Who Speaks for a Religion?: Crash Course Religions #16

[@crashcourse]

In this episode we claimed that a Cleric's most important stat in D&D is Charisma -- it's actually wisdom. We blame the dice on that one

[@nebulan]

I like that the animator showed correct cleric stats

[@MilestonePlay]

The claim in the video is actually correct! While Wisdom is the most important ability score for clerics for spellcasting, Charisma is the ability score for presence, force of personality, leadership, and generally swaying the thoughts and opinions of others. The same arguments you make throughout the video for charismatic leaders also holds true in D&D.

[@bainuo]

"And the child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, filled with wisdom: and the grace of God was upon him. ... And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man." (Luke 2:40 & 52) There you have it, Jesus was a cleric.

[@ikeu6433]

The speed with which I ran to the comment section to correct this 😂

[@jimmymcpherson2679]

Jesus would have the artificer initiate feat to get proficiency in Carpenter's tools.

[@jessemorse5418]

Not to be that nerd, but I would like to point out that the clerics' primary stat in d&d is wisdom.

[@Element108Hs]

Um actually, in D&D 5e, clerics get their spellcasting power from the Wisdom stat! If Ify Nwadiwe is somehow in the comments, does that get me a point???

[@candibee8918]

This is one of my favourite Crash Course Series’ so far for its academic but accessible approach, and also it’s just really funny! As an Indigenous person who comes from a culture which is heavily influenced by Catholicism but also infuses our ancient traditions, I am super interested in how colonial religions are practiced by Indigenous peoples around the world. I’m sure these episodes are planned well in advance, but just a food for thought!

[@RichardDiazWright]

I'm a Baha'i and we choose the people who fulfil administrative roles through democratic voting. We also have no clergy.

[@dmpower4088]

Hate to be that guy, but... charisma focused class, magic inherent by a powerful ancestor.. he's a sorcerer.

[@HookupCulture]

Jesus has his power as the result of a covenant with the Jewish God, and at the time the religion was small enough that it could be called a cult. He was a Warlock, who became a Cleric when the Christian God became prolific enough to be recognized.

[@PacifistDungeonMaster]

Alternatively: charisma-class with magic derived from a relationship with an ancient, all-knowing entity who commands legions of eldritch horrors (biblically-accurate angels)... he's a warlock.

[@corsaircaruso471]

To be fair, he is the Son of God. Divine Soul Sorcerer if ever I heard one.

[@Arahathan]

Or a divine warlock homebrew?

[@unicorntamer2207]

You have a point there. But Celestial Warlocks can bring themselves back from the dead.

[@Imustscream]

I like the fact that you used the main target of the satanic panic of the 80s to illustrate a point about Christ. I judge religions on how they treated me as a D&D player in the 80s…there’s a lot I hold in low regard.

[@parkerbond9400]

Good KZbinrs usually have high charisma, but the brothers Green have maxed out charisma

[@jend822]

+

[@laurellyesnot-animations6273]

I have to say as someone who is questioning religion and figuring out what I believe (raised non denominational Christian, with some Jewish practices potentially converting to judaism but also I dabble in tarot and use a pendulum), I REALLY appreciate how no religion gets a preferential treatment. Everything is presented as is with very little to no bias at all. It's truly refreshing. Thank you guys for all you do, these videos are the highlight of my week

[@7edartheq787]

Charisma, uniqueness, nerve and talent. That's the answer.

[@Caterfree10]

I really love the section on lived religion tbqh. Like, yes I am technically Christian, but I’m also part of the LGBTQ community and I also love my tarot cards, two aspects that are in conflict with the conservative interpretations of my religion. And yet, as far as I’m concerned, my bisexuality and transness are part of the journey God laid out for me, and the tarot cards are tools to help me with perspective seeking when I’m having issues and my standard help paths aren’t being as useful and clear as they could be, among other things. I may have grown up under leaders who denounced both LGBTQ folks and tarot, but I have come to my own conclusions on these matters in context with actually looking at the parts of the Bible that would supposedly condemn me for these things.

[@Marylandbrony]

I can't believe Crash Course made a video about Rizz.

[@Corvus-fw2hr]

Great video. Religions tend to not be monolithic. It feels like a feature, not a bug. As a Christian I can firmly believe that God is unchanging, but that Christianity can still be dynamic. Because it has.

[@jonahadams7906]

John you would probably find interesting my synagogue, the South Philly Shtiebel, which is Orthodox & Progressive. It is led by a woman Rabbi (Rabbanit) but she has male lay leaders do some things she can’t, men & women are separated but there is also a section for non-binary members, and more.

[@Ftalmeida73]

Jesus alignment as chaotic good got me LOLing.🤣🤣🤣

[@CarlosRodriguez-dh7mm]

Now I wanna do a DnD campaign featuring a party of gods and demigods

[@EayuProuxm]

"For sale. Baby shoes. Never Worn." Doesn't hold a candle too "A middle aged Tiktok influencer"

[@rmdodsonbills]

As for the topic of the next episode, I've come to the conclusion that "What happens to us after we die?" is an irrelevant question. Regardless of whatever post-death paradigm there is, what matters is how we live our lives on Earth. Even Jesus specifically taught that what we should pray for is that the kingdom of heaven and God's will be done on Earth. Even for people who don't believe in any kind of afterlife, there is benefit to all of us individually and as a society to live on an Earth where people care about each other and try to help, even when they don't like other people.

[@Jenjen-mo3mz]

"You come to Crash Course for answers and we're gonna provide them. Just kidding; we're not." 😂😂😂 Love it!!!

[@jmsl_910]

"the invention of lying" is a fun & hiddenly thoughtful movie on this very topic.

[@jend822]

Thoroughly enjoying CC Religions. 👏🏻👏🏻

[@quietlioness2575]

“Where does religious authority come from?” Fascinating! I had been thinking on this, not for Tik Tok but “Instagram prophets”. I grew up Pentecostal/Charistmatic Black church. This last election cycle there were “prophets” speaking this or that. And it began to make me question… they have a following, but what church are they based out of? Do they have that traditional authority? Are they ordained? Your video covered this so well. That authority can come from the bottom or the top.❤

[@shawnholbrook7278]

Charismatic might also refer to a Holy Spirit movement that my Grandma told me about, way back in the 70's. I like that memory.

[@TheJNF]

John - I love you bro. You inspire me to learn more.

[@SHDUStudios]

I love how all the comments are about D&D. I knew that my interest in religious studies and obsession with D&D would somehow meet.

[@nias3202]

Thank you. And a happy new year ☯❤🌻

[@Reddyne]

Jesus pulling off the exceedingly rare cleric/monk/sorcerer multiclass build is a miracle in and of itself.

[@jamestrimbath]

I love this series!!!

[@Miranda-i4c]

Ya know John, this video helps me better roleplay the religion of our campaign setting’s NPCs- 🙏

[@anthonykandarah7802]

Smashing content as usual. Touching on the separation of church and state would also be good to see in the political theory series. Lastly, I'm curious about wars waged on religious grounds in the past and present. And why the Abrahamic Religions appeal to so many people (is it in human nature to want to conquer or at least compete?)

[@Personal-TVstation]

I've heard that Quakerism is distinct for not really doing clerical hierarchies and being a historical 'trailblazer' for something of a female leadership presence is noteworthy

[@asmamays3420]

Nice explanation, i wish you talked a bit more about islam since i wanted to see how you analyze it

[@TheDanEdwards]

Very big problem running all through this course is the lack of reference to modern scholarship on specific religions. E.g., Green keeps referring to gospel events/descriptions for Jesus without acknowledging that *critical academic scholars of the NT have concluded that the gospels are not historical chronicles.* That is, the events in the gospels (canonical or not) likely did not happen, and there is no support for the assertion that the words put into the _character_ of Jesus in these stories are actual words of an actual person.

[@AliCatWrites]

I am fighting the urge to be an extreme D&D nerd right now. IYKYK

[@lucaspopp5451]

2:32 who is the shaman with the cloak??

[@unicorntamer2207]

Hey John Green! My hubby, who is also a DnD nerd, says that with Jesus's charisma stats and his divine powers, he would be a warlock. Specifically, a Celestial warlock.

[@sudarshanseshadri5504]

We’re so back

[@justicar347]

Everybody talking about how clerics use wisdom, not charisma, and here I am focused on Robinhood being a ranger, not a rogue.

[@ryanbox4]

I kinda imagine a dark paladin class wise. Somewhere in the same vein as a Knights Hospitaller.

[@michaeljhaas]

UMMM ACTUALLY clerics use wisdom as their spell-casting modifier 😂 Jesus is clearly a sorcerer.

[@dakogolpeter9796]

First video of the year 🎉

[@josher887]

10:42 does the term “layman” come from “laity” or “laypeople”

[@AkDragoon]

I did not hear anything that came after Charisma stat until the end of the intro sequence, as it was just white noise inside my brain...

[@xXxXKusKusXxXx]

A bit of an unfavourable view on the role of the Catholic church in the Inquisition and the formation of Catholic offices. Otherwise, it's a great video, and I think it's important to study what the people in authority of religious institutions have to say about their religion. Our society likes to make up their own mind on everything, but trust me, the experienced priest/monk/imam likely understands their religion much better than you understand it.

[@essgee3236]

Team "Jesus is a bard" here: a bit of magic, much charisma, gift of storytelling... Bard.

[@existenceispain_geekthesiren]

3:01 hard disagree, i would go far as to say he is lawful good. his code of law just didn't align with the authority at the time & place. lawful good also works tho

[@joshhuang2279]

To summarize, this episodes starts off by asking about God’s stats and then proceeds to tell me about authorized rizz

[@gailaltschwager7377]

Thank you!

[@ginaslevinsky8906]

Related to power structures, Santa Muerte and D&D, I greatly look forward to a video on Satanism.

[@4d4mz]

Not to be a nerd like all these other guys, but Jesus also said he did not come to bring peace, but a sword. Also, in Revelation, he is said to have a sword coming from his mouth to defeat the nations.

[@andrewgoh8130]

John: A Cleric's main stat is Charisma. *the entire D&D community rushes to the comments section*

[@LordLuxul]

(Noting the slight error of clerics primary stat being wisdom instead of charisma) If we a still going with Charisma, within the D&D 5E context, Jesus would most likely be a Divine Soul Sorcerer. "Sometimes the spark of magic that fuels a sorcerer comes from a divine source that glimmers within the soul. Having such a blessed soul is a sign that your innate magic might come from a distant but powerful familial connection to a divine being... In some cultures, only those who can claim the power of a Divine Soul may command religious power."

[@lolo2221]

I disagree with the notion that the origin of authority is complicated. To my mind, it *always* comes from below. Formal authority figures can dictate policy and change rules, but if the people who those rules are supposed to apply to disagree then the rules don't matter.

[@davioustube]

Stylish buttonholes, amiright?

[@ryanreynolds7451]

Speaking to massive crowds, conducting acts of amazement and wonder, flipping tables to make a statement…Jesus would have been a Bard! 😂

[@talesoftableiii1584]

I mean the argument still works of you swap cleric woth paladin?

[@NathanGrajek]

Considering Jesus' high charisma and love of lore, he must actually be bard. Then again, Jesus was also wise and devout, so cleric still makes sense too. They both can heal people.

[@keenanarthur8381]

While many conservative orthodox Hindus still adhere to the hereditary caste system outlined in the Manusmṛti (c. 200 CE), others (including my own teachers) hold the opinion that the caste system briefly described in the Ṛg Veda (c. 1500 BCE) was intended to refer to a personal calling (dharma) rather than a familial obligation. Real brāhmaṇas (priests) are knowers of Brahman, the Supreme Reality, through mystical insight via yogic practices, rather than people born into the right family. In addition, in the Bhagavad Gītā, Kṛṣṇa tell us that “Wise ones equipped with humble insight view the divinity in a brāhmaṇa, in a cow, in an elephant, in a dog, and certainly in a dog-eater (outcaste) as equal,” (5:18), and the humble and egalitarian personalities of saints such as the 20th century sage Rāmaṇa Mahārṣi give us clear examples of how enlightened individuals actually treat people of differing social statuses.

[@Twosocks42]

Cleric's gain influence and their abilities through years of meditative devotion--developing their wisdom. I'd call Jesus a Divine Soul Sorcerer--Charismatic and imbued with abilities by his heritage owing from a celestial source.

[@avramlevitter6150]

One of the things Moses very explicitly was *not* was charismatic. That's why he was afraid to speak for the Children of Israel, and why he had his brother Aharon act as his interpreter.

[@JoshuaWolabaugh]

Jesus was a Paladin. Matthew 10:34 "Do not think that I have come to bring peace on earth; I did not come to bring peace, but a sword."

[@FrankJosephHall]

I bet John did not expect that the most amount of negative comments he would receive on a video talking about religion to be about him getting something wrong about Dungeons and Dragons

[@shawnholbrook7278]

um, actually, he is more like a cleric/paladin.. or an avatar or both, at the same time.

[@mkklassicmk3895]

Jesus would be a Cleric with high Wisdom and Constitution stats. His alignment would be Neutral Good. His background would be Artisan. He would be level 9 or 10.

[@shanesullivan460]

No natural hierarchies? Tell that to the Xenomorph Queen.

[@susanbunting6385]

Sorcerers use charisma as their main stst, which I would also say could be Jesus class 100%.

[@steevemartial4084]

He'd probably be a divine soul sorcerer

[@GilTheDragon]

Jesus in christianity would be a divine sorcerer, given how his power emerges from his relationship to his ancestry. Jesus in judaism: bard or warlock Jesus in Islam: bard or cleric Jesus in Neoplatonism: cleric or sorcerer

[@sadib100]

I like Saint Skeleton.

[@kaldishelbryndjar]

You failed your Int check: Religion. Monks and clerics use wisdom, how effectively they use it is charisma and how smart they are about it is intelligence.

[@ViktoryDragon]

Um Actually, Encumbrance in D&D 5e isn't that complicated, it's just annoying and no one uses it, as well as it requires keeping track of the weight of every little thing. Not complicated per se, but certainly more tedious than it's worth. If Ify Nwadiwe or Mike Trapp are reading this, I want my point.

[@state_song_xprt]

you have finally antagonized the most zealous religious fanatics on earth - TTRPG nerds

[@knight-mares]

Was Jesus’ charisma really that high? He only had 12 disciples and one of them betrayed him. I think he just figured out the cult meta and used it to offset his low-mid charisma level.

[@CrescentDolluwu]

How many angry nerds are correcting the D&D stat used for clerics.

[@lancelobato]

calm down everyone! Jesus is multiclass cleric/paladin (obviously) so he maxed out charisma too.

[@naomistarlight6178]

Ooh! Santa Muerte was my Halloween costume for '24 (not sure if I should say this year since that implies the future Halloween, and last year might imply '23? language is hard...)

[@PaulHermanpainter]

You're Christian, John? Do you mean you were born to a Christian culture, or are you among the faithful?

[@Paladin521]

Clearly, Jesus Christ was a Paladin. Or Bard 😂😂

[@owbu]

I know what the top comment is gonna be!

[@turtle4llama]

Jesus is a bard. Paul is a cleric.

[@fireyjon]

5e clerics use wisdom. Divine soul sorcerer is charisma and I think a better fit for Jesus

[@Alexandru_Iacobescu]

+

[@Herr_Vorragender]

Maybe Jesus would have picked the Paladin. Converting heathens by the power of his mighty sword of eternal justice 💪😇⚔ Or maybe he'd pick the Mage. Baptizing those Barbarians with the clensing light 🌩 of his daddy Zeus 💁‍♂ Or he'd pick the Necromancer, slapping the non believers with the New and reformed Necronomicon 📖 whilst reviving back to life again and again and again after every smack and slap he takes to his cheeks. 🤷‍♂

[@ericreativecuts]

Jesus saves. The rest of you take damage.

[@00Linares00]

Jesus is a divine soul sorcerer Clerics use wisdom, not charisma.

[@adherentofladycolumbia725]

An alternative history youtuber on an ayahuasca trip.

[@NoOne-uh9vu]

Turning the other cheek originally meant to not run away from conflict and show your enemy you are ready to fight and are committed to victory

[@dust48s]

Definitely monk

[@matthewchristofferson2832]

I hear chaotic good and I immediately think @TomGrossiComedy The definition of chaotic good.