Final Project Rough Draft

                When entering the world of pop culture, crazy, cult-like fans viciously supporting their favorite television show is an aspect one can hardly miss when examining media. Topping the list of devoted-base, Supernatural and Buffy the Vampire Slayer contain a fairly large number of not just fans, but devoted followers. These fans go beyond the rabid viewer, and delve deeper into the shows core, treating the show as a lifestyle, and not a form of occasional entertainment. However, these mythological and religious-based shows have not only attracted fans, but also hatred, being called blasphemous by various different religious communities.  However, these religious communities hardly differ from these devoted fan-bases including a parallel in devotion, a gathering of people with similar beliefs, and a center point of the gathering people that offers different interpretations of historical religious beliefs.  Therefore, with such similarities and a lack of a concrete definition of religion, are Buffy and Supernatural not, in their own right, a religion?

                Of course, before one can determine what constitutes as religion, one must understand the definition of religion.  Then again, is there a definition of religion? The answer is yes, there are many different definitions of religion that vary amongst people, cultures, and acknowledged religions.  One of the biggest issues, as Steve Bruce, a professor at the University of Aberdeen majoring in sociology, points out, religion is often defined by a person by the religious, moral beliefs of the individual.  For instance, if a person defining religion is Christian, than to be a religion, one must believe in one god. Christopher Peet, a professor at University of Alberta believes the theories used to define religion all have faults, therefore, one cannot say something is not a religion because the counter-views do not hold strong enough evidence.  Peet also continues on the theory that, to many people, something cannot truly be defined as religion if it is not acknowledged by the public and government as such. It becomes obvious when attempting to create a definition of religion that religion is a difficult word to define. With a subject so sensitive as religion, it will likely never be truly defined.  Therefore, to say a T.V. show center around religious ideas that offer different interpretations of these religious values is not a religion is simply wrong, seeing as religion not only lacks a concrete definition, but also because religion is a word used to describe a group of people who believe in similar ideas regarding the afterlife or purpose of life, and this description describes the majority of Supernatural and Buffy fans.