First things first, I’m so done. I’m choosing the worst episode possible to write this about because in this moment I am crying tremendously. SPOILER ALERT!! Like, what the hell? I understand in an apocalyptic world, you cannot expect people to stay alive for too long, but come on! Beth, really?? So now that I am emotionally distraught, this is a perfect time to write about Christianity.
As we have established before and if you are a true Walker you would know that AMC’s The Walking Dead is so much more complex than you could ever imagine. The depth of which we travel into humanity in every single episode is incredible and quite frightening, really. “Look at these people, amazing how sheep’ll show up to the slaughter!” Couldn’t agree more Dr. Horrible. This show is as popular as it is because of the reality of the situations and the connections we are able to make with each character. We are fascinated with the guts and darkness because we are a messed up creation. We are all mentally disturbed and in that way we relate to others around us. Just a bunch of crazies.
Now for the ever so sensitive topic of faith and religion. Before this season, you could pull several different Christian dilemmas, especially concerning Herschel and Dale. However, with the introduction of the actual priest, Gabriel, we have the very distinct issue with the idea of the Church in an apocalyptic world. Gabriel is a very static character. When introduced, my first response to him was the same as I have had for everyone who is a softie when it comes to killing zombies. I figured we’d go through the whole “They’re not alive! They’re not human!” debate and he’d eventually grow some testicular fortitude to kill zombies and finally adapt to the way the world is now. However, Gabriel has yet to do anything out of the realm of his priesthood. This makes me wonder if Gabriel is like The Walking Dead Jesus. Has every single character before turned away from God by adapting to the world and surviving? Is Gabriel weak or possibly the strongest character introduced so far? What does the Church look like and even mean for humanity now?
Often in this show the typical rules of humanity are blurred. “Talk about getting blasted. I hate these blurred lines.” Thank you Robin Thicke for that creepy song that has nothing to do with what I’m actually talking about, but anyway. This show probably sucks for black and white thinkers. Belief alert!! If the Bible did not exist, we would have no basis for how we act. If God were not real, we would not be here for one, and two we would have nothing to compare ourselves to that creates those rules of which we live by. So in an apocalyptic world, do those rules still apply? When looking a Gabriel’s character, part of me wanted him to be eaten by zombies and be done with it, but I can’t escape this respect for him. I’ve come to be completely annoyed but intrigued by Gabriel. He’s like that family member you have to love but don’t have to like all the time. He’s a constant reminder of what used to be. He still wears his priest suit, he still calls the building a church, etc. Even Rick gave up on that dream long ago. In this particular episode, Gabriel is beginning to struggle with this question himself. He finds a Bible but is immediately struck with the scene of Bob’s leg on the grill. Not the best association to have with finding what you’ve spent your entire existence thus far studying. I found it interesting when Gabriel went running back to the church, begging to be let in. His people begged him for their lives before and Gabriel failed to answer. He failed to represent his sermons and the example he had set. Michonne and Carl risked their lives and their shelter to let him back into the building, knowing his ignorance. We never escape our sin until we ask for forgiveness. Gabriel has yet to forgive himself, so maybe through experiencing this moment he may grow to a place of peace with his mistakes. But why do we look at Gabriel’s actions as any different than those of the other characters? Carol killed the two people from the prison, was sentenced to exile, and welcomed back with forgiveness and love. I don’t remember ever necessarily hating her. When we found out about Gabriel I thought he was a despicable human being. We tend to hold those in religious roles to higher standard, which is why I think I find him so annoying honestly.
I really don’t know what I’ve been saying this whole time. Thoughts have been just spilling out of me and I can’t quite seem to rap them up because I don’t know if I necessarily know how to answer the questions. Throughout my experience as a Walker, I have struggled to decide how I would react to the situations characters in the show have faced. I never can do so because you will never know how you will react until it actually happens. I would like to say I would hold onto faith and hold onto these universal rules set to keep harmony and justice, but I can’t make any promises. I don’t know if I would continue my desire to walk in Jesus’s footsteps because of what that would mean for my survival, but am I really surviving if I’m constantly killing whoever’s in my way? I don’t know how helpful worship services and sermons and praying does really. That sounds harsh, but I can imagine it being extremely difficult to place trust in God to kill the zombie so I don’t have to, or to provide food, etc. It would be difficult for me to preach to others about faith and allowing God to guide your life when my own life is threatened every day.
Delaney Wright
As we have established before and if you are a true Walker you would know that AMC’s The Walking Dead is so much more complex than you could ever imagine. The depth of which we travel into humanity in every single episode is incredible and quite frightening, really. “Look at these people, amazing how sheep’ll show up to the slaughter!” Couldn’t agree more Dr. Horrible. This show is as popular as it is because of the reality of the situations and the connections we are able to make with each character. We are fascinated with the guts and darkness because we are a messed up creation. We are all mentally disturbed and in that way we relate to others around us. Just a bunch of crazies.
Now for the ever so sensitive topic of faith and religion. Before this season, you could pull several different Christian dilemmas, especially concerning Herschel and Dale. However, with the introduction of the actual priest, Gabriel, we have the very distinct issue with the idea of the Church in an apocalyptic world. Gabriel is a very static character. When introduced, my first response to him was the same as I have had for everyone who is a softie when it comes to killing zombies. I figured we’d go through the whole “They’re not alive! They’re not human!” debate and he’d eventually grow some testicular fortitude to kill zombies and finally adapt to the way the world is now. However, Gabriel has yet to do anything out of the realm of his priesthood. This makes me wonder if Gabriel is like The Walking Dead Jesus. Has every single character before turned away from God by adapting to the world and surviving? Is Gabriel weak or possibly the strongest character introduced so far? What does the Church look like and even mean for humanity now?
Often in this show the typical rules of humanity are blurred. “Talk about getting blasted. I hate these blurred lines.” Thank you Robin Thicke for that creepy song that has nothing to do with what I’m actually talking about, but anyway. This show probably sucks for black and white thinkers. Belief alert!! If the Bible did not exist, we would have no basis for how we act. If God were not real, we would not be here for one, and two we would have nothing to compare ourselves to that creates those rules of which we live by. So in an apocalyptic world, do those rules still apply? When looking a Gabriel’s character, part of me wanted him to be eaten by zombies and be done with it, but I can’t escape this respect for him. I’ve come to be completely annoyed but intrigued by Gabriel. He’s like that family member you have to love but don’t have to like all the time. He’s a constant reminder of what used to be. He still wears his priest suit, he still calls the building a church, etc. Even Rick gave up on that dream long ago. In this particular episode, Gabriel is beginning to struggle with this question himself. He finds a Bible but is immediately struck with the scene of Bob’s leg on the grill. Not the best association to have with finding what you’ve spent your entire existence thus far studying. I found it interesting when Gabriel went running back to the church, begging to be let in. His people begged him for their lives before and Gabriel failed to answer. He failed to represent his sermons and the example he had set. Michonne and Carl risked their lives and their shelter to let him back into the building, knowing his ignorance. We never escape our sin until we ask for forgiveness. Gabriel has yet to forgive himself, so maybe through experiencing this moment he may grow to a place of peace with his mistakes. But why do we look at Gabriel’s actions as any different than those of the other characters? Carol killed the two people from the prison, was sentenced to exile, and welcomed back with forgiveness and love. I don’t remember ever necessarily hating her. When we found out about Gabriel I thought he was a despicable human being. We tend to hold those in religious roles to higher standard, which is why I think I find him so annoying honestly.
I really don’t know what I’ve been saying this whole time. Thoughts have been just spilling out of me and I can’t quite seem to rap them up because I don’t know if I necessarily know how to answer the questions. Throughout my experience as a Walker, I have struggled to decide how I would react to the situations characters in the show have faced. I never can do so because you will never know how you will react until it actually happens. I would like to say I would hold onto faith and hold onto these universal rules set to keep harmony and justice, but I can’t make any promises. I don’t know if I would continue my desire to walk in Jesus’s footsteps because of what that would mean for my survival, but am I really surviving if I’m constantly killing whoever’s in my way? I don’t know how helpful worship services and sermons and praying does really. That sounds harsh, but I can imagine it being extremely difficult to place trust in God to kill the zombie so I don’t have to, or to provide food, etc. It would be difficult for me to preach to others about faith and allowing God to guide your life when my own life is threatened every day.
Delaney Wright