The Backwater Gospel: EXPLAINED
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- Опубликовано: 5 окт 2024
- This week we take a look at The Backwater Gospel, a brilliant animation with a positive message underneath its dark exterior
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Welcome to RUclips explained! The show that tries to make sense of RUclips!
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• The Backwater Gospel
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You forgot about one thing: the song about The Undertaker speaks of a man wearing all black. If you look closely, you can see that The Undertaker also wears a grey shirt, however, the minister seems to be wearing nothing, but black and he's the cause of all this. Think about it.
Jakub Orzech I'm going to trust you and not bother checking. If that's true then that is cool
RUclips Explained Also, the cripple sings: _"The Undertaker knows no master."_, and the minister controls everyone in the whole town(exept for the cripple) and it seems like noone can tell him what to do. I'm not sure if this was intentional, but I think it fits the lore pretty well.
According to the character sheets in a video called "The making of the backwater gospel" The undertaker is an agent of God.
Fernando Tapia Well, yes and no, the one that visited the town was an angel in disguise who was sent by God as a test, but the REAL Undertaker, the angel of death, does exist, and the minister is the cause of death of everybody in the town.
Jakub Orzech the minister is like a don´t follow the leaders guy,i think.
The Undertaker is an angel (hence the recurring wings), and his presence in Backwater IS a test. He would've left after the seventh day had they resisted the urge to do violence (according to the author). Which they didn't. Bubba was the only one to realize the nature of the test.
It's interesting, but the minister isn't wrong about the bad apple. He IS that apple, and he's spoiled the hearts and minds of the people of Backwater with his usurpation of God's authority for his own self-aggrandizement. Important to notice that he is in opposition to God (using the word to hide a weapon, and attempting to kill God's agent at the end).
I find it interesting that the Undertaker always has a smile on his face. I don't think he was surprised by the outcome in Backwater. I almost sense contempt in him.
He is the angel of death; the last sand of the hour; the grim reaper. His entire existence has been devoted to death related tasks. He smiles, though, because he knows that in the end, humans die. Whether it be from sickness, poor health, or the blade or gun of another, there will always be death, and death will always be there.
He knew from the beginning that someone would die, and most likely he knew of the town's history. He may be smiling though because he has seen something he hasn't seen in a while; he got to see angry people go crazy when their solution didn't appease god. I may be wrong, but bloodshed of many because of failure to make god happy isn't exactly common in modern day.
Or, he just has a smile stuck to his face, because reasons...
+Protector: Bouncer Series he's happy because he knows he'll never be unemployed
+bobert 107 fucking fire
+Protector: Bouncer Series This makes me think of Terry Pratchett's version of Death. As he says himself: There's no justice. There's just him.
Tommy Middleton But Death is Justice. It's justice for sin. Jesus took the ultimate price and ultimate justice for all of our sins and died the second death. Now all we do is die, and if we're saved, go on to eternal life.
It sucks you didn't point this out, but in the final scene, where everyone is tainted in this black blood shit...Notice the only body that isn't covered with it is the cripple? That's one HELL of a genius way to end it off. Think about it, the fact that he is the only one almost completely untouched by everyone else's blood, That could mean the undertaker pretty much took him to heaven...and PRETTY MUCH NO one else.
+Time's Minion TRUE! O3O Like, he was the only pure one!
xChibiAstralxX it's why this is my favorite religious cartoon out there, it actually knows what it's talking about unlike osme of the shit I've seen.
Time's Minion Yep!
dead mcred Eh, Speculation so I'm dismissing your point, we have no evidence that suggests he's a bad person other than he happens to not go to church.
dead mcred You made a point with no evidence. My point states he was taken to heaven because his body was mainly untouched by blood. The symbolism in that image suggests he was pure.
The evidence is in the video itself, I have substantiation to my claim, however you do not. You are speculating that he's a bad person because we don't know his past. I can't remember who made this quote but, "That which can be asserted without evidence can be dismissed without evidence."
I like Backwater Gospel. It tries to show that religion itself isn't what causes problems, but the people who use it for their own devices.
phuzzychinn omg yesss! I was about to write something along the lines of this but you nailed it in the coffin (see what I did there?)
Edit: typo
That is probably the best description I’ve read ever relating to the video.
It's why putting selfish wants and needs over everything else usually ends poorly. Not necessarily in the same ways, but it can still lead to misery, whether you, the family, the neighbor, the town, etc.
Also all the characters fear death so much they don't live other then the cripple who stays outside not worrying of death but if I was him I would have taken my chances in the desert during the 7 days
"When the Word of God is used by Man as a weapon of fear and discrimination, it is no longer the Word of God. It is the word of Man."
-----Some wise-guy
I have my faith in Christianity; I cannot count how many times someone would try to pick a fight with me when it comes to the Bible or some blind-faith a lot of people tend to have. Yet, the answer, I keep discovering, is always the same: they do not see or use the faith as a form of wisdom, but as a weapon of fear and anger. Truly disgusts me.
Doesn't really need to be anti-religion. I'd say more of a warning against false prophets. More like anti-cult.
Where do you draw the line between religion and cult?
Well personally, I view religion in a more lighter sense, as a following towards a good or a belief in something greater than oneself and with rules and conducts that put the followers in a position where they have meaning in life. (to do good or something) this can be seen in Buddhism where I think they try to find enlightenment and are more or less very pacifist and kind. In Christianity that's believing in God and helping others reach Heaven. Islam i dont really know. A cult is more like a close group that is brainwashed and follows something other than an already establish god. If u take a look here, who are these people "really" worshipping? Does God call them to church or does the pastor? Do they fear God? Or do they fear the Undertaker? Does the pastor really teach the Bible, and how does he when a massive chunk is cut to hold a gun? These people blindly follow a False Prophet, they don't listen to God, they listen to him thats why they would dare to even kill and have absolutely no thought in killing. They're brainwashed by the pastor and when they see that their so called leader fails to fix the problem they go nuts. But hey what do i know , im just rambling for the heck of it.
I agree with this as a warning against false prophets. "wolves in sheep's skins". worst minister ever.
But how can you know who is the false and whos not? Ive always pondered a statement from christianity, saying " the one who names himself god, is the devil". That could count for the bible, which claims to be god's word, although it speaks of hate and murder. How can you honestly know that it isnt the devils handiwork.
Seth Mcclain well tbh the belief in devil kind of justifies the belief of God and honestly you are right the bible does speak of some terrible, terrible things especially old testaments. Yet back in those days, death and murder were very much in common. Yet God never really preached it, no one really preached in the celebration of such immoral acts. I believe it cannot be the word of the devil because simply the fact that the morals it placed on to the israelites back then (10 commandments) were quite just. I mean, would the Devil really say, "Hey guys dont kill, dont steal, and honor your parents okay?"
I think that the revolver in the Bible at the end was to show the way the minister contorted the word. If you can see wren he grabs the revolver, it takes up most of the Bible. So instead of the word that he is supposed to tell the people all there is is fear and death (symbolized by the revolver)
It may have. The early Roman Catholic Church prohibited Bibles to people so they could manipulate the people sometimes. The more you know!
from what I heard, they couldn't get paper, as the muslims kept raiding the trading routes. That's why there were very few writings. and called the dark ages.
***** well thanks for correcting me.
Dead Memes and do not call it th3 dark ages. No legitimate historian considers that time period a dark age. Intellect still flourished.
Also, he foreshadows the revolver. Earlier, he mentions God's 'sword', while holding the Bible.
I remember when I first saw The Blackwater Gospel. I was so blown away by how good it was. It had such an interesting style and a more interesting message.
I know, right? Everything about it is so gritty yet powerful.
rip the guy with the guitar though
I desperately wish I could find more animations like it, but so far I haven't been able to find any with the same art style.
Erik M. Ikr, it looks like animated Tim Burton, it has an amazimg atmosphere, they make the undertaker seem terrifying without him ever even doing anything, the entire video seems to be leading up to the undertaker killing the town, but in the end he is just the person who cleans up the mess made by everybody else. I am an atheist, so I over course saw this as an anti religion video, but I feel like it was created without any bias.You can see it any way you want, and you can't be wrong.
It's funny how everyone sees in the story whatever they want to see.
Uhhh... Guy..? The gun in the bible isn't a representation of the minister's "dark side," it symbolized the fact that the minister views religion as a tool, an instrument to get what he wants and when somebody falls out of line with his ideals, a weapon.
AllyOJustice ...or it could just be a gun in a book.
I mean there are plenty of times in history where books have been used as storage for weapons all the time
Mainly in geurilla warfare.
Right, cuz they weren't big on metaphors in this video...
yeah yeah i know i know ut it could be like salad fingers in that there is no meaning and its just an animation
Just to put more details, cutting off pages of the bible meant contortion and elimination of the holy sayings, or that the minister doesn't care about what is said or meant in the bible at all. The gun inside indicates that violence is his religion, and he cares more about his 'religion' than the original.
..well any ways..fuck it. Failure Is so close that it don't matter.
You misunderstand-- It's not that the Preacher offers them salvation or anything. It's that he reinforces their fear. If you've ever read "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God", it's the same type of thing-- It's threatening that, if they don't follow, a much worse fate will happen to them. The people are filled with despair in church, because they aren't promised luxury if they follow, they're promised that it's the only way to avoid eternal suffering. Backwater Gospel is about how religion has been misused; the fear of death is force that fills the video.
iagree
Except generally all religions follow that same rule. Manipulating people to benefit a small amount of people.
Ellie Gray but gods not real
Thank you for having an understanding of life. I appreciate your outlook.
I don't think offering salvation is a good thing either. Neither are true and neither lead to a good outcome.
This is what reaction channels should be like, offering thoughtful commentary and explanations. Hats off to this kid.
It's an explanation of the video
Where are the reactions?
Before people get offended and say "THIS VIDEO IS TRY TO PORTRAY A BAD IMAGE OF MY RELIGION!!!1!" Can I just say I understand where this video is coming from. It's not against faith as a whole, but against the hypocritical "believers" we've all seen in the comment yelling "U WILL BURN IN HEL1!!!!" And the people who are only Religious out of fear. Yes, Christianity says it is wise to fear the Lord and that followers should try to convince people to join them, but not like this. And, if I believe in a god, it's because there is actually a lot of evidence (closed-minded atheists who start yelling "NO, ITS IMPOSSIBLE,IRRATIONAL,STUPID," whenever religion is brought up are just as bad.) so to conclude, I think this video is more a warning against hypocrisy than religion.
The one named Bob Evidence...?
Don't go "oh look how complicated the human brain is", that's just unlikely, not evidence.
+double - N Sorry, evidence probably wasn't the right word to use. What I meant was there are lots of possible signs towards the existent so of a god. But of course I can't provide definitive evidence, because if course if I could then everyone in the world would believe, but neither can atheists provide definitive evidence that there ISN'T a god. The sort of think j meant was loads of unexplained events happening all over the world, and I think heard somewhere that chariot wheels had been discovered at the bottom of the Red Sea? But hey, I suggest you talk to anyone BUT me, I'm probably the stupidest person you'll ever meet when it comes to this sort of thing, I don't really know what I'm talking about :P regardless, I hope you have a nice day.
The one named Bob Really all you can properly disprove is fundamentalists who think all those unlikely but famous things that happened in the Bible ACTUALLY HAPPENED, like Noahs Ark.
But nevertheless, have a nice day (or night, for me now)
Ah well, glad we could have a conversation about this like normal human beings and without breaking out into a flame war. It's quite rare on the Internet.
The one named Bob Yeah...
Fun Fact: babies arent dishwasher safe
Oh...That would explain a lot
+Ian Cuypers Well...now we know
+Ian Cuypers
Mine made it just fine.
Wow... My entire life was a lie... ._.
+Ian Cuypers Oh shit so that explains it
I love the Blackwater Gospel, it's so good
Raven Goddess Sure is. Sometimes i get sick of watching the same thing over and over again when i'm writing a script for a video but not with this one :D
When I first saw it, it reminded me of the way the Walking Dead Videogames look, I love the style of art
I thought more of a borderlands, the art style is great, im so thankful for stumbling upon it on stumble upon lol
It's always been an inspiration for me, from the music I write to the way I see religions that try to control people. Anyone who likes The Backwater Gospel should check out Tool if they don't already know them. One of the greatest bands with the same message IMHO...
I like ur profile picture
What you call "The Cripple" is officially "The Tramp". just felt like that was worth saying.
I do wish Vinny has touched upon Bubba’s change of heart in particular, going from the Minister’s most loyal follower to the one who accuses him of bringing this chaos upon them.
The undertaker is just a guy who measures bodies so he can later on make caskets for them.It's an actual job
Yes, but for this story, the Undertaker is a wivestale sort of aspect. The undertaker in real life is there after death, so in this short, this spirit is there before so he can be there after the death, and the people know it. Somewhat like banshee wailing.
Filip Rank do you really think we don't know that already?
Filip Rank How'd he get wings man?!
Agent of God.
To test the Town.
YEP filip rank not a job that's always uh "focused" on really but yes exactly right so what if there's two side's of the undertaker one human one demon
One of my favorite short animations and I'm so glad you covered it.
u guys arguing about religion being "right" or "wrong" and stuff really need to see the "Making of" video for this. It explains in good details what this whole thing is about. For people who can't be bothered, allow me to explain in a nice wall of text.
The Town of Backwater is where this setting takes place. This town is constantly switching beliefs of God, praising Him during good times and cursing His name during the bad times. When this story is taking place, times are really bad. A heat drought is happening, crops have a hard time growing, morale is low. This is perfect for the Minister. The Minister wants to control the town. He doesn't actually believe in God, he just sees God as a means to control. He's not a real Christian. Since the town is being rough, the Minister is there to preach "salvation" and to "fear the Lord", because salvation gives the people a false sense of hope, which keeps them coming to the church, and if they fear the Lord, they'll fear the person preaching His Holy word. The Minister is the representation of the Old Testament.
The tramp arrived to the town by accident. He was driving drunk one night and had an accident in the town, which destroyed his car and made him lose a leg. Since leaving the town is impossible, he decided to make his car into his own little personal house and live there for now. From day one, the Minister and the tramp hated each other. The tramp kept pointing out the hollowness of the Minister's teachings and faith and trying to make the other townspeople realize this, which angers the Minister, who sees the tramp as a thorn in his side that he just can't get rid of. The tramp is the representation of the New Testament, thinking that you don't need to constantly be in fear of God, that you'll be fine if you just do good things, so the teachings of the Minister to "fear the Lord" has no meaning for him, and he's not shy of letting the Minister know it ("Submit to the Lord!" "Why don't you try it?")
The God in this story is the one of the New Testament. He doesn't believe in divine punishment, but the hypocrisy and selfishness of the town is driving him up the wall. So He decides to put the townspeople to the test by sending his Angel of Death to visit: The Undertaker. Contrary to the belief of people and of the children's song the tramp was singing, the Undertaker works directly under God's orders, instead of being some devil. The Undertaker goes to a town because someone will die, but everyone, excluding the tramp, believe that someone will die BECAUSE the Undertaker is in town, which makes them all fearful and panicky.
So, God gives the townspeople a test by sending his Angel into the town, and ordering him to just sit and wait. The tramp sees him first, and decides to have some fun with the town by freaking them out ("The Undertaker's coming!"). This makes the townspeople scared and they immediately retreat back into their homes. This angers the Minister, since, like I said up there, he wants people to fear him, and he's losing power by having people fear the Undertaker instead. So, seven days pass, and the people are getting more and more scared, wondering why he's still waiting, wondering which one of them was going to die. The only one not fearful of the Undertaker is the tramp. Since the tramp has a New Testament way of thinking, he knows that the Undertaker isn't there to kill someone, so its destiny that will tell who will end up dead, and if it's him, so be it.
On the seventh day, the Minister sees that he lost all control over his people, and he believes that the reason the Undertaker is still there is because the tramp is still around. So, on the seventh day, he brings all the frightened townspeople into the church and uses their fear to fuel an anger against the tramp, which makes them all go out to kill the tramp. The tramp, when he sees them coming, gets up and tries to run to the Undertaker for protection, but he falls. Even if he had made it, though, the Undertaker would've done nothing, since the Undertaker and God are only observing. The townspeople prove their selfish and arrogant nature by stoning the tramp right after the Minister says that the one without sin should cast the first stone. After they kill the tramp, they look at the Undertaker in the hopes for a reaction, but the Angel just sits there, waiting. Then, a rainstorm falls down, and, after a week of drinking, fear, desperation sleepless nights and the feeling of being forsaken by the Lord, the townspeople become bloodthirsty savages, and not a single one of them lives to the morning.
So, what was the test sent by God? Well, the Minister was right in his teachings, about "one bad apple ruining the bunch". But it wasn't the tramp that was the bad apple, it was the Minister himself. Sure, the townspeople were scared, but if the Minister hadn't made them turn violent, the Undertaker would've simply left at the end of the seventh day with not a single life lost. God wanted to see if the townspeople would think for themselves instead of listening to the Minister's evil ways...and they failed.
So the moral of the story? It's not "religion is bad", like many people seem to believe. The true moral of this story is "Think for yourself and do what is right." It doesn't matter if you're an atheist or a believer, as long as you do good, then only good will come out of it.
-wtflol3657
I believe this theory is a better theory than yours. appreciate your work, but this makes a lot of sense.not to say your's doesn't. but this theory isn't anti or pro religion and its a well rounded off theories.
2yoil
Since none of that was actually in the clip. I'd have to downgrade my opinion from lacking in depth to an absolute failure. :-/
Teddypal well, to each his own. but I don't understand what you mean by "none of that was actually in the clip". It certainly was in the clip.
Very well done! I'm gonna go watch it now!!!
2yoil lol hell nah i will not read all of dis shit damnnn dude how the hell you wrote all of that? jesus gave u hardc0re fingers and mind yoo lol
Hitlur hatlur pl0x
"Believe in something, because you believe it's right. Not because you're afraid of the consequences."
Woah.
"Believe in something because you believe it is right. Not because you fear the consequences." whoa talk about a randomly deep and inspirational quote thrown in wow you probably changed someone's religion... You should put that on one of your shirts XD
*Whoa
you can have a like, good on you dude
+Jesse Wade Thank you kind sir/madame
+RUclips Explained sir :) heh nice intro too man. good job
+googleplussucks Get out of here you hypocritical loser. You most likely used the term "sir". maybe "Madame" when meeting someone you don't know the sex of. (most likely online) You are nothing more than a hater
+Tiny Box Tim READ.
+Raicov The Gnome ohh i love it when people read something and don't get it so the seriousness that comes out is yust hilarious xD
I think I'll sit this war out. Like the Undertaker.
The root is deeper than just religion.
People like to point on religion and call their followers "sheeple" and "ignorant" and to be the main cause of everything bad in this world. While people fanatically follow many, many things. It's not only religion, there are fanatic believers in every political expression or other social issue.
It's just what humans do, there are Atheist Groups that support the killing of Religious people (See the Tamil Tigers, or the DPRK, Stalin, Pol Pot, the PRC). There are extremist political branches that work the same way as the Church was portrayed in the Backwater Gospel.
+Homunkulus I wouldn't really call communist affiliates "atheist groups". I don't disagree with your point, but it seems kind of disingenuous
Every religions is ignorant But every ignorant isn't religious.
roktopus lol k brah
something i found interesting and a bit curious is the fact at the end it seems the cripple was fleeing to the undertaker almost as if for a hope of salvation
claemiller I mean, was he going to run TO the murder happy mob?
I gotta say, I really love The Backwater Gospel, artistically it's stylish and sleek, and the story is conveyed with great skill and subtlety, while still being direct when needed. I love grim-dark, what can I say?
I was brought up in the church since I was 5, at 18 I asked myself wether I actually believed in anything I was told, came to the conclusion that no I don't. Still haven't told my parents:) plan to once I move out.
Dan Monio 😂 smart.they might kick you out.you should know that that happens alot.
rodger so that's exactly why I'm not telling them😉
same experience, my mom made me take faith formation (basically after school church) for years and the more I went the more I disliked church and religion in general.
we're in the exact same boat
That's the thing with religion, the more you try to make someone adhere to your beliefs the more they resist.
No, it's definitely a video criticising religion. It's not against the theoretical religion, i.e. the Bible itself, but against the practical religion, i.e. the church. It points out the flaws in worshipping, not what you worship.
You couldn't be more wrong. The animation is about the old Testament and the new testament. The minister is about the old testament telling you to fear god or he will kill. The minister is not a true believer of God he is just manipulating the town into doing his biding. The Tramp is the new testament and shows that you should be good person in general and think for yourself. God decides to test backwater by having the Undertaker be there for 7 days. This gives The minister a chance to finally kill the Tramp. The animation is saying church is bad, it's saying you should think for yourself and be a good person in general.
+Blade61100 dude I saw the storyboards :D
+FishCakeIce You watched "Making Backwater Gospel" didn't ya?
The undertakers coming.
Who is he coming for?
Dominiq Urzua-Alvarez IT AINT GONNA BE ME!
Tool - The Grudge.
Yep
Not sure if someone had mentioned this yet. But you should've used the picture of Jesus' crucifixion instead in that cut scene since the posture of the dead cripple is the same as the position of Jesus on the cross. I know it's probably blatantly obvious. But it kinda just strengthens your theory :) love your videos btw! I literally am marathoning them and take the time to watch the original videos just so I can watch you explain them HAHA
how could anyone hate these? its so helpful in trying to get an idea about the messed up vids on youtube.
Do the animated short "The Observer"
***** Where is this video?
You know I just realized something, the man that always said, "it ain't gonna be me" is the first person the undertaker came to after the bloodshed.
You left out the fact that at the end the "Well it ain't gonna be me" guy was the one the undertaker actually came for.
Can't believe it's been five years since you uploaded this. Feels like yesterday when I watched this back in my old highschool library
"I read it on the internet so it must be true"
Cute
My Animation teacher at Germanna showed us that and it made me fall in love with animation even more.
I love that this youtuber replies to comments
:D
cookie muncher most youtubers do its just that theres too much people or they dont actually reply or the fact that they only check the comments for only 1 minute and thats a wrap
I actually wrote an Entity by the same name in the setting i run d&d for, he never kills anyone personally but he is drawn to it. He also marks those who have cheated him before with a brand of an hourglass that slowly tics down over time until he comes to claim the soul
I love the intro! But seriously, that was so well done.
Maybe try explaining Too Many Cooks? I have no idea if it can be done
He's already done that one
Derek S oh ok thanks
Derek S Actually, I don't see it. When did he do it?
SalGaming
Andres francisco ?
This video is just perfect, don't criticise your own work, you had it spot on
Family friendly show: On the undertaker?
Something else I noticed is that when the townspeople actually snap and go to attack him, the cripple attempted to take refuge with the Undertaker. Like he knew that if he could just make it there, then the people would be too afraid to follow. Like he knew that the Undertaker meant no harm. I don't know, that's just how I read it.
If you watch this in 2017 and want to skip the adds; 1:20
I myself am religious, coming from "America's favorite cult" the church of Jesus Christ of latter-day saints, and I love the backwater gospel. I love its message and its symbolism. One thing I thought was interesting was that the cripple looked like he was struggling to survive on his own, and the priest probably exemplified his poverty by either making the people ignore him, or making the people distain him even though they themselves are probably one eviction notice from the same level of poverty as the cripple. As Nothing Explained put it, they didn't want to go to church but they didn't want to be outcasts either. Away from the priest, they all prayed individually so I do think they did have faith and a love for Christianity, but a twisted one at that, where panic took place in their hearts instead of faith the preacher failed to help them build.
Hi there!
Max Garcia Good day sir
Hey! You actually responded! That's awesome!!
Max Garcia It's my favorite part , of course I responded ;)
That's what I like about you, you talk with your fans, I really appreciate that. Plus your the first youtuber to respond to me. Haha
+Max Garcia yes I totally agree! he doesn't act like he's above all of his fans, instead he communicates with them freely and I admire that alot 😊
the actual video is capable to be interpreted in so many ways
If that was a "test of God," then, it's abit sadistic for a test.
+Joseph Stalin Not really, if they listened to go there would've been safe. But they feared death and the preacher over the Preacher.
Not so. Had they done nothing for the 7 days the Undertaker would have simply left. They destroyed themselves.
Yes, but his presence intimidated them and he knew fully well...
I mean sure, he obviously knows they fear him. But their actions are a result of their fear of something they don't even understand. Those people were monsters driven by hatred.
Even if they believed one needed to die to save them the way they brutally mutilate one another to the point of straight up cannibalism and bisection is disgusting and absolutely sadistic.
The test isn't "kill the sinner", it's "love thy neighbor/don't murder". Such an obvious thing that it shouldn't even be a test, the onus is on the town to be decent human beings like the Tramp. He doesn't cause deaths, and the fact that he was going to leave after the 7th day means he didn't know what the outcome would be.
The Undertaker not knowing makes him way more fair than the biblical God that claims we have free will and gives us "tests", yet knows the outcome and every action we make in life long before our births and the creation of the universe itself.
This video sparked so much interesting conversations.
Seeing how the people brutally mutilated one another, one can easily assume that this town had a lot of hatred and fear even before the Undertaker appeared. All that was needed was to a little push to show how sinful the town truly was, in my own opinion, it was more of a judgement day type of scenario.
The Pastor/Prist/Minister was using said hatred and fear of the town peoples for each other to his own gain, as we can see with the Revolver in the bible, he never truly believed in god, he just wanted power and possibly wealth, if that church acted like the ones I've been too, people can donate for... whatever reason.
To me, I think the animation is criticizing how some Churches are so far gone that they don't believe in god anymore.
I honestly think that the story was conveyed pretty well, meaning the only obscure thing about this animation are theories
This story is like the Bible itself in that it has many interpretations.
Annelise Spinosa you are the good type of religious person
Zeppelans ant nobody like a militant
Annelise Spinosa Evolution is not a theory it is a fact
Guy The Great Evolution is a theory. What we have currently is in line with observable fact, though new information is being actively processed and adjusted. A scientific theory is a process of understanding, more than a statement. Theories consist of facts, but exist to be built on. If you see where I'm going with this.
It's a "theory".
In the sense that we don't wanna upset everyone so it called a "theory".
The reason that the cripple is not afraid of death is because he is the only holy man actually in town in other words he knows where he's going.
Something occurred to me: If the story of Jesus were written separately from the rest of the Bible, would it be considered anti-religion?
***** MIND-BLOWN
+metademetra It was, that's why there's a difference between judaism and christianity. But in the hundreds of years since it happened, churches were organized, emperors and kings got into the business, they tore the original bible up and replaced it with the trash we have today that endorses slavery, murder, rape, cannibalism, incest, and many other horribly dehumanizing things.
+metademetra
No, it's not anti-religion.
It was a movement and reformation inside Judaism, that at one point split from the jews completely and became a religion for it's own. This group of faith is called the Abrahamic religions, since they all base on the same concept of god and share their history and holy scriptures.
@ Kai Schneider
First, how in the world does the bible promote cannibalism, rape, etc. ?
Second, you make a valid point with the kings and emperors messing up the bible's original message. Here's how: when Martin Luther broke away from the Catholic Church and founded Lutheranism, he edited the original bible that was used in Catholicism to fit what he thought it should say. Others followed Luther's lead, deleting passages and adding new segments until each churchs' bible was very different from each other. Today, we have over 1000 branches of Christianity, ranging from relatively harmless (Eastern orthodox, Methodist, etc.) to completely different messages (Mormons, among others) to something I can only describe as "How the fuck did this happen?" (Westboro Baptist). I guess the stuff you said about slavery and murder actually applies to the Westboro Baptist church's version of the bible. Also, just to be clear, Eastern Orthodoxy actually came WAY before Martin Luther was even born. It was mainly a political split, so technically it isn't Protestantism, but whatever, it still counts in my opinion. Anyway, I've gone on enough for this comment, so I'll end it here, and I look forward to your response.
Poop poop :)
also, in my family, we are aloud to morn for our lost loved ones, but we also have to celebrate. They are no longer in pain, and because we think that there is some sort of after life, we celebrate their transition out of this world and into the next one. This creates a lack of fear in death it's self, we do miss the people who have left us behind, but this way we let them go with a feeling that things would be better on the other side.
This is gospel for the fallen ones.
locked away in permanent slumber. in this case, literally.
+Matty Salvi Assembling their philosophies from pieces of broken memories...
IT ACTUALLY KIND OF MAKES SENSE!
Oh o-oh oh~
"Better to live your life than to fear death."
I think this speaks to the fundamental problem that a lot of Christians have, preaching on and on about what a horrible death Christ suffered and never seeming to focus enough and how Christ lived, and how we should live by his example.
Could you explain childish gambinos "sober" music video?
Ooooooo and Telegraph Avenue
Yes... the reason the word "fear" can work this way for false christianity... is the word "fear" was mistranslated and misconstrued from the original writing it was translated from. The word fear, in the context the bible ACTUALLY means... means respect, not terror. The false minister teaches falsely, and teaches fear as terror instead. This... is an epically accurate and beautiful representation of false christianity.
Love it. :-)
Daniel Nunya Bidnezz Considering the age the video clearly takes place in, they’re using the translation as they knew it in the seventeen hundreds. So, “Terror” is very correct.
This is why i dropped my religion (which i never cared for to start with)
Religion offers hope
Science offers truth.
+Daniel Cannata
False hope at that.
+Daniel Cannata
Science does not disprove religion. Religion does not always reject science. The belief that science and religion are at war stems from the failure to understand both.
*****
What is there to really understand about religion other than it being an aggressive cult that has run amok over a long period of time?
Mr Pyro A great deal, actually.
Religion has been the driving force behind many endeavors, both good and bad (and some neither). Much of the bad you're familiar with already; in fact to be perfectly honest religion often gets the blame for things it doesn't deserve to be blamed for (example: economics, politics, power, and, perhaps most of all, the need/desire for land and resources have each caused more wars than religion ever has). So, since you're so familiar with it already, let's save that for another discussion.
As for the good, religious principles have been the underlying foundations for many of the world's greatest philosophers and activists for peace and justice, including Gautama (better known as the Buddha), Gandhi, the Dalai Lama, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Mother Teresa, Bishop Tutu, Martin Luther King Jr., and Jesus, among others. Furthermore, and significantly, it's responsible for much of what we now use in academic and intellectual circles. For example, part of the reason why medical knowledge and practice was able to survive the Middle Ages was because of Muslim and Jewish scholars in the Middle East who kept ancient records of medicine and anatomy from the Greeks and Romans and used them as a basis for further research into the study of medicine; meanwhile Christian priests and monks in Europe were collecting, preserving, and copying ancient texts which are still being read and studied today. Eventually, many clergymen and religious orders would become the creators of such institutions as Oxford University, Cambridge University, and countless other colleges (including my own alma mater, Boise State University). Many hospitals were also established by religious groups; that's why they have names like St. Luke's or St. Mary's.
This is just the start; religion has been responsible for much else that is good, or at least harmless. Granted, however, the misuse of religion has also been responsible for a lot of evil. And that, really, is one of the things I think this animated short is really about: what happens when religion is misused.
Mr Pyro Believe what you will. But I stand by everything I said.
This was actually a very good guess as to the message in backwater gospel. I would add that while most of the people (including the undertaker) were in more dark colors clothing wise, while the crazy, happy cripple was in a brighter set of colors, dressed almost like a vaudeville performer (makes sense with the guitar) and that he and the undertaker are the only two people who smile in the whole movie (I don't think the priest ever smiles and I know none of the other townsfolk do)
I totally agree with you! I think this is one of the best and most precise explanations you have done! Keep up the good work! I will definitely be watching every wedensday afternoon😊😆
I've had this huge fear of the afterlife and always had second guesses on the things I've wanted to do because of the fear from judgement of god but this video has really opened my eyes and even set peace to my mind on both issues, I adore your insight and deep thinking. You're a great youtuber :)
Surprisingly, This is an accurate portrayal of a lot of religions.
I always thought of The Backwater Gospel as a brilliant critique of power drawn from fear, regardless of whatever form it takes, and its final gruesome scene in the rain is just one of the most extreme examples of what happens when the only motivation people have is fear.
thank you. I love this animation and now I understand it as well.
Intriguing...I've never seen the animated short in a different perspective like this. Nice
Your explanation of the video reminded me of a friend of mine... when I first met him was very religious, and then it turned into "I am religous just In case"... and he is an active athiest trying to spread the word.
That general uniform at the beginning looked awesome
Another grand analysis Vinny, good job!
I'm surprised this channel isn't more popular
Woop Woop back right in schedule! Yay~
Dude I need one of those shirts, they look awesome! I love your channel and I've been waiting for some merch for some time, thanks for making it!
i love your take on things, Vinny. I agree with you on most parts. Also, Blackwater Gospel is one of my favorite vids on youtube. It's so interesting.
Nice to see you back.
I think the moral is a warning not to use an irrational fear to motivate others to take an action because the irrational fear never goes away and that action will keep repeating till there's no one left to commit that act on.
The flip side, if you think about it, is that any irrational motivation, good or bad, works just as well to keep an action, good or bad, repeating till there's no one left to commit that act on. To me, not incorporating this or some secondary theme(s) made the story lack depth. I do agree that the animation was outstanding.
it makes sense now! i was mad at first but now i understand that its not criticizing God. Thank you so much and God bless you!
There’s a behind the scenes video that sheds some light on a lot of the aspects of the animation.
this cartoon and this video is gold
I like your point of view mate. You really managed to get the meaning of the story
One of the creepiest animations that I've ever watched. And I LOVE it!!!
Funny that isn't it? We love the creepy
Loved your analysis of this very cool cartoon. Thanks!
its my favorite animation ever
You really need more people too subscribe. I started watching your videos when you started out. Good to know you still be doing vids man....missed you aha.
Dude, thanks for taking my suggestion[im that guy: I dunno if anyone else asked for it but...] Really appreciate it man!
god i remember seeing that animation over a year and a half ago, thank you for doing this!
so im a Christian and i love this short! its more pointing towards the crazy religious nuts who dont truly know the lord. kind of why the crippled is my fave character! i think you did a good job of explaining the short and anyone who attacks this explanation needs a chill pill lol!
Yeah it isn't a diss to religious people but how religion can be turned into a weapon or fear
You really do a fantastic job in these videos, well thought out and will written. Keep up the good work!
i love your videos Vinny, i love to watch the originals. take my theory, go to your video of whatever video i watched, then see what i seem to have lined up
In my own interpretation, I feel that if there is a Grim Reaper out there somewhere, then he doesn’t cause death; he merely sits back and watches humanity destroy itself, then tends to us after death!
Saw this awhile ago thinking it was called backwards gospel. I loved this and it scarred me and I'm glad somebody is spreading the word about this short video!
this animation looks like borderlands, great art style.
This was actually a pretty good explain. I liked it.
I'm fine with this video, and i respect you for being brave enough to explain this
No, I love this breakdown. Good job.
My favorite short like ever.
3 years later
One of the best videos ever
That short film was awesome!
OMG THANK YOU FOR THIS!!!
Thanks for sharing your thoughts. I don't think you're being disrespectful, so hatred here is pointless.
you didn't offend me at all the story just refers to the bible and you explained that bravo sir.
This was really good. I personally thought the undertaker represented religion as a whole and what people will do because of its presence but this was an interesting take on it.
I love this channel so much!!!!!!!!🙏🏻
It's a student film from The Animation Workshop in Denmark. Bo was the director, not the only one making the film.