I miss Dungeons & Dragons. It’s been way too long since I’ve played.

I’m not sure how you play, but for our group, picking a deity for a cleric or paladin is pretty much an afterthought. It really doesn’t affect how the character is played, unless it’s something especially interesting or plot-centric. We pay more attention to alignment. It’s not so much who a character worships, but whether they’re lawful or chaotic, good or evil. In fact, that’s often how we choose a deity: pick the alignment we want to play, and find one to match.

Clerics, especially, are basically just red potions. Who cares if they worship the sun god, or the angry god with the hammer, or whatever? Who can tell one from another? As long as they dish out the HP, everybody’s happy.

Here’s how someone’s deity typically comes up:

DM: “You guys get to the city.”

Generic Cleric: “Hey, is there a temple of [fill in the blank]?”

DM: “Um, yes.”

Generic Cleric: “Cool. I go there and pray.”

Other players: “Ooh, can we get healed?”

I want my faith to be different.

Christianity isn’t just a matter of alignment. If the object of my faith is true, it changes everything. If Jesus is who he says he is, he deserves to rule over my entire life. Everything.

Christianity is not interchangeable with other religions. Not theologically, and not in terms of behavior. You’re supposed to be able to identify a Christian by how we love people. You’re supposed to be able to look at someone and be able to tell.

We are supposed to bring healing. We could do a better job at that.

But I hope and pray not to be just another red potion.

How does what you believe affect the way you live?