Churches embracing game once thought to be evil

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This article was published 16/10/2024 (360 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Fifty years ago, a new game appeared on the scene: Dungeons & Dragons.

Soon after being introduced, the fantasy role-playing game, with its magic, wizards, sorcerers and warlocks, was criticized by many Christian leaders who saw it as a portal to the demonic — a way for Satan to steal the souls of unsuspecting youth.

That was during the time of the so-called “satanic panic,” when some Christians saw the devil everywhere they looked, from heavy metal music to graffiti.

One religious tract that circulated at the time said the game — in which players embark on adventures in a fantasy setting, directed by a dungeon master — was a form of “intense occult training” that caused young people to become witches and even to kill themselves.

In at least two churches in Winnipeg, D&D is seen in a very different light.

At River East Church, which is affiliated with Mennonite Church Manitoba, the game is seen as a great way to engage youth.

That’s the view of associate pastor Aaron Thiessen, 35, who runs a twice-monthly D&D game night at the church for as many as 25 youth from grades 7 to 11.

Thiessen hadn’t played the game himself growing up.

“It’s not that my parents were against it; I just thought it wasn’t for me,” he says.

When he discovered many young people in the church were into D&D, Thiessen decided to start some informal game nights in 2017. It went so well, he made it an official youth activity in 2019.

“The first time we tried it, 10 young people showed up. Now we have trouble keeping up with all who want to play,” he says.

The pandemic put a dent in the game — though they kept playing it online — but it came back stronger than ever when COVID abated.

Many of the youth who come to game nights aren’t from the congregation.

“For some, it’s the one connection they have to a church,” Thiessen says, adding it enables him to engage youth he had not met before, in a different way.

For him, the game nights build community and provide him with opportunities to have natural conversations with youth. He especially likes to see introverts open up as they play.

As for who comes, it’s a good mix of male and female players.

“It’s not just for guys anymore,” he says.

Thiessen begins each session with a story from the Bible or a story of a saint. On an evening in October, it’s the story of Moses going up a mountain, where he saw a burning bush and heard the voice of God.

“Mountains were special places where people could run into a deity,” Thiessen tells the youth about that Bible story. “I’m curious about what stories you will tell tonight.”

For Thiessen, incorporating stories such as this is a way to include a bit of spiritual teaching.

“The Bible is a book of stories, stories that continue to impact us today, stories that shape us as people, just as D&D is about stories,” he says.

The game also gives him and the adults who volunteer as dungeon masters to run the games a way to explore issues outside the games themselves.

“It gives us chances to explore why things happen the way they do in a game, the moral choices characters make,” Thiessen says.

After the games, there can be a time to debrief and talk about what happened.

Nathan Christmas, 18, is a volunteer dungeon master at River East. For him, D&D is a core way to bring youth together in a fun activity.

“It’s a space where youth can get together and tell stories. It builds conversation, improv and critical thinking skills,” he says.

For Kiana, one of the youth playing the game, it’s an opportunity to be with friends and “be in a different world.” For Jaden, it’s about “creating new worlds and stories with friends.”

Another congregation using D&D is FaithWorks, an independent church that meets on the campus of Canadian Mennonite University.

It’s organized by Christopher Neufeld, 42, who wasn’t allowed to play the game as a child, owing to some sort of “ambiguous evil” that was said to surround it.

In high school, he started to play with friends. Today he uses it as a way to engage young adults in the congregation; he hopes to start another game for youth in the church, too.

“It’s a connecting point with the church for some of them. Something in common we can do together,” he says.

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