Take Me to Church

Well, finally!

Yes, the Diocese of London has finally given grudging permission for Catholics to go back to mass, albeit with a boatload of restrictions, guidelines, and recommendations. We're dipping our toes back in the sacraments, but after three months of this nonsense, it's about damn time.

I don't make much of an issue on this blog about my faith, because I haven't felt it was the right place for it. I've shared my opinions on other blogs and websites, under anonymity; in today's cancel culture, not giving people the opportunity to doxx you is wise. My purpose for this blog, though, is to advertise my books and share my 'safe' thoughts with people on topics that I like, such as writing, gaming, music, etc. So, this is a bit of a stretch for me in terms of blogging. So be it; it's time.

I'm not happy with the way things have gone in the Church over the past few years. Or decades, for that matter. There's been too much bad and not enough good from the people who are supposed to be working toward the more good and less bad side of things. Couple that with the lack of teaching of the faith, and that's a recipe for a disaster of biblical proportions.

I'm doing my part to talk about my faith in my books; if you've read even the sample chapter on Amazon for Arrival, you'll know that it's a book about Christian Crusaders who are transported to a fantasy world, where they get to tame a wild land and spread the faith like missionaries. I did that for a couple of reasons. First, the original inspiration for the story comes from my study of old-school gaming, particularly Dungeons & Dragons and its predecessor, Chainmail. That's a medieval war game which happened to include a section of adding magic and monsters to your battles with pikemen and knights.

Second, I want to present the faith of the Church in a positive light, something which is sorely lacking in the world; the Church is treated negatively in all forms of pop culture, from the laughably inaccurate DaVinci Code to the depiction of priests as adulterous lechers on television shows. It's frustrating for me, as a practicing, believing Catholic. So, I decided to write something that showed the Church in a positive light instead.

Now, that might turn some people away, but that's the way it goes; you can't write something that everyone will like. Even God didn't manage that one. So, I'll just write and write and do my best to make it a good story, and hopefully other people will enjoy it, and see the Church in a different way. If I can accomplish that, then I've done something good.

I've linked Arrival above; its sequel book, The Devil's Playground, has a similar treatment of the Church and the Crusaders. Check them both out, and let me know what you think!