Religion vs. Pokémon

Religion vs. Pokémon

Enjoy this post written for me this week by my sweet husband!


I have been a passionate Pokémon fan for what feels like forever. My enthusiasm all started when I was given a trading card in fourth grade. That card was Cubone. Since then, I have been fascinated by the creatures, story, lore, and everything else Pokémon. But what does Pokémon have to do with an atheist blog?

If for some reason you haven’t heard of Pokémon, it is one of the world’s best known multimedia franchises, created in 1995 by Satoshi Tajiri. It is centered on fictional creatures called “Pokémon” (short for Pocket Monsters), which humans (Pokémon Trainers), catch and train to battle against one another for sport. The Pokémon franchise has a trading card game, an anime/TV show, manga/comics, toys, multiple movies, phone apps, and my favorite: the video games.

Demons

Since its beginning, Pokémon has been constantly demonized by multiple world religions claiming it is a ploy by the devil himself to inject ideals of demons, magic, animal cruelty, evolution, and more into today’s vulnerable youth. In response to the Pokémon GO app, pastor Rick Wiles expressed his concern on his radio show, stating, “The enemy, Satan, is targeting churches with virtual, digital, cyber demons. I believe this is a magnet for demonic powers . . . They’re spawning demons inside your church. They’re targeting your church with demonic activity. This technology will be used by the enemies of the cross [ISIS] to target, locate, and execute Christians.” Holy persecution complex!

Riding on the back of the 1980’s Satanic Panic, Pokémon joined the likes of the Doom franchise, Marilyn Manson, and metal music, ushering this “epidemic” into the 90’s and early 2000’s. They were all accused of propagating Hell’s message in one way or another, and Pokémon encouraged the summoning of demons to do one’s bidding.

In this article, With One Accord Ministries summarizes the problems with Pokémon as:

  1. Pokémon teaches kids that they can make demon-like beings (cuddly little monsters) obey them
  2. They are taught that these demons can be mastered and controlled
  3. They are taught that demons are their servants and will help them
  4. They are encouraged to become “Pokémon masters” by “conquering” more and more demons

In all of these situations, people have been stretching the truth to fit their own narrative, with possibly the only purpose being to bring fear into parents. While it is true that Pokémon are creatures you can capture and battle with other trainers, the consistent narrative in the show and games is that Pokémon are more than tools for battle. They are your friends, and the franchise teaches kids the power of friendship. Within the world of Pokémon, they are the equivalent of animals, and many of them are inspired by real-world animal species. So how is befriending a Pokemon any different than adopting and loving a cat?

Animal abuse

“But you don’t pit your cat against your neighbor’s cat in battle!” And while this is true (I hope), Pokémon battling is far from the brutal reality of cockfighting or dog fighting. While it is shown that Pokémon are caught in small capsule-like balls, known as Pokéballs, the creatures aren’t held in captivity. In fact, it’s quite the opposite. On multiple occasions, the narrative shows that staying in a Pokéball is comfortable for the Pokémon, even going so far as to have multiple types of Pokéball—even one akin to a five star hotel, the Luxury ball.

Of course, Pokémon hasn’t been the subject of ridicule only from religious organizations but PETA as well. PETA even created their own game in which the player controls the Pokémon to attack the opposing human.

Medium‘s Holly Richardson states,

In the world of Pokémon​, trainers can not coerce their partners, and are expected to withhold themselves​ to a degree of morality. Those who decide to force Pokémon into battle in the media are condemned. So, the Pokémon company can not​ be held responsible for portraying animal cruelty, as it​ teaches players that Pokémon and humans are equal alike, and more importantly conveys that creatures deserve the same respect we do.

Magic

Christian organizations have been concerned with magic for a long time, whether in Harry Potter, Pokémon, or any other fantasy franchise. In this regard, Pokémon has been accused of using magic talismans such as the gym badges and evolution stones to control and evolve Pokémon, respectively. Also, some of the types and moves have undergone scrutiny. Notably, Psychic, Ghost, Dark, and Fairy-type Pokémon moves have been described as “extraordinary paranormal powers.” Due to the franchise originating in Japan, Pokémon inherently involve East Asian spiritualism and mysticism. This causes Christian groups to denounce it as pagan. Recently, Pokémon has included themes from other mythologies, regions, and even alchemy. (See more)

Evolution

I’m sure if you know Pokémon, you saw this one a mile away. Most Christians believe in creationism, and evolution is often cited as the opposing viewpoint. However, if anyone here should be mad, it should be the scientists and those who accept Darwin’s theory of evolution.

As stated in this glorious Game Theorists video from 2011, “Just by looking at the definition [of evolution], we have already debunked the creationist argument. When a Pokémon evolves in the game, it’s a single Pokémon changing forms in that moment, not across generations.” Later in the video, MattPat questions, “So if it’s not evolution, what is it?” That answer shows that what we see in Pokémon is a lot closer to metamorphosis or puberty, similar to the process of a caterpillar becoming a chrysalis and then a butterfly. Therefore, in the words of MattPat, “Pokémon is not pro-science or anti-god, it just skipped seventh grade biology and has a catchy theme song.”

Jewish conspiracy

Some outspoken fundamentalist Muslims have claimed that Pokémon is a Jewish conspiracy intended to get Muslim children to renounce their faith. These same groups, presumably unaware of the franchise’s Japanese origin, claimed that the word “Pokémon” means “I am Jewish.” In 2001, the Grand Mufti of Saudi Arabia, who is the highest religious authority in the kingdom, issued a fatwā banning the Pokémon franchise. Following this, the High Muslim authorities in Qatar and Egypt also banned the franchise.

Other

A few other crazy claims are that if you play the Kanto Pokérap backwards, “Gotta Catch ’em All!” can be heard as “I love Satan.” Additionally, within the cartoon, the close relationship between the characters Ash and Brock was “a sign of the cartoon’s gay agenda.”

Overall, Pokémon is harmless, if not helpful. It teaches the power of friendship and has captivated the hearts of millions, nonreligious and religious alike. If anything, Pokémon is a fantasy where we can all put aside our differences and bond over its varying species, deep lore, and friendly message.

0 thoughts on “Religion vs. Pokémon

  • October 27, 2019 at 8:33 am
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    I used to play Pokémon on my daily walks. For an old guy, I progressed well as did many of my friends. I gave it up when it interfered with my music.
    Back in my kid’s day, D&D was evil as were ouija boards.
    In the 50’s, 60s, and 70s, that R&R was bad/demonic/mind-altering and it was all the same demonic BS.
    Offensive religion will always find targets for their vitriol. They will control us (and have) if they can.

    Reply
    • October 27, 2019 at 8:52 am
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      D&D… I play D&D at my workplace, (Christian workplace, though I have lost my faith), myself and another 4 people play it in public, half of them laugh at us, the other half look at us like we have a ouija board out and in communication with the Devil… madness.

      Reply
    • November 5, 2019 at 6:47 pm
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      It’s easy to condemn what you neither understand or know. And nearly everything “new” that’s out of our ken, if we’re at all superstitious, can be suspected of being evil in some way. And who is more superstitious than a strong Christian? He lives his life with ghosts and demons, after all…

      Reply
  • October 27, 2019 at 9:00 am
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    I love Pokémon. My parents are christian, but likely they allowed us to play the card game, watch the TV show and play the digital games (also my fav) when they came out.
    The line, ‘people have been stretching the truth to fit their own narrative’, is an interesting one. I think what you are saying is, ‘when something is taken and stretched to fit a narrative, it is no longer truth’. This is a big thing that I have come up against time and time again within my faith battle.
    I want Christianity to be true, but I do not want to believe something that I want to be true. I want to believe something that is true.
    I could stretch christianity to fit evolution, biblical errors, lack of supernatural evidence and my hopes, but it doesn’t make it true… If I stretched it like that it would be as if I am sitting on a stool and claiming I am upon a throne. It would be a lie.

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  • October 27, 2019 at 10:24 am
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    Good post, but somehow I doubt it will persuade a single Christian. People who take the idea of demons seriously are not known for being open to logic.

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  • October 27, 2019 at 12:41 pm
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    I remember when the churches were demonizing Rock & Roll. And then they demonized Dungeons and Dragons. After that, they went on to demonize Harry Potter. Hmm, Halloween is only a few days away, and they demonize that.
    I guess it is the old puritanism — they see it as sinful to have a bit of fun.

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    • November 5, 2019 at 6:38 pm
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      I’m truly amazed that none of the good Christians have discovered Pratchett’s world, which is loaded with demons, gods, spirits, magic, wizards, witches, voodoo, shape-shifting, Death, spells…

      Reply
  • November 23, 2019 at 5:05 pm
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    My father was a pastor and, thankfully, he never caught on to the wave of thought in the 2000’s that demonized Pokemon, saying that it opened doors to Satan. I am a Pokemon enthusiast just as yourself, so it concerns me when fellow trainers had to grow up with oppressive parents who would not allow their kids to participate in the show, cards, and games. Thankfully, modern, non-denominational Christianity has changed the traditional perspective and no longer condemns the series, which is a change I am personally happy about.

    Reply
  • October 14, 2020 at 10:57 pm
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    I did not intend to respond to this post, as it is nearly a year old. But I read through the post when I saw you were/are a Pokemon enthusiast. I used to buy cards for my grandson. He would tell me what card he ‘needed’ and I did my best to find it/them.
    What got my attention to the post was the reaction of the church. That the church would be opposed to magic, fantasy, and exercising the creative mind would be a sin is laughable. They have built a religion on just that.
    I want to point to our generational differences, but through that passage of time, the church has changed little. They just have newer enemies.
    When I was a child, we had oil lamps and candles. Yes, for real. The point in giving up that little nugget is to relate to you that the preachers were teaching that electricity was from the devil. It remained a point of contention until the preacher got electricity. We had an icebox until electricity made the refrigerator possible. And of course, the refrigerator and the Television in their turn were abominations and were met with a lot of bible thumping and a need for an offering to be taken up.
    I suppose the problem the church has with make-believe and fantasies is because it represents competition. Whatever is not understood or is strange or curious is suspect:
    “Augustine included curiositas in his catalog of vices, identifying it as one of the three forms of lust ( concupiscentia) that are the beginning of all sin (lust of the flesh, lust of the eyes, and ambition of the world).”
    I just clipped that from the search window.
    I think of St. Augustines declaration every time I see the title Rebecca chose for her blog. That and all through the history of the religion and science that tension between reality and pretend.
    From the deep intellect of Rick Wiles: on the Gov. of Michigans ordeal with terrorists.
    “So what happened today? She said that there was a militia plot to kidnap her. Now, I’ve got something to say to the governor: Did you at all stop and think, what are you doing that drives middle class, law-abiding, tax-paying citizens to think about kidnapping you?”
    Rick Wiles
    Law-abiding citizens do not plot the kidnapping of a governor of any of our United States. But this is the bubble Christianity lives in. Anything is o. k. if it furthers their cause. Democracy be damned. Anything they don’t like or understand is at least a sin, maybe a crime, and possibly an abomination. The church has not evolved, after all.
    Robert M. Persig:
    When one person suffers from a delusion, it is called insanity. When many people suffer from a delusion it is called Religion.
    My natural curiosity overwhelmed my religious piety.
    Nelson, Willie. It’s a Long Story
    Absurdity and inutility of the mysteries forged in the sole interest of the priests.
    What is a mystery? In a word, a mystery is whatever our spiritual guides can not explain to us. –Jean Meslier, a French priest of the RCC.
    Voltaire, having the mss., called on Holbach to translate and convert Meslier’s notes into this book.
    baron d’ Paul Henri Thiry Holbach. Superstition In All Ages (1732) / Common Sense (Kindle Location 165).

    Reply

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