I'm looking for a way to show that a widow has reverted from her husband's variant of Christianity back to the one she was raised in. My MC is doing a "psychic" cold reading on her at her home, and he notices a wedding picture (most likely that, could be changed) that gives him a clue to the couple's faith, but then he sees something, perhaps a piece of jewelry, that would indicate that the widow has switched to a different strain of Christianity. I want to keep both versions within the fairly broad mainstream, and I don't want to make the relationship so different that she's reverted to Judaism or wearing a veil or anything. The point is to show that the marriage was successful by the old standard, but that there had always been a certain bit of tension and discomfort in it for the psychic to exploit in his reading. Thoughts, suggestions?
A wedding picture inside a catholic church might show crosses, statues or the priest's garments. A stack of Watchtower magazines ready to be delivered door to door could show that the wife has been leaning towards the JW organization. I've seen it happen and it did cause some discomfort in the couple.
Jehovah's Witnesses might be a bit of a stretch, but I like the idea of the denomination-specific magazine on the coffee table, thanks! <Iain toddles off to research faith magazines>
I guess I don't know enough about specific Christian denominations, but I'm aware there are incredibly nit-picky differences in Christian sects that some people go absolutely batshit over. Could it be Catholic and Christians? That'd give some much easier to find and use things to distinguish between the two, as while they're sort of two different religions, Catholicism and Christianity are very similar to each other (to the point a lot of religious-types consider them interchangeable and 'close enough'). Maybe not Christian-to-Christian, but a lot closer than Christian-to-Jew or Christian-to-Mormon/Jehovah's Witness/etc.
While Jehovah's Witnesses aren't thought of as a Christian religion.... https://www.jw.org/en/jehovahs-witnesses/faq/jehovah-witness-beliefs/ Jesus. We follow the teachings and example of Jesus Christ and honor him as our Savior and as the Son of God. (Matthew 20:28; Acts 5:31) Thus, we are Christians. (Acts 11:26) However, we have learned from the Bible that Jesus is not Almighty God and that there is no Scriptural basis for the Trinity doctrine.—John 14:28. As an aside though, a Jehovah's Witness wouldn't want to be involved in a psychic reading, since Jehovah God’s Law to the nation of Israel said: “There should not be found in you anyone . . . who consults a spirit medium or . . . inquires of the dead. For whoever does these things is detestable to Jehovah.” (Deuteronomy 18:10-12) The Bible also states that those who practice spiritism in any of its forms “will not inherit God’s Kingdom.”—Galatians 5:19-21.
Yeah, I was overthinking at first, trying to come up with different cross patterns that Sherlock Holmes might notice, but all I really need is a wedding picture that's obviously Catholic (crucifix somewhere in it) and even something like a church bulletin from the local Baptist/Methodist/Presbyterian church sitting somewhere in view. The dutiful wife took up her husband's Catholicism when he was alive, but was never really comfortable with it, so once he passed, she reverted to the bland, mainstream Protestantism of her youth. That's not to say that mainstream Protestants approve of psychics either, but there are all degrees of commitment among churchgoers. The late husband has a Dark Secret that the psychic will learn about, but this is mostly a character development scene, so once the psychic has helped the ghost work his issues out and collected a payment, he'll go on his merry way and the widow will fade offstage.
So, you are looking for a before & after? Detective Bosworth braked sharply. Surely the shrine and statuette on the corner were new to this neighbourhood? Nevertheless, he parked his car in the gravelled drive and stepped to the hall. Yes, the table still remained with its cream telephone. But the drum, the gloves and the neatly folded banner had all disappeared. As had the wonderful Empire map of the world, the colonies pink in their splendour. No longer did the sweet melodies of the penny whistle chirrup from the sitting room. Now only incense filled the air. And upon the table where once stood the portrait of our majesty the queen, now stood a vial of holy water . Above it, on the wall hung a framed 8 by 12 foot portrait of the Virgin Mary. Coleen Mitchell stepped from her kitchen, she fiddled with the rosary beads in her hand. 'Where's the drum?' said Bosworth in all his good humours. 'Back in that damned chapel,' said Coleen. ' I'm sorry detective, as our Holy Farther tells us we must be generous to sinners in this time of Lent. For did Christ not say... ...'
Needs a draft - replace 'Detective' with 'Gypsy Rose PI' - looking to switch scene toward more Filipino or French community - replace sectarian paraphernalia with strictly religious - different style of bibles etc, thinking on...
It doesn't even need to be as obvious as a crucifix (which can be shown in many types of Christian weddings and ceremonies). If it was a more conservative Catholicism, the wedding dress would have involved covered shoulders and a veil. Wedding dresses can hold a lot of clues as to what faith the person is and how strong their beliefs are (or the beliefs of their significant other).
I was, yes. It's always been my awareness that they're two different religions? Or at least two different 'types' of religion. I grew up Christian going to Sunday School and church and it was always said they were different from each other. I mean, they're different enough that The Simpsons made a whole episode about how they're different. It's not like I'm that big on the differences between religions or anything, so I don't know much further than just what I've always seen/been told. Okay wait, so I give some genuine thoughts and advice but because I was apparently maybe wrong about a difference between Christianity and Catholicism, I'm "trolling" and should just be ignored? I'm beginning to understand why people complain about this forum being filled with assholes lol.
It's kind of a complicated matter and you're right for the most part. I found a family tree picture that puts the religions in relative line with one another. Catholicism came first and can be called a Christian religion just like Protestants are Christian, Baptists are Christian, Christians are Christian (there are people who will say they're Christian and not one of the denominations), etc. But all of the religions labeled as Christian are derived from Roman Catholicsm. They're all interrelated and a lot of the differences are minuscule at best (or blown out of proportion by people who either don't understand or who are upset by the notion of the religions coming from the same branch). From a historical point and sociological point, it's all really interesting. So...overall, it's a crazy family branch and you had better not go around insinuating they're all the same religion. My mom, who's Roman Catholic, will destroy anyone who calls her Christian. Edit: TL;DR (or simply don't care): They're different and yet not.
Christianity is the umbrella term - different sects may define things differently in order to make themselves "right" and others "wrong", but in general terms followers of Christ are Christians. And, yes, for the first millenium of Christianity's history Catholics were the only Christians. I think the general nesting of categories would be: A) Christians 1) - Catholics 2) - Eastern/Oriental Orthodox 3) - Protestant 3a - Anglicans 3b - Methodists 3c - United 3d - Evangelical - lots of different subgroups of evangelicals 3e - loads of other Protestant denominations Possibly the formatting will be messed up b/c of the forum, but in general, I think there are three main divisions within Christianity.
JACKDAW SERIES draft Roman Catholics are Christians. Protestantism, Russian Orthodox, Methodism, Baptists, Quakerism are all denominations of the same religion - which is - as stated - Christianity. You can click on a computer to see that: Christianity (2.1 billion) Islam (1.3 billion) Nonreligious (Secular/Agnostic/Atheist) (1.1 billion) Hinduism (900 million) Chinese traditional religion (394 million) Buddhism 376 million. ...are the 'great religions of the world.' Sometimes children get confused about what is what, typically, and I recall from adolescence 'are you a Christian, Colin?' 'No, I am Church of England.' And we sniggered - thinking we were better, wise, or educated... Also folk get confused. More seriously some Christian groups take great offence if you label them as 'one' when they are the 'other.' Protestants and Catholics have been fighting about this since the XVI century. You find out about the origins of the dispute researching people like 'Martin Luther' and 'Henry VIII's split with the Church of Rome.' Google again, and you find that to one sect the word of God comes from the Church - and according to others the relationship is between God and 'man himself.' Similar nuance & division exists in Islam. Again, with our culture(s) there's also room for humour and tease, among families especially. My wife suffers - being an 'Anglo-Catholic' which is some 19c hybrid of candles, incense and only casual Popery, unlike the true faith - C of E, bless the ancestors, RIP.
Well that's sort of what I thought. I knew they were 'the same but kind of different', I guess I just thought they were a little further in relation to each other. Still, the differences are big enough that I know people get upset over them. I mean, when I was like 12-13 years old this (really cute) girl I went to school with asked me what religion I was (I was too god damn stupid to properly pick up this hint and various others the time, but in retrospect I now realize she was interested in me). She was Catholic (turns out her whole family was sort of that 'creepy super religious' type), and sometime after that I asked one of the adults at my church if it was okay if Catholics/Christians got married or dated, he told me it was entirely okay and they were "pretty much the same", but this lady overheard us and walked over and gave us both this lecture on how Christians and Catholics are super different and believe in important different things and not to marry and we'd go to hell etc etc etc. But then, this lady also gave a big presentation to all the kids about why playing Pokemon and Harry Potter would send you to hell. So I guess from my experiences, people super bent towards religion can certainly find reasons to get upset over the differences between Catholics/Christians, even if they're the same religion.
They're not the same -- they're different levels of categorization. Like, dogs are mammals. That doesn't mean dogs and mammals are the same. Mammals (Christianity) is a really big category, of which dogs (Catholics) are one sub-category. Dogs have things in common with other mammals (eg. nursing their young) just like Catholics have things in common with other Christians (eg. following Christ).
Yeah, it's just a little distressing to me when someone of such apparent ignorance holds sway over 'kiddies,' that's grim.
Well whatever the specific details, I know they're similar-but-different enough that there are people who get really touchy over it. I confess that I don't exactly care that much further than that about it, so I don't know much specifically.
To be fair, as far as I can recall she was the only person at that church who was that extreme and I know after the whole 'pokemon and harry potter are evil' speech that she got a lot of complaints from parents. I don't think I remember her ever talking to us about anything else after that, either. So thankfully our community only had one crazy bible-thumper and everyone else knew there was something to avoid about them.
Well, and yes. She was maybe not that bright. And I'd be cautious with your 'crazy Bible-thumpers.' I know what you mean, but be respectful. We're on a thread that will attract people of faith. For your benefit I'd drop the Catholic/Christian line of thinking. You've learned that they're all under one God - according to the 'theory' - so get it right next time, or I'll think you're pulling my leg - and everybody else's . All best.
Piece of jewelry.... I mean, we all know that in films The Catholic Person™ is always denoted by the wearing of a cross on a necklace, but in real life (depending on how much you want to depend on ready-made indicators) I don't know if that would be enough to indicate a switch to/from Catholicism to/from some other branch of Christianity. I don't think the wearing of a cross is something Catholics "own", much as Hollywood would have us believe. In my neck of the woods, clothing is a clear marker of differing branches of Christian faith. Pentecostals are well represented here and the particular restrictions regarding dress for women in that religion are always a pretty sharp delineator between Pentecostals, Witnesses, and other modes of Evangelical faith here. You certainly don't need a cross to differentiate between a Catholic woman and a Pentecostal woman.* I like the book idea better, to be honest. It feels a little more clear and less apt to be engaged through the lens of stereotyping. A book that is simply directed at a particular branch of Christianity. A Book of Mormon would be an undoubted red flag, if all else said non-Mormon, etc. etc. etc. *I don't mean to focus only on women here, but as I scan my internal memory banks, with regard to outward expressions of faith in the manner of clothing, jewelry, other accessories, etc., men, in general, seem to be the "female birds" of the religious world, all displaying rather uniform, drab, generic appearance.
I didn't mean to mean any offense by it. I suppose instead of 'bible-thumper', I should've said 'ignorant' or something, as I'd certainly hope most religious people would find her thoughts/behavior ridiculous (I retain degrees of religious thoughts/belief myself to this day). I don't get this, though? I admitted I was wrong and now I'm aware of a slightly different difference than I knew before :y
Because you're sticking to the similar-but-different line. Catholics are in no way "similar-but-different" from Christians. Catholics are Christians, 100%. They're "similar-but-different" from Anglicans, or Methodists, or Baptists, or whatever Christian group you were raised in, but they're not in any way different from Christians as a whole. (Poets are not "similar but different" from writers. Poets are writers. They're similar but different from novelists.)
