An Insight to my religious bliefs and my gaming habbits in response to Kotaku's Article regarding BioShock's Forced Baptism.
When I played through BioShock Infinite and got to the Water Baptism part at the beginning of the game, I wasn't offended and I'll tell you why. I am a Bible believing Christian. I believe that Jesus Christ is my Lord and Savior. The game works off of SOME Christian Ideology but alot of it is twisted as we see in our world today. I can understand if somebody is offended by accepting a false Baptism, in a video game, under false names. What they need to understand though going into the game is that. It is a video game. It has a made up story about a City in the Sky. The opening into the city hits the basis for the story that surrounds their 'Prophet' Comstock. Without going into the story and spoiling it too much. Right at the beginning of the game you find out that Comstock is their 'Prophet' for their city. He led the people from the 'Sodom' below. Meaning the ground to the sky obviously.
Christianity teaches us that Jesus is the one way, the truth and the life. That nobody shall come to the father, God, but by Jesus. Under these circumstances I can understand if somebody was offended a little by being forced, in a video game, to accept a false Baptism under false names. Specifically, "In the name of our Prophet, In the name of our Fathers and in the name of our Lord". What I believe is really wrong here though is that somebody is looking to be offended by anything nowadays.
I believe Booker Dewitt has a better understanding of the Bible than most people think going into the beginning of this game. Right after the Baptism, and you are walking into the city for the first time, Booker says "Just 'cause a city flies don't mean it ain't got it's fair share of fools." If anything people would be offended by this line saying that he believes 'Religion' is all foolish in itself. When I believe, when he made this statement, he was talking about the Baptism being false. Or them literally worshipping Benjamin Franklin and George Washington. That odd Baptism at the beginning of the game is a basis for the entire story leading up to the end. I will not spoil the ending for anybody but there's a reason why there's a Baptism at the beginning of the game. The ending tells all and it really is a great ending to the story.
But that's all it is. A story. As Christians we need to stop looking to be offended by the things all around us and do what we were told. Teach people about the actual truth. I don't think people will start worshipping George Washington and Benjamin Franklin as a result of this game. No matter how funny that sounds. lol
Personally I didn't let that area at the beginning offend me and I think it shouldn't offend anybody else. I mean, it really is odd to see statues of Washington holding a key anyway.