I've never played or had any desire to play Dungeons & Dragons or any other fantasy role-playing game, but I remember when the game was at the peak of its popularity in the 1980s. One of the few times I ever watched Sally Jessy Raphael's tabloid television show was when she had an episode on D&D in 1989. One of her guests was Paul Valentine, founder of the World Church of Satanic Liberation, and even he said that Dungeons & Dragons could be dangerous for players if they had an evil Dungeon Master. Christians warned against the game in those days, but now there are at least two churches in Winnipeg that use D&D as part of youth "ministry."
There's an old saying, attributed to various people, "What you win them with is what you win them to," or "What wins them is what keeps them." If you use Dungeons & Dragons to attract young people to church, that's what you're winning them to, and what will keep them in church. When I read of the nonsense described in the following article, it makes me more grateful that the Lord saved me when He did. As reported by John Longhurst in the Winnipeg Free Press, October 16, 2024 (photos by Mr. Longhurst):
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.
I remember the "satanic panic" in the '80s, which included accusations of "backmasking" in rock music recordings in the early years of the decade, and accusations of satanic ritual abuse and murder toward the end of the decade. The latter peaked from about 1988-1992, and faded away when evidence mounted that many of the accounts were the result of false memories. I believe the concerns about Dungeons & Dragons, however, are legitimate. A good book on the subject from a Christian perspective is Playing with Fire by John Weldon and James Bjornstad (1984).
December 30, 2024 update: This isn't happening only in the capital of Manitoba, but also in the capital of Rhode Island; as reported by Jonny Williams of the Providence Journal, December 28, 2024 (bold, links, photos in original):
PROVIDENCE – On a recent overcast afternoon on the second floor of a brick building on Bassett Street, a fierce battle raged. Fireballs soared across the room, magic zipped through the air and sharp claws ripped at people’s clothes and flesh.I don't know if Dungeons & Dragons has changed over the last 40 years--I suspect not--but what has changed is that Evangelicalism has noticeably become more worldly and less discerning.
This was, of course, no ordinary battle. Fire was not actually involved – no sprinklers went off, thankfully – and though spells were chanted, no supernatural forces invaded the space.
This was Dungeons & Dragons (D&D), a tabletop role-playing game where players suspend reality and for a few hours take on a fantastical identity as a barbarian, a bard, a ranger, a rogue, a warlock or a wizard – to name a few of the classes players can choose – and go on intrepid adventures.
A few minutes into the battle, however, the group paused the game and did something unusual: They bowed their heads and prayed. One of the party’s members had to step out of the skirmish to help care for a family member who was sick. Before he left, the group wanted to pray for him and his family.
Origins of Dungeons & Dragons 50 years ago
If the battle was unusual, the setting was odder still. The venue was not a crowded kitchen table but the administrative offices of an evangelical church in Providence. D&D, created 50 years ago in the basement of a game designer in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, has not always enjoyed a cordial relationship with Christianity.
The game began as a niche pastime among war gamers – people who played battle simulations with figurines – but it exploded in popularity during the Satanic Panic, a period of time in the 1980s filled with paranoia over rumored satanic rituals. D&D got swept up in the panic, gaining notoriety among conservative Christians who associated the game with the occult. What was often left out of the discussion was the fact that D&D’s creators, Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson, were both Christians themselves.
These days, however, D&D has shed much of the stigma associated with it, and some churches are turning to the game as an outreach tool to bring in nonbelievers.
Sanctuary, a church that meets at 15 Hayes St., is one of them. Mike Valdes, a lay leader at the church, says he and others were – in this case truly – supernaturally compelled to experiment with D&D as a form of ministry.
“We felt like God was actually kind of leading it. It wasn’t merely an idea, but something he wanted us to pursue,” Valdes said.
From left, Hannah Enos, Dungeon Master Mike Valdes, David DiPilato and Autumn Beaudoin play a game of Dungeons & Dragons at the Sanctuary church office in Providence. (Photo credit: Kris Craig, The Providence Journal)
An entry point for those uncomfortable with religion
For some people, church may not be a place where they feel comfortable or welcome, but a D&D game can break some of those barriers.
“Seeing that there are many people who would not want to step into the walls of a church but would totally be down to play D&D, we just saw a couple pieces coming together,” Valdes said. “This could be a way to create a community space for people to be in the room with people of faith but in a way that felt safer or more accessible.”
The ministry is still in a beta-testing phase, though about 50 people have expressed interest in participating. Valdes and other dungeon masters – who organize the game sessions, play side characters and guide the story – hosted two separate campaigns with a few players this year. The storylines eventually merged in a Marvel Cinematic Universe-style grand battle in the feywild, a parallel plane infused with magic and inhabited by sylvan creatures.
Dungeons & Dragons game pieces in play on the board. (Photo credit: Kris Craig, The Providence Journal)
An ogre game piece in Dungeons & Dragons. Providence's Sanctuary church is beta-testing the game as a way to welcome people who might not be comfortable in a traditional church setting. (Photo credit: Kris Craig, The Providence Journal)
Not just fun and games
People who play the game often see potential for more than just a fun time.
Jocelyn Bell is one of the players who has been beta-testing the idea. She plays as a level-four water genasi, a type of elemental genie. Like many Christians, she grew up in a religious community where D&D was taboo.
“I was in a church environment as a kid that equated Dungeons and Dragons with [the] demonic,” Bell said.
Bell is now a fan of fantasy, and she even found a way to incorporate D&D in her work. A sociology professor, she uses D&D and fantasy as tools to teach her students about social justice.
Gabrielle Neel is another player who has helped Valdes with the beta-testing. A librarian, Neel has used D&D as a therapeutic tool to help children with autism and special needs express themselves. Research has shown that playing D&D can have salubrious effects on a person’s mental health.
Some Christians may still not feel entirely comfortable playing D&D. The game has fiendish monsters and dark magic, elements that have been frowned upon in more conservative religious circles.
But Valdes said the group has taken its time to explore these aspects of the game in a safe way, and the leaders are always praying for wisdom on how to best use D&D as an opportunity for ministry.
This much was evident in the upper room on Bassett Street. As the game started, Valdes prayed, “[God], be another player at the table, and we dedicate this time to you and invite you to be present and active among us.”
The Dungeons & Dragons player handbook. Once condemned by conservative Christians for its association with the occult, the game has since shed much of its former stigma. (Photo credit: Kris Craig, The Providence Journal)
