The Fall of Man
Game-playing, in and out of church
MIKE SILICZ STAFF
Oh the humanity! In what can only be described as a “virtual” desecration, the Chuch of England has condemned entertainment giant Sony for a video game that depicts graphic scecnes of violence. The game in question, Resistance: Fall of Man by Insomniac Games for the PlayStation 3, features a violent and bloody gunfight that takes place within a accurate replica of the Manchester Cathedral. But is this situation truly a crisis of biblical proportions as the Anglican Church contends it is?
Church of England officials have been strong in their denunciation of Sony and Resistance. The Bishop of Manchester, Nigel McCulloch, says that “for a global manufacturer to re-create one of our great Cathedrals with photo-realistic quality and then encourage people to have gun battles in the building is beyond belief and highly irresponsible.” As penance for Sony’s actions, the Church of England has demanded that Sony issue an apology to the Church of England, that Resistance be pulled from store shelves and purged of the Cathedral scene, and that Sony donate money to the Church’s youth program to repent for their terrible sins. Failure for Sony to comply, warns the Church, may result in a lawsuit (and possibly being damned to the fiery pits of hell for eternity).
But is this response by the Church of England justified? In the British context, there is a substantial problem with youth violence in the greater Manchester area, which the Anglican Church helps solve by funding youth programs to keep kids safe. As well, Church officials are alarmed at the “photo-realistic” reproduction of the church. Still, despite these problems, does the Church of England have a legitimate complaint regarding Sony and their sacreligious actions? Should Sony repent for their blasphemous sins?
Of course not! Sony has done nothing more than exercise their freedom of expression. While it would have perhaps been more tasteful to avoid depicting a fight in the Manchester Cathedral, there is absolutely no reason whatsoever for Sony or Insomniac Games to have to apologize for anything.
To begin with, a quick background check into Resistance reveals that it is a “video game” that takes place in the fantastic world of make-believe; and that depicted therein are nothing more than scenes of “fiction.” Commonly found in other forms of entertainment such as books, televesion, and cinema, “fiction” allows people to pretend and dream about what could be, without the negative consequences that such situations could incur in real life. That Sony should apologize for their right to freedom of expression is akin to taking an anthill and turning into a mountain.
Worse, should Sony be successfully sued by the Anglican Church, a dangerous precedent would be set for freedom of expression everywhere. What is the difference between condemning this and an Ayatollah in Iran issuing fatwas against authors who write negative books about Islam? Luckily, it seems extremely unlikely that a court could possibly rule on the Church’s side. Other video games feature racism against Italian-American plumbers with mustaches and animal cruelty against blue hedgehogs; yet no legal action has yet to succeed on these more factual accounts. It is unlikely this situation will set any future precedent.
What’s even more comical is the actual situation in the game where the violence is depicted. Again, returning to this wonderful world of make-believe, Resistance takes place in an alternate universe set in the year 1951. Following the First World War, this alternate world enters an era of peace, where the Great Depression, the Second World War, and the rise of Russian Communism never occur. Instead, Earth is invaded by a mysterious race of aliens, which the player fights against throughout the game. The actual “violence” in the Cathedral occurs as the hero of the game is liberating the holy shrine from the aliens that have taken it over. So, be careful what you wish for Anglican Church. If the Earth is invaded by aliens in the near future, the Manchester Cathedral will definetely be the last place I come liberate from alien scum!
Religious institutions have always had trouble confronting modernity. From Martin Luther nailing his 95 grievances to the cathedral door, all the way to a Catholic Church’s handling of liberation theology and birth control, most religions have trouble adaptnig their dogmatic understandings of the world to the realities of the present. While the Anglican Church may be offended with how one of its cathedrals has been depicted in a video game, it needs to realize that there was no disparaging intent behind it. What is most sad about this situation is that the targeted demographic playing Resistance — mainly 15- to 30-year-olds raised in the information age — are more than intelligent enough to be able to differentiate reality from fiction. Perhaps it is time for the Anglican Church to do the same.
Mike Silicz is comment editor of the Manitoban, and has a background in history, political studies, and law.
