theology
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Faith and World of Warcraft at Colorado University
Buckle your seatbelts on this one -- if you aren't concerned with the bigger picture behind a virtual world like Azeroth and would rather hear about dragons fighting each other or the latest class changes, best look elsewhere on the site. But a student at Colorado University has a theory about World of Warcraft that might sound a little out there: he believes the game is a new religion.Not necessarily in the sense that you should skip church to raid (though lots of people probably do that anyway). But in the sense that it meets a sociologist's definition of religion: it provides community, ethics, culture, and emotion. And it's hard to argue with that: we're living proof of the community around the game, there's definitely plenty of culture and emotion, and... ethics? CU student Theo Zijderveld is proposing that even if the game itself doesn't promote ethical behavior, the push is there -- we're rewarded for doing the right thing, and often punished for doing wrong. Work with others in a group, get better loot. Camp someone's corpse, and their guildie or alt shows up to camp you.Intriguing idea, even if it does sound like something cooked up for a college student's thesis (which is in fact what it is). It's certainly not a religion in that there is no higher power involved (unless you believe that Ghostcrawler is in fact a god) -- obviously, we all believe that everything in Azeroth was made by men and women, or at least hard-working Gnomes. But as for what playing World of Warcraft creates in us and makes us feel, those results and ideas are very close in many ways to what organized religion does. Quite a theory.
iPod as theological metaphor?
Metropolitan Baptist Church Pastor Sal Sberna of Houston, TX has been delivering a series of four "iPod Theology" sermons that focus on the simplicity of the iPod. Sal said that his intention is to tap into the pool of millions of iPod owners, who represent a potentially huge audience for his church. "The reason the outside of the iPod is so simple to use and so beautiful to look at is because of the way they designed the inside of the iPod," said Sberna. "All you do on the outside is push the little button, drive the wheel and pick what usefulness you want out of your iPod, and so when Jesus talks to us about simplification, it must start on the inside." If you've had any doubts about the iPod's far-reaching appeal, consider them squashed.Kudos to the pastor for trying to reach a younger audience by embracing some current technology. He says he hopes to one day make his sermons available as podcasts.[Via IPod Garage]
