The Goth community’s relationship with Christianity is often perceived as an odd one-graveyards, pewter cross imagery and darkness, combined potentially with elements that many Christians would probably find inappropriate.
The ties between Goth culture and Christianity go back a long way, to the earliest gothic churches-but given that Goth today generally means something quite different to most people than a committed Christian lifestyle, that tie is not as obvious as it maybe should be.
Additionally, given the fact that certain branches of Christianity (albeit mainly small cult-like organisations and haters) view Goth as akin to worshipping the devil and spread propaganda and shite to this effect, the relationship between modern branches of the religion and Gothism has been somewhat rocky at times.
So, are any meaningful number of today’s Goths Christian, and is Christianity ok with this? I decided to find out.
Based on this Facebook page, Goths for Christ, the answer there is a tentative yes-that page alone has over a thousand likes and plenty of regular posts, and seems to be fulfilling a neat purpose in allowing Christian Goths from all across the world to chat and interact.
I imagine that this is very important for many people, because I reckon that people that count themselves as both practicing Christians and Goths are likely not that common as a whole in the average Goth community.
Got Questions, on the other hand-a website dedicated to addressing some of the FAQ about Christianity, states that:
“A Christian’s viewpoint on the Gothic / Emo movement should be avoidance of the culture’s dark attitudes while still loving those involved in it. Yes, there are definitely certain aspects of the Gothic and Emo subcultures that are incompatible with Christianity, but no more so than similar aspects of mainstream society. These particular communities identify themselves with artistic darkness—darker clothing, darker writing, darker music. In fact, both Goth and Emo originally (and presently) referred to specific music genres with punk roots before they were considered personal styles.”
I find this whole paragraph mildly annoying-it smacks of churches that say that gays are ok, as long as they don’t actually act on their urges.
Additionally, the angle taken by the piece is that Christians should be ok with Goths, with some caveats-but doesn’t really address the issue of people who are Goth but also identify as Christian. While it does say that Goths can be Christians later on in the piece, this seemed like more of a throwaway to me than a meaningful welcome to the faith.
This page on the website of the Christian Research Institute also kind of made me laugh, starting as it does with “Goth (or gothic) culture has been around for about 25 years” LOL ok, maybe take the rest of the piece with a pinch of salt…
Ultimately, where I fall out with organised religion is at the point where people within it take the position of telling other people what is and is not ok, or is or is not Christian, when if you do actually subscribe to Christianity, the reality is that no one is well placed to do this, and every person has to make their own journey and decisions.
Are you a Goth Christian? I’d love to hear about your experiences. Drop me a note in the comments!
I am a Christian and based on my looks it wouldn’t appear that I am as faithful as I am. (@kitty_Lea)
I think the idea of Christianity is portrayed all wrong. Faith and Christianity is a spiritual relationship with Christ… and Christians know that God is LOVE and we’re literally not judged by our choice of clothing or looks.
CHRISTIANS NEED TO STOP JUDGING OTHER PEOPLE, Christian or not. There’s a lot of really awful claimed “Christians” who just mess it all up for us. A human can not tell another human what is right and what is wrong. What is “Christian” and what is not. Anyone who reads the Bible and truly takes it to heart knows this. Some people just want to feel entitled and better than others because they think they have found the cure for cancer (metaphorically speaking. Since God’s love is far beyond a cure for cancer). The world is an evil place and a lot of bad things happen. So those ‘Christians’ seem to take the wrong path and tend to seek more of a cult.
Again, Christianity is a faith and a relationship with our Savior. And all humans are created equally. Every single person on earth sins. There is no measure of how bad sin is and what makes one sin worse than the other. That’s the reason Jesus died on the cross. He took the punishment for ALL our sins. So that we can be saved by putting our faith in Him. That’s it. Not “my sin is less than your because the Bible says blah blah…”. No, just no. Sorry not sorry I’ll roll my eyes so hard at those people.
Read the New Testament if you get a chance. Jesus is love.
▪️My favorite verse is actually in the form of a song by Stacie Orrico – Without Love
Anyhoooooo, I’m going to dress however i want and pierce my face as much as i want, and I’ll paint my eyes black idga*. I really don’t care WHO judges me for it. I have my faith and it is a very personal relationship. Although, I do avoid upside down crosses, 666, ouija boards, or any other obvious demonic symbols..
I’ll listen to some dark music and tune into my emotional disturbances 😅 but also cry to some amazing worship songs that really touch my soul.
Christianity has the stereotype of “judgmental” and entitled.. but a true Christian will accept anyone as another person God loves, has created, placed on this earth. We are not perfect. We all sin. We hurt. We die. But the soul is connected with Christ leading us to eternal life. And it’s the happiest most beautiful thing I have and ever will experience
🤘🏻🖤🤍🤘🏻
Thank you for coming to my Ted talk 😅
As a Christian with a strong appreciation for the Gothic aesthetic, I completely agree with your stance. 🙂
Christ attacked the Pharisees of his day for telling them that rules mean nothing for those who don’t allow God into their heart to guide them. None of us is perfect, and too many in organised religious bodies assume they are for falling in line with doctrine instead of listening to the one who died to save them.
I am a Christian Goth. A lot of Goths become Christians later and identify as such. I went the opposite and was Christian before I put a name to my madness and became a Goth. I always knew I was weird, I just could not put words to it.
I’m just beginning my goth journey but I agree with the first comment. It also goes for goths as well. You can’t call yourself a true goth and gatekeep by telling people who are real goths and who aren’t. I had someone tell me that goth aint for me because I’m a Christian and don’t want to listen to anti-Christian things. We’ve got to quit judging each other man!