournal.com]

It really has. I wonder if the Bishop felt that it was the kind of Show he ought to watch, just to make sure he understood the kind of influences on religious thought his flock may be subject to...

[firesign10.livejournal.com]

Hahahahaaha that;s AWESOME!!!!

[zara-zee.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I thought so! ;)

[reggie11.livejournal.com]

That's hilarious! You know, I always kind of wonder how religious people with Christian faith watch the show. I mean, angels are pretty much the biggest dicks in the history of everything, and God did a runner and left Heaven and mankind to just suck it. I've often found myself wondering how really religious people sit through it without screaming, 'blasphemy!' and getting themselves all tied up in knots. And now we have a bishop watching it, hahahaha!

I wonder if he uses it in sermons O.o

[dreamsofspike.livejournal.com]

I can speak to that to some degree, based on my own personal religious background. :P

I basically view Supernatural like it's taking place in a different universe from ours - one where monsters exist, and magical badass cars can travel through wormholes from one side of the country to the other in a few hours ;) hehe, and with their own distinct history, etc...

"Angels" in Supernatural are not what we would think of as angels here. "Demons" in Supernatural are definitely not what we would think of as demons here, since Christianity teaches that demons are fallen angels.

And "God" in Supernatural is not really GOD of our universe.

This way of viewing it is even supported by SPN canon, in a way, by "The French Mistake". ;)

It has made it a lot less uncomfortable for me to watch with my Christian background to think of it like that.

And really, despite their portrayal of God and angels, etc, Supernatural brings up some very heavy, relevant themes in regards to free will and destiny and the morality of certain choices over others, a lot of symbolism that ties into religion and is actually MORE fascinating to me because of my background. *shrugs* :P

Just my two cents, hope it's helpful. :P

[zara-zee.livejournal.com]

Thank you for your two cents! Much appreciated. And you're so right that there is SPN canon evidence by way of The French Mistake to suggest that Supernatural takes place in an AU that is not our world.

As a non-religious person I've certainly never thought that Show was portraying an accurate version of Christianity! I see the actions of the angels as somewhat allegorical. Show portrayed some of those who should be divine as having lost their way and started doing bad things (ie Zachariah and his ilk), and this is something that has happened in some Churches--some of those who should've been faith leaders losing their way and doing bad things. So for institutions of faith (portrayed here as Heaven) to be weeding out the bad apples, to be in upheaval and trying to understand themselves in a modern era, as well as having to deal with the fact that so many people have lost faith, that seems relevant to our world. And I guess...free will, destiny and morality are universal themes. People will engage with those ideas differently depending on their background, but I think those themes speak to everyone in some way, which is why everyone from an atheist to a Bishop can engage with the Show! :)

[dreamsofspike.livejournal.com]

Yeah, SPN's version of God and angels and demons and Heaven and Hell is SO VERY different from the Biblical version that it's pretty much a non-issue for me. Mentally, it doesn't even fall in the same category, if that makes sense :P

I completely agree with what you're saying though about Heaven's turmoil representing religious issues here, too. One reason it touches me so much, really, is BECAUSE of my Christian background, and like - I see Cas's story as very much that of someone who's raised devout, then reaches adulthood and has to sort of discover for themselves what they believe. They discover that certain things they want to hold onto, and certain other things they don't believe to be true. They discover that some of the things they were taught weren't really based on the "Word of God" (as Cas discovered) and were in fact created by man (or by archangels, in Cas's situation).

I just find his story very moving as an allegory of a seeker on a faith journey, and that story really appeals to me. <3 :)

[zara-zee.livejournal.com]

Yes exactly. That makes perfect sense. And Cas's story is definitely an allegory of a seeker on a faith journey! I can see why the Show would strike a chord with a person of faith... And Dean is sort of like a secular everyman; he doesn't believe in anything he can't see with his own eyes and he sins a lot, yet he is a selfless, giving person. Lots of meaty stuff, as you say... No wonder the Bishop likes the Show! :)

[reggie11.livejournal.com]

Oh wow, yes, it is helpful! My curiosity has been killing me, lol! I was even discussing it with my elderly mother the other day. She used to watch the show until maybe season 6, and although she's not overly religious, she is a believer, which I am not. But her beliefs tend to be quite different from a lot of churchgoing Christians as, like me, she believes the bible to be more analogy based, and that as it was written by people, the agenda of those people is also part of what is written, and also that much of it is open to interpretation.

I guess it makes perfect sense that you can separate it into a different universe, because of canon :) It's really interesting to hear the way you view it in respect to your beliefs. I've often been surprised that the show hasn't been picketed or petitioned against. Although I'm sure the Westboro Baptist Church has sermons against it considering they believe Misha Collins to be the Antichrist, LOL!

Thanks for sharing :)

[dreamsofspike.livejournal.com]

LOL The idea of Misha as the Antichrist just makes me laugh - both because it's the kind of thing he'd have a LOT of fun with, and because honestly... the man is as close to a real life angel as you can get, just about :P hehe

I have all kinds of thinky thoughts about Cas in particular on the show, and his journey, and how I think that relates to me as a person of faith who's kind of searching, figuring out for themselves what they believe and what they don't - what things they feel like actually come from GOD, and what things they've been TOLD came from God.

Cas's story really, really touches me on that level, so much so that sometimes it surprises me to hear that people think I'd be offended by the show, and then I'm like - oh. Oh, yeah. Yeah, I guess I could see that. :P lol

*shrugs*

[reggie11.livejournal.com]

I just replied to zara-zee with links. Take a look, it's very funny.

[zara-zee.livejournal.com]

the Westboro Baptist Church...believe Misha Collins to be the Antichrist

They do? Bwahahaha! I hadn't heard that. How funny. I bet he's stoked about that! :)

[reggie11.livejournal.com]

I know, it's hilarious! The original posting was removed quite a while ago, but of course, some clever person screencapped it. Here's a tumblr post about it and make sure you click on the link at the very bottom where you'll be directed to video where a fan tells Misha about it.

And there's this where Misha had actually tweeted about it. Such a pity it all got deleted, it was incredibly funny. Some of the comments were priceless! Some were making hilariously sarcastic comments agreeing with the posters, and there were others that were members of other obscure little churches stating they believed it to be true as well. The reasons behind it - him doing charitable acts - for one, had me crying with laughter. Obviously if you run a charity it must be because you're luring people to the side of evil. I mean, WTF?

[zara-zee.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I often wonder the same thing. I did also wonder if the Bishop felt he ought to watch the show, just so he would know what kind of potential influences on religious thought his flock may be subject to. I tend to think of priests and so forth as being a bit cut off from mainstream culture, so to have a Bishop engaging with a show so steeped in pop-culture was quite refreshing!

[amberdreams.livejournal.com]

Bwhahahah I like your Bishop!

[zara-zee.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I was pretty impressed! So impressed that I actually started really listening to him, so not a bad tactic, eh?

[cassiopeia7.livejournal.com]

BEST POST EVER. My night is also made -- thank you for sharing this!

[zara-zee.livejournal.com]

I do so love it when Supernatural crops up in unexpected places!

You're welcome! :)

[sailorhathor.livejournal.com]

>> "Now," the Bishop continues, "when I say 'supernatural' I'm not talking about that television show I sometimes like to watch with the two boys who drive around fighting evil..."

LOL! Cutest description of the show ever. "...the two boys...", hee!

[zara-zee.livejournal.com]

Well the Bishop is probably in his late seventies, so I guess to him they are just boys! :) Then again, the Sam and Dean (and the Js too for that matter!) seem to be 'the boys' to pretty much everyone!

[caranfindel.livejournal.com]

COOLEST STORY EVER.