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Pokemon and Religion

DragonMaster Azyo

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17
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  • Seen Jul 22, 2006
Ok this question has really been bothering me for a few years now and no one person can give me a sraight answer to it. Ok so heres the question, Why do some strongly religous parents try their hardest to keep their children away from pokemon? I can see Yu-Gi-Oh with all the dark stuff in it and sacrifices and tributes and what not but why pokemon?
 
Sylphiel

Sylphiel

13,131
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Other Chat is really more for things that don't have a forum to themselves...and there are forums that deal with pokemon, so this would fit better in one of those. Pokemon General seems like the best place for this, so...

*moves*
 

Jorah

What do I put here?
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You mean why is pokemon the target? The same reason a lot of other popular things are targeted...because they're popular (not the whole reason, obviously, but it is why it is targeted over other things) You see it with Harry Potter, too. There are much worse things than Harry Potter around, but because it's so well known they make that their main target for "consorting with the devil" section. They want to make an example of it...um *can't think how to explain it* Its easier to target the biggar and more popular things than it is to target the not so popular things. Whose going to care about a second rate programme that hardly anyone knows when they could target a huge corperation that's popular instead? Its going to give the popular thing AND the religious people more attention.

(I'm not saying that Yu-Gi-Oh is the second rate programme btw) Its just easier for them to take a topic and get their main target rather than going against loads.

Well, this is just my opinion anyway.
 

Krafty Quill

Banned
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My guess would be that it probably has to do with rumours. When parents read all these crazy stories about Pokémon being evil and making children do devilish things like commtting suicide they take action that they believe will ultimatley protect their children and start causing havoc for the program to be cancelled. This plus, I agree with Jorah said. They say you know that you are popular when the tabloids have a story about you.

Either that or the parents are just jealous that the children are having so much fun and they want to ban it forever XD
 

Zelos

*yawn*
1,377
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Yes, I pretty much agree with what Jorah and Krafty said.

There's no way anyone can look at Pokemon and think "That shows about the devil! Be need to ban it!" Pokemon is very popular, and like Jorah said, that's probably why they target it.

Oh, and that stupid thing about the Pokemon theme being played backwards sounds like devil music is crap. XD
 

~Patrick~

166
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I think it's because they don't want they're children to get so caught up in Pokemon or (Yugioh..etc) that they'll pay less and less attention to their religion so that's why they try to restrict it.
 

Gary the Magic Fairy

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They want to keep their children away becuse they're ignorant, they don't realise that pokemon has nothing to do with their religion. They also think it's violent. That shows that they've never played a pokemon game(or watched their kid play one), nor actually watched an episode. They're too busy making their asinine speculations about something they don't understand.
 

PikaRom

The Punk Nerd
75
Posts
17
Years
I agree with gs. Some parents just don't understand. If you actually watch an episode, you can see that there is a moral trying to be taught in most episodes. A Pokemon book that my parents bought me in '01 had a giant list of morals that major episodes teach kids. One must keep his morals, right?
 

miyo

grass pokemon trainer
676
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17
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Actually, my guess is very simple.. it's just the basic fact that pokemon are monsters (pocket monsters). I once heard someone telling me that digimon is not good because of the word 'monster'.. and that goes the same for pokemon too.. so 'monster' might be a reason too
 

Kraka-chan

From the Kraka Club
679
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17
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I agree with those of you who say it has something to do with the Cartoon Violence. This is old news btw, but certain shops (ELC) wouldn't sell Pokemon merchandise because they were considered violent.

I also think this is to do with the parents not being able to know the other Pokemon names other than Pikachu <sniggers>. I know this is a serious issue, but I thought it might need something original.
 

ArKiVe

Back In Black
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  • Age 33
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Strongly religious people take things way out of porportion. Pokemon is about pokemon hurting other pokemon in battles. It won't tell kids to go out and sick their dog on another dog. LOL. I've read some religious articles on Pokemon a couple years ago and I kinda think it's insane. A lot of people complain though just to get attention.
 

miyo

grass pokemon trainer
676
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17
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actually, would it work if their parents see how cute some pokemon are? like say.. pikachu? my parents found it cute, and when they saw me watching pokemon, they'd say "oh.. hey, there's pikachu.. quite cute.." :)
 

Jorah

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Oh, well some of the reasons that some religions dislike pokemon are that

1. Pokeballs are "magical"
2. Pokemon are "magical" creatures with supernatural powers
3. Its contridcts their view on how the world was created i.e. the theory of evolution. Pokemon evolve so this disagrees with their views
4. Not completly religious, but some people see it as animal cruelty

Yeah, I know that pokeballs are actually technology, so don't ask me about the magic thing. I only know most of this stuff because I've tried to find out why other things (like Harry Potter) are supposed to be about the devil. Its not that anyone in my family are religious, I've just researched it...
 

Gary the Magic Fairy

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1. Pokeballs are "magical"
Click to expand...
The reason they think that is because they are ignorant, if they played a game, they would know that its not "Evil Magic", its advanced technology.
2. Pokemon are "magical" creatures with supernatural powers
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Ignorance. See above.
3. Its contridcts their view on how the world was created i.e. the theory of evolution. Pokemon evolve so this disagrees with their views
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"OMG!1!! That caterpillar just evolved into a cocoon! You're all going to hell!!!1!11!" *lol*
4. Not completly religious, but some people see it as animal cruelty
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Its not cruel, because they want to fight, your not forcing them to fight. And its not a fight to the death either, just until one of them gets too tired to continue.
 

PikaRom

The Punk Nerd
75
Posts
17
Years
The same ignorance goes for evolution stones. Just because you touch a Thunder Stone to a Pikachu and it turns it into something completely different, doesn't mean that you are in league with Satan or something like that. Most parents don't exactly have time to play video games, however some parents seem to take many things too seriously. It's a harmless cartoon with nothing really satanic or something like that.
"OMG!1!! That caterpillar just evolved into a cocoon! You're all going to hell!!!1!11!
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- lol nice:laugh:
 

Chiru

I dun use this account any mo'
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This is going to be a loooong post.

Quoted from http://www.cephasministry.com/save_our_children_pokemon_booklet.html


The Pokemon mania supports a financial conglomerate that knows how to feed the frenzy. The television series is free, but it drives the multi-billion dollar business. It also inspires the obsessive new games that disrupt schools and families by giving the children --

a seductive vision: to become Pokemon masters
a tempting promise: supernatural power
a new objective: keep collecting Pokemon
an urgent command: "gotta catch them all"

These enticements are drilled into young minds through clever ads, snappy slogans, and the "Pokeman rap" at the end of each TV episode:

"I will travel across the land
Searching far and wide
Each Pokeman to understand
The power that's inside.
Gotta catch them all!"

The last line, the Pokemon mantra, fuels the craving for more occult cards, games, toys, gadgets, and comic books. There's no end to the supply, for where the Pokemon world ends, there beckons an ever-growing empire of new, more thrilling, occult, and violent products. Each can transport the child into a fantasy world that eventually seems far more normal and exciting than the real world. Here, evil looks good and good is dismissed as boring. Family, relationships, and responsibilities diminish in the wake of the social and media pressures to master the powers unleashed by the massive global entertainment industry.
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It seems to me that these people need to realize that we aren't even taking it as seriously as they are. If your kids are going to become THAT obsessed with a stupid game, they probably shouldn't be playing it at all. I never really thought that whole "Gotta Catch 'Em All" thing was cool, I just thought it was a cheesy slogan.

"But what is a Pokemon, you ask. 'Pokemon are incredible creatures that share the world with humans,' says Professor Oak, the leading authority on these monsters. "There are currently 150 documented species of Pokemon. . . . Each Pokemon has its own special fighting abilities. . . . Some grow, or evolve, into even more powerful creatures.. . . Carry your pokemon with you, and you're ready for anything! You've got the power in your hands, so use it!". " 3

What if children try to follow this advice? What if they carry their favorite monsters like magical charms or fetishes in their pockets, trusting them to bring power in times of need?
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LOLZORS I'M GONNA USE MY CHARAZARD TO KILLZ YOO!!!!! *throws plastic Pokeball*


Later, during a recent party for Matthew, Barbara heard two of the boys discussing their little pocket monsters. One said, "I'll just use my psychic powers." Already, the world of fantasy had colored his real world. So when some of the kids wanted to watch the afternoon Pokemon cartoon on television, Barb again had to say "no." It's not easy to be parents these days.
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It's called IMAGINATION, dude. Your childhood must have sucked.

You may have recognized those preceding terms as those often used by behavioral psychologists. They point to a sophisticated system of operant conditioning or behavior modification. The child must exercise his own intelligent mind to learn the complex rules. But after learning the rules, the programmed stimuli produce conditioned responses in the player. These responses become increasingly automatic, a reflex action. Naturally, this can leads to psychological addiction, a craving for ever greater (and more expensive) thrills and darker forces.
Click to expand...

Well, if you consider this awesome little Skitty keychain and season 1 DVD 'greater dark forces'...

3. To teach young children a Biblical attitude toward evil before they learn to delight in gross, ugly characters, make comments such as, "Who would want to play with that evil monster? I don't even like to look at him. Let's find something that makes us feel happy inside."
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ROTFLMFAO!!!!!!!!! I KNOW, LET'S WATCH REN AND STIMPY! HAPPY HAPPY JOY JOY HAPPY HAPPY JOY JOY HAPPY HAPPY JOY JOY HAPPY HAPPY JOY JOY HAPPY HAPPY JOY JOY HAPPY HAPPY JOY JOY HAPPY HAPPY JOY JOY HAPPY HAPPY JOY JOY HAPPY HAPPY JOY JOY HAPPY HAPPY JOY JOY HAPPY HAPPY JOY JOY HAPPY HAPPY JOY JOY HAPPY HAPPY JOY JOY HAPPY HAPPY JOY JOY

Could Pok_mon influence the children who play it? I pray that it does not happen, but I wonder how long it will be before a grade school child, tries to do what is written on the Weepingbell - Razor Leaf Pok_mon card. It says, "It spits out poisonpowder to immobilize the enemy, and then finishes the enemy with a spray of acid."
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...yeah, if a grade schooler is spitting poison and acid on people, they probably do need help.

Meh, I'm tired of this now. Just so you know where I stand and stuff. I am not a religious person and I don't really care what other people worship, as long as you don't go all out showing crap like this up everyone's asses.
 
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Jeremy

<font color="deepskyblue">Sweetie</font>
4,728
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20
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Sweetie, the most logical explanition to ALL of this is that
Spoiler:


But what I don't understand is why Yu-Gi-Oh! hasn't gotten this much stupid religious contraversity:

"Oh look, that evil looking kid sacraficed 2 scary demon like monsters for a magician that uses black magic. Nothing wrong here!"

"That kid threw a ball and an orange dragon came out of it. It's OBVIOUSLY devil worship!"
 

Exokriz

Delete.
305
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17
Years
I had a preacher at my old church say this "Pokemon is of the devil" he said that in front of the church and said that "Pokemon were demonic creatures" apparently, he had never seen the cartoon. Anyways, like Jorah said,
they make that their main target for "consorting with the devil" section
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I think most of it is because they can deal with kids popularity going towards something really cool. They go by what rumors say and don't experience it before they go ranting and raving about how bad it is. There is nothing wrong with Pokemon, Yu-gi-oh, or Harry Potter.
 

MasterWGS

Impossible=Nothing, Mewtwo=OU
368
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  • Age 35
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One of my friends was banned from Pokemon, and here's why: The Psychic type.

His household (like mine and myself) was of the Christian religion. However, once his parents heard that there was a Psychic type (for those who don't know, we Christians don't believe in Telekinetic abilities or anything of the mind reading/future seeing sort), they felt that it encouraged this belief in psychic powers.

Of course, I strongly disagreed, but there was nothing I, nor my friend, could do.
 
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