In our post-Christian world, we have forgotten certain things. Such as the fact that, throughout much of its bloody history, mankind has worshiped some horrific beings, gods of death and destruction with ghastly, grisly rites. Suppressed, thankfully, by the triumph of Christendom. Though the pagan Romans deserve a little credit for ending the rites of Carthage. Alas, that they duplicated those rites in their own way...
The post-Christian world thinks it has said goodbye to both Christianity and its predecessors. Don't be so sure. Supernature abhors a vacuum, too.
It's also worthwhile to ponder the reaction of the website to this horrid crime. Note the annoyance of one of the website's contributors, who seems peeved to even have to address the thing. There's a contractual obligation note of condolence, at the end, but it's otherwise a cold defense of the site. Not a hint of soul searching, suggesting the writer's might be shriveled a bit.
I guess I need to address this because it is now relevant. If you
haven't heard already, two 12-year-old Wisconsin girls attempted to
murder one of their classmates because they were inspired by the
Slenderman mythology. I won't go much into details, so here is the
article of the story.
According to the story, the girls read about Slenderman here on
this wiki, and of course the usual response lead to hostility and
blaming towards the wiki by some "very concerned parents". Some calling
for the censorship and shutdown of the wiki.
Will these people succeed on their quest? Most likely not. These
are the same people who think violent video games help create mass
murderers, because it is convenient to blame and point fingers.
Besides the backlash, this incident shows what happens when the
line of fiction and reality ceases to exist. When a person truly
believes that Internet short stories are cold hard facts. When a person
attempts to replicate works of fiction to the point others are harmed.
And for this, I'm going to make myself loud and clear:
ALL WORKS PRESENTED ON THIS WIKI AND OTHER SITES (INCLUDING
SLENDERMAN, JEFF THE KILLER, BEN, SONIC.EXE, ETC) ARE FICTIONAL STORIES
AND CHARACTERS
Of course, only a small minority of people (mostly newcomers) on
the wiki (and the Internet) truly believe what they read here. And for
most people, they will not attempt replicate atrocities presented in
some of the literature on the wiki. Something like this was bound to
happen, considering the size of the Creepypasta community. All it takes
is one person to do something insane and radical in the name of someone
or something.
This is an isolated incident, and does not represent or attribute
the Creepypasta community as a whole. This wiki does not endorse or
advocate for the killing, worship, and otherwise replication of rituals
of fictional works. There is a line of between fiction and reality, and
it is up to you to realize where the line is. We are a literature site,
not a crazy satanic cult.
For most of you reading this, you're probably thinking this is a
no-brainier that stories here are mere fiction and know that they are
just mere fiction. This blog addresses to newcomers and "die-hard
believers", who will otherwise, likely to believe in these stories.
Hopefully, the gruesome crime that happened in Wisconsin will not
repeat itself again, and our hearts go out to the families affected by
this crime.
Translation? "Somebody else's problem." Feel the solidarity.
Hey, at least individual creativity is upheld, dude. Ah, nihilism (language warning):
A middle-aged husband, father, bibliophile and history enthusiast commenting to no one in particular.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
New digs for ponderings about Levantine Christianity.
The interior of Saint Paul Melkite Greek Catholic Church, Harissa, Lebanon. I have decided to set up a Substack exploring Eastern Christi...
-
Edward Feser is an admirable thinker and superb digital pugilist. He makes the Thomist case with considerable energy, and is a welcome read....
-
A couple secrets, actually. The first is Lebanese and Syrian cooking. At our new Melkite parish, the Divine Liturgy has been followed by Len...
Always makes me think of the Salem Witch Trials. When Puritans who were so sure they had mapped out the entire universe found themselves floored by the active imagination of their girls who lived next to the dark woods.
ReplyDeleteI'm just happy to have the understanding that Catholic maturity has, and only Catholic maturity has, of a healthy respect for the supernatural.
Man, you gotta be careful what you invite in to you life -- whether you believe in "supernatural" or "Jesus". How many dumb clucks get whacked by playing with Ouiji boards. Geez...Here are some valid quotes.
ReplyDelete"You're gonna have to serve somebody
Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord
But you're gonna have to serve somebody."
- Bob Dylan
"If we cease to call God down upon our altars, demons will inexorably occupy the altars."
-Rabbi Herschel