How to tackle Religious Horror if you're not religious?

I do not want to continue this discussion with you as I don't see anything productive coming out of this and we're going kinda off-topic.

Back to the thread, I'm still open for advice about writing Religious Horror btw.

I feel like a problem some non-religious people and atheists have when writing about religion is that they don't realize that a big part of the appeal of religion to some people is the communal aspect. Midsommar is an example of a film that explores this: A young woman is attracted to a cult because she's depressed and they welcome her.

Churches often organize and host events that aren't related to religion. In my town there's a church that offers boxing lessons. During a church sermon, it's common for the preacher to ask people to pray for sick members of the congregation. There's a sense of belonging and that one is supported by those around them.

...Which in turn is definitely something to hone in on if you want to focus on cults. Community is one of the biggest ways they get people in and trap them.

Well cult indoctrination is one way to apply this, but there's also how one characterizes religious people. In fiction, there's a trope where someone will have a crisis of faith because of some tragedy. Often people will become atheists under the logic of "Why would a Benevolent God let something like this happen?" While this might happen in the real world, I've also seen people turn to God after a tragedy. A big part of this is that to some people religion is a stabilizing force that provides them with a support network.

Oh, absolutely. I'm just touching on one way that concept can be Played for Horror, given that it's a horror story in concept. Someone suffering a tragedy and getting sucked into what turns out to be some sort of cult is a very real sort of horror.

I think the other key is to not just portray believers as obviously evil or stupid or something? Especially in some sort of cult scenario, people act like all cult members are either insane or oblivious, when they've actually been conditioned to put up with the horrors around them and have trouble leaving. In a non-cult scenario, portraying believers as intelligent, reasonable, and normal people can avoid issue when these characters turn out to be cursed, or working for an evil church leader, or what have you.

Edited by WarJay77 on Jan 28th 2024 at 3:05:03 PM

My earlier posts were thumped for being rude. I didn't intend them to be, I was genuinely suggesting to research various faiths to not only learn what is just a stereotype but also to have a well to draw from. Understanding the deeper context behind religious practices makes it easier to understand what about religion is scary. It sounds obvious, but studying the subject really helps.

Edited by TheLivingDrawing on Jan 29th 2024 at 1:47:19 PM

The issue was that they outright asked for advice beyond that, because they already intend on it.

Exactly, I already said I'll do research and wanted help beyond that in the original post.

I’m not religious myself, but I know that there are many interpretations of Christianity through many time periods and eras. I mean for example, Catholicism (more on the belief in the Church and Pope) is going to be different than Protestantism (a belief more focused on the Bible and faith). I’m definitely simplifying, but know there are many ways to depict Religious Horror. Maybe try to hone in on what branch or aspect of Christianity you want to focus on. Since you’re talking about Puritanism, maybe hone in on that area of history and belief. It will also inform what imagery you use (besides the tried-and-true use of the Cross).

Edited by CanuckMcDuck1 on Jan 30th 2024 at 8:13:34 AM

If it means anything whatsoever, maybe check out other religious horror works for ideas? The only one I've seen is the anime Vatican Miracle Examiner which is more of an example of how not to write religious horror, although as someone who went through Catholic schooling (note: I don't believe in anything in particular now), the religious aspects are actually pretty accurate to what some people believe — just exaggerated and shown in a ridiculous fashion.

Personally, I think being respectful to the concept of God being the Almighty is the most important thing to highlight in your writing. In my opinion, having the characters respect but at the same time fear God and His punishments for going against His teachings is what readers will probably understand the most, since that's a constant throughout, as far as I know, (almost?) all Christian denominations. But it's been a good while since I've looked into any of this, so there's a chance I'm misremembering the specifics.