State of Religion in Soul Eater?

[coolio2654]

Hi, I'm new around here, and joined just so I can ask this question, hopefully more in the duration of time.
Anime and manga are my thing; I've read/watched: Bleach, Naruto, Code Geass (the site's review does no justice to this phenomenal show), Evangelion, etc. But here I am reading Soul Eater and this breaks all of my previous expectations of any manga. Why? First of all, it's really good, the main character is a girl, the show is honest about darker human emotions, but most importantly, It has religion (Christianity)!

The characters celebrate Christmas, there are crosses literally everywhere if you look hard enough, some protagonists are seen praying, a main protagonist is a clergyman who uses the words (I quote), "In the name of the Father, the Son, and of the Holy Spirit." You all well know probably that shows tend to ignore religions as controversial, but this is pretty out in the open, though I don't see a definite answer on the state of religion in this show.

So what is Christianity's position in this show? I hope some users here watched the show and can give me their opinions (but no spoilers please).

[Falx]

It's about as Christian as any anime that acknowledges the existence of Christianity can be.

Not very much at all. And Justin, the clergyman you are referring to, well in the manga he explicitly states that when he says "God" he actually means Shinigami-sama.

Really I wouldn't look for real Christian values in any anime series no matter how much of the symbolism is in a show. There are only two explicitly Christian series that I know of and they are SuperBook and Flying House. If you see something that is a biblical value or moral in anything else... it's by accident not design. Enjoy it and don't try to look to deep in the rest of the series as you'll either end up confused or disappointed.

Japan in general is profoundly ignorant of what Christianity is, really. You can easily see it when they depict a church. Most often it will always be a Catholic style cathedral (because Catholicism = all Christians right? What's a Protestant?), and there will always be a single priest with only one or maybe three nuns at most. That is almost exactly how Shinto shrines are run.

[Atria35]

What Falx said.

The Christmas thing shouldn't be surprising. Virtually every anime has a Christmas episode. Even though about 99% of Japan is not Christian, they do celebrate Christmas. It's like their Valentine's day. It's somewhat like us in America celebrating El Cinco de Mayo even though most of us aren't Mexican and probably don't care about what actually caused the holiday- it's just used as an excuse to celebrate. Same concept.

EDIT: And the 'Father, Son, and Holy Ghost/Spirit' really isn't that suprising. What do you hear every priest in every movie that a priest appears in say? It's not that hard to pick up, and even if they know nothing else about Christianity, they probably know that one.

[rocklobster]

Exactly. Soul Eater isn't alone by any means. Evangelion, Chrono Crusade, Trigun, and numerous vampire anime often contain references to Christianity.
Oh...and
Welcome to CAA!
You should introduce yourself in the Who's Who section.

[TWWK]

The characters celebrate Christmas, there are crosses literally everywhere if you look hard enough, some protagonists are seen praying, a main protagonist is a clergyman who uses the words (I quote), "In the name of the Father, the Son, and of the Holy Spirit." You all well know probably that shows tend to ignore religions as controversial, but this is pretty out in the open, though I don't see a definite answer on the state of religion in this show.

I've seen one episode of Soul Eater, so I can't comment on the show specifically. But I can comment on some of the ideas your brought up as they have to do with anime.

As some have mentioned, it's likely that the symbols are used in the series as they are in others - without really any regard for the faith. Christianity conveys a cool and mysterious tone to many Japanese, and so the symbols are often employed. Even if you look at a show like Evangelion, which is as full of Christian and other religious symbols as can be, you find a lack of meaning.

As for crosses, I would assume that they're part of that whole tone the show wants to convey. Crosses (and crucifixion) are common in anime, and crosses were used for crucifixion in the country, so the Japanese should be familiar with the symbol.

Really I wouldn't look for real Christian values in any anime series no matter how much of the symbolism is in a show. There are only two explicitly Christian series that I know of and they are SuperBook and Flying House. If you see something that is a biblical value or moral in anything else... it's by accident not design. Enjoy it and don't try to look to deep in the rest of the series as you'll either end up confused or disappointed.

I don't necessarily agree with Falx in saying that you shouldn't look for depth in Christian themes and symbols in a series. A show, like any piece of media, can portray Christian values without being specifically Christian. Haibane Renmei does this, in addition to having pretty obvious Christian imagery, though the creator has said that he wasn't specifically channeling Christian (specifically Catholic) ideas into the series. Madoka Magica, likewise, has similar motifs, though in this case, I think the show's creator knew what he was doing (certainly the airing of the final episode on Good Friday was a tip-off), though Buddhism may have weighed more strongly on his mind.

On another note, there's at least one other specifically Christian anime - In the Beginning, which had its start when the Vatican asked Osamu Tezuka to create a film based on the OT.

[Mr. Hat'n'Clogs]

Exactly. Soul Eater isn't alone by any means. Evangelion, Chrono Crusade, Trigun, and numerous vampire anime often contain references to Christianity.
Oh...and
Welcome to CAA!
You should introduce yourself in the Who's Who section.

Trigun's mangaka is Catholic, though.

Also, here's an anime with a Christian lead. The title is[spoiler]Butt Attack Punisher Girl Gautaman[/spoiler].

[rocklobster]

Trigun's mangaka is Catholic, though.

Can you give me a source for that? I'd heard that, but wasn't sure if I should take it as truth.

[TWWK]

Trigun's mangaka is Catholic, though.

Can you give me a source for that? I'd heard that, but wasn't sure if I should take it as truth.

Wikipedia used to state that he's Catholic - apparently taken from a Japanese reference of some kind. The Wikipedia reference spread throughout the Internet. However, most recently he's stated that he doesn't "follow a religion." I gave some detail about his faith in a recent post:

The Faith of Yasuhiro Nightow

[manga_disciple]

A cross is just a cross doesn't necessarily mean Jesus I mean the Templar knights used the cross and they were very evil men. And if you watch the Japanese version death the kids skateboard is called Beelzebub a pseudo for the devil. But it is an awesome story and they captivate characters so well, I've cried three times in anime and they were were sasori back story chroma backstory and the end of gurren Lagann