Sunday
“I’m so glad you came, Sunset.”
Wearing a plain dress, casual by business standards but more formal than her day-to-day attire, Fluttershy waves from the curb as I park my motorcycle outside Canterlot Presbyterian Church. I approach her, and she outstretches her arms to hug me. I return the affection with a warm smile. “I wouldn’t miss it.”
She beams, and in her light, it is difficult to admit I’m here as a student and a skeptic, not a believer. She breaks off the hug and tells me, “We have a little while before the service starts.”
That’s odd. I grab my phone from my pocket and click it on. 9:45. “But I’m on time.” As proof, I turn my phone to let her see the lock screen.
She smiles gently. “I wanted to make sure we would have time to chat.”
“Oh,” I say, powering off my phone for the morning and putting it away. “Alright. What about?”
“I guess that’s up to you.” Fluttershy looks away submissively. “But I’d love to know what led you here.”
I pause. Twilight understood my journey from the inception, and Rarity didn’t need to ask so bluntly. The words don’t come easily.
“I guess I’m searching,” I say.
Fluttershy nods in silence.
“Searching for answers. I’m an interdimensional immigrant, right? I’ve spent my life running. Running towards achievement, running away from punishment. I don’t know what the point is anymore.”
Fluttershy smiles slightly. “Do you want my help finding those answers?”
“I think so.” Tired of standing, I sit down on the curb, and Fluttershy follows suit beside me. “I’ve learned that friendship is usually the answer, so I’m hoping you girls can help me find my way.”
“I hope so, too.”
I furl my brow. “How about you? Why do you go to church?”
“I’m a Christian,” she laughs.
“Okay, okay.” I raise my hands in front of my chest. “Why are you a Christian? I guess your family took you to church as a kid?”
Her smile wavers. “No, my family isn’t really religious. I became a Christian in high school, before we were friends. Like you, I was searching for answers. Volunteering at the shelter, I’ve seen so many helpless little animals pass away. Some from age, some from illness, some from injury. I agonized over each one. It became too much for me.”
Fluttershy paused, spacing off.
“Then I met my friend Tree Hugger, who showed me the truth.”
“The truth?”
“The truth about God’s love, God’s mercy, and God’s justice. She introduced me to the Word of God: the Bible. The Gospel is for humans, not other animals, but I learned that death is nothing to resent or fear. That made my work at the animal shelter easier,” she explains. “Oh, and I upped my volunteer hours. The Bible teaches charity, after all.”
I beam. “That’s great.”
She nods, evidently proud of herself. “Ever since I accepted God’s grace, I’ve dedicated my life to Jesus. I’m lucky. Not everyone has that privilege.”
I tilt my head but don’t say anything.
“I am eternally grateful that God brought Tree Hugger into my life,” she says, then looks away. “I am grateful He brought you into my life, too.”
“Aww, that’s so sweet.” I hope I don’t sound saccharine or patronizing. “So, what about your family?”
Fluttershy hesitates. “We did have a Christmas tree growing up. Santa always came for me. He sometimes even came for my brother.” We both snicker at that. “But we didn’t celebrate Christmas.”
I tilt my head. “Family, gifts, and a tree. That sounds like a traditional Hearth’s Warming Eve to me. And I thought Christmas was just Hearth’s Warming Eve for humans.”
She giggles. “It is traditional, and maybe that’s all there is to Hearth’s Warming Eve. But at its heart, Christmas isn’t about the gifts or the tree.”
I recall how Twilight and Rarity relate to religion. “It’s about the family.”
She nods with a small shrug. “The family… and the birth of Jesus Christ.” She gasps and covers her mouth. “I didn’t even think, with you coming from Equestria… Do you know who Jesus is?”
It would be hard not to, living in this world. Passing human history classes. Attending church with Rarity. “He’s the founder of Christianity, right? And… also the Christian God, somehow?”
“Sort of.” Fluttershy shakes her head, but instead of appearing judgemental, she seems pleased to have the opportunity to teach me something. “Do you want to learn about Jesus?”
I hesitate, then nod. “I think so. I mean, it’s why I’m here. Why are you asking?”
“I’ve learned some people don’t like to talk about God.” She seems small, distant. “It doesn’t seem kind to force them.”
“Ah.” I chuckle and give her a thumbs-up. “Do your worst.”
She smiles with her eyes but seems uneasy as she explains, “Thousands of years ago, the Holy Spirit performed a miracle, causing the Virgin Mary to conceive. Mary gave birth in Bethlehem to Jesus Christ, the Son of God. On Christmas, we celebrate His birth.”
I briefly wonder if anyone really believed Mary was a virgin after she gave birth. I bite my tongue and just comment, “That doesn’t sound like Hearth’s Warming Eve at all.”
She chuckles and continues. “As an adult, Jesus travelled, providing ministry to the people around Him. He helped people, like miraculously curing their illnesses. He also gave advice on how they should live their lives, like in His Sermon on the Mount. He gained many followers during his ministry.”
“Magical guy curing disease? Without Equestrian magic? Yeah, it does sound like he would become pretty popular.”
She shakes her head. “Unfortunately, He was not popular with the Jewish and Roman authorities. He was sentenced to death and executed by hanging on a Cross. He knew this would happen, but He also knew how important His death would be, so He selflessly allowed it to come. Jesus died on the Cross side-by-side with two thieves. A soldier even stuck a spear in Him, just to check that He really was dead.”
“Oh my.” My jaw drops a bit. It’s rare to hear Fluttershy talk so calmly about violence.
But then she smiles. “Three days later, Jesus was resurrected from the dead. It turns out you can’t kill God,” she adds to my amusement. “After His resurrection, Jesus told the first Christians to tell everyone about the miracle. To make everyone in the world a Christian, and to make everyone behave righteously, the way Jesus Christ told us.”
I recall learning about the Crusades, how far human Christians have gone to fulfill that goal. How much blood has been spilled in the name of conversion.
“So that’s why Christians proselytize?” I wink. “Like you’re doing now?”
“Um, that is one reason,” she agrees, somewhat uncomfortably. “But also because we care about you, and we want you to be saved.”
I tilt my head. “Saved from what?”
“Your sins.” Fluttershy’s face grows rigid, serious. She looks me straight on. “Sunset. You of all people know how much evil humans do… and how important forgiveness is.”
My memories flicker through my mind, memories from my days of betraying Equestria and terrorizing defenceless high school students. “Yes. I know what I’ve done.”
“Not just you,” Fluttershy adds, “and not just in the past. Do you think that you’re a perfect person now?”
“No.” I droop my head in defeat. “I’m not. I know that I still suck. You don’t have to rub it in. But I’m trying, Fluttershy. Look at how much I’ve improved as a person since Princess Twilight set me straight. Yeah, I still lose my temper sometimes, and I guess I can still be pretty selfish. But I’m trying. Isn’t that enough?”
She shakes her head. “No, unfortunately it’s not. Unless you’re perfect, you’re a sinner. Just like me, and just like everyone else. And without forgiveness, we are punished for our sins.”
“No,” I respond indignantly. “No way. Look, if I’m going to be punished for the things I’ve done… Yeah, fine, I can see it. I deserve it. But you? You’re the kindest person I know. What kind of evil God would punish you?”
“Right, that’s the bad news.” She nods gravely. “Maybe you want to hear the good news?”
“Humour me.”
“Jesus Christ died to save you from your sins. His forgiveness and His grace are absolute, if you accept them.”
“Really?” My eyebrow shoots up. “Jesus died just for me?”
“You,” she laughs, “and the rest of humanity.”
“Ah, that does make more sense.” I smile. “So how do I get forgiveness? I did ask a lot of people to forgive me after the Fall Formal. Didn’t that count?”
“Maybe it did count for what you did at the Fall Formal, but nothing since then. But mostly, it’s God’s forgiveness you need.”
“Not Jesus’s?”
“Jesus is God.”
I frown. “Now I’m confused. I thought you said he was the son of God. How can God be his own son? Unless there are multiple gods?”
“There’s only one God.” She smiles. “It is a little tricky. The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are all God. Imagine you’re a cartoon character, living in a flat world, and there’s a cube in front of you. The cube is spun to show three different sides. What do you think?”
“I guess I would think there are three different squares. Ridiculous example, though. I’m not a cartoon character.”
“Well, yes. Point is, it’s all the same cube. Like God.”
“God is a cube?” I laugh.
She laughs with me. “It’s just a metaphor.”
I consider what Fluttershy is telling me, about the life of Jesus, and his apparent ability to save me. I don’t know if she’s right about God, but she is right about something:
I need forgiveness.
“Do you really think that God would forgive me? After everything I’ve done?”
“Sunset.” She rests her hand on my shoulder. “I’m certain He will.”
I remember something I learned about Christianity. Something I learned the hard way from a rude Crystal Prep student who bumped into Twilight when we were walking downtown together.
I grimace at the memory. “Someone said God hates ho– God hates people being gay.” I bite my lip, look around the church, and lower my voice. “I’m bi, Fluttershy.”
She shakes her head. “That’s not a problem. Everyone can be saved. Even the good thief next to Jesus on the cross went to Heaven, because he had faith.”
“But why?” I compress my eyes. “Why would God save a thief? Or me, for the matter?”
“Nothing we do could make us worthy of salvation, but God saves us out of love.” Fluttershy smiles. “Jesus is the Son of God, but we are all God’s children. God loves all of His children, you included.”
I give a cheeky grin. “Not just all humans? Need I remind you I’m a pony?”
“I’m sure God loves everyone in Equestria, too,” she says, “I admit that learning about Equestria and experiencing magic first hand have tested my faith. But God’s power is absolute. If there is Equestrian magic, it’s because God created magic. I like to think our geodes are gifts from God, to serve some grander purpose for Him someday.” She smiles at the thought. “Our friendship has taught me that just because everything in the Bible is true, not all of it can be understood literally.”
I bite my lip. “I don’t mean to be rude, but I’ve never heard of a pony Jesus. Does that mean that nobody in Equestria is saved?”
“I don’t know,” she frowns. “Even before Jesus was born on Earth, righteous humans were saved by faith in God, so maybe that’s part of it. Maybe pony Jesus is still coming. No matter what, I’m sure God has a plan for Equestria. Just like He has a plan for you.”
It’s a comforting thought. It almost seems too easy.
Nothing in my life has ever been easy.
I doubt God plans to change that for me just yet.
“What about our friends?” I ask. “If you’re right… won’t they be punished for not believing?” I suck in a breath. “What about Twilight?”
“I don’t know, Sunset.” Fluttershy turns downcast. “I don’t know.”
“You don’t know?” I do my best to suppress my anger. She doesn’t seem to notice.
She does hesitate. “Each of us is on our own path. Only God knows what lies ahead for each of us. I pray that He will reveal Himself to each of our friends in due time, and that they will accept His grace.”
“Otherwise…?”
She looks at me, frowns, and shakes her head. She doesn’t say anything, and she doesn’t need to.
“Right.” I sigh.
“It’s not my place to tell them what to do, just like it’s not my place to tell you what to do. You have to find your own way in the world.” She smiles slightly. “But you did ask to come to church with me, and I’m so happy you did. I think that means God has answered one of my prayers.”
I turn my head, oddly touched. “You prayed for me?”
“Of course. I pray for all of our friends,” she replies. “Our enemies, too. Sometimes I pray for strangers. Everyone deserves someone to pray for them.”
I’m not sure I follow, but I say, “That’s kind of you.”
As our conversation winds down, there is a noticeable influx of churchgoers arriving and entering the building. Fluttershy and I stand up. “The service will start in a few minutes,” she tells me.
“Alright,” I reply. “Hey, Fluttershy?”
“Yes, Sunset?”
“Thank you.”
We hug.
“Any time, Sunset. Any time.”
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*thumbs-up
Well, that's one religion Sunset probably isn't joining.
Ok, there's some weird phrasing in this chapter during the characters' actions between conversations.
I'm guessing this will be the main "conflict" of the story, though Sunset's doubts about 'the point' makes me wonder just when is this happening chronologically. She's met Celestia again considering the last chapter, so this would be after the Memory Stone incident, but by that point Sunset seems pretty secure about her role in life.
Maybe I'm just overthinking it.
Now I'm more interested about how this concludes. It'll certainly be interesting.
Should read “agonized”. Also, if I’m not mistaken, the solider didn’t throw a weapon at Christ, he stuck a spear into His side.
Don't like the idea of Fluttershy thinking Twilight might be going to Hell.
11228515
Fixed, thanks.
11228536
We'll have to wait and see
11228553
Oddly enough, figuring out what goes between the dialogue in a dialogue-heavy story is one of the hardest parts of fiction writing for me... In some respects, screenplays can be easier...
In terms of timing, I don't think it's specified explicitly in the story, but maybe sometime after high school, early in university? It doesn't seem too important... At least in my experience, the questions Sunset grapples with apply even when you're secure with your secular/earthly role. Indeed, once you become secure on Earth, it's natural to ask, what happens next?
11228597
Fixed. I consider spears as weapons (and I'm sure Fluttershy does too), but changed for clarity. Thanks.
11228612
Sunset doesn't like it, either.
11228632
I was moreso referring to the “throw” part, heh.
11228645
Ah well yes fair enough ^^
11228632
Ok, but that's different than searching for a 'point'. When you say a point, I take it as 'a reason why we wake up every day' not necessarily 'what happens next?'
Aand i am out.
Anybody who claims to have THE TRUTH is out to scam you.
11228536
Irony being Fluttershy belongs to one of the few large mainstream churches to not only allow for same sex marriage but to openly embrace LGBT people as members and clergy
Might need an Alt. Universe tag. There is no way Eq:G Tree Hugger would be anything but Rostafarian.
Weed jokes aside, I was fully expecting Applejack to be the Protestant Christian representative. Good subversion of expectations with this chapter. Fluttershy feels like she's, as Tree.Hugger would say, "Coming from a place of authenticity."
Huh. I would've pegged AJ as the Christian.
Then again, that'd be little predictable.
11228788
It looks like in the USA could be 10 different Chuches on 1 square mile. Rarity is the catholic, Fluttershy is the presbyterian... AJ could be from the east orthodox church (because why not?) or some other kind of protestants, not presbyterian.
Are you planning to have Aj be Mormon?
maybe have Rainbow be Seventh day Adventist?
I could see Pinkie as someone who fallows the Flying Spaghetti Monster
This continues to be a great balance between the zeal of the newly converted and, well, Fluttershy. She's not exactly the type to go preaching on a street corner. And the bad news... It clearly hurts her, but she knows the decision can't be forced.
It is still weird to think of Tree Hugger as a devout Presbyterian, though.
11228673
Reminder that the views of the character need not reflect those of the author.
11228894
Well, I have seen a few churches in close proximity with one another, so you're not far from the truth!
11229028
Would you believe me if I said that characterization is based on a real person?
THANK YOU, FLUTTERSHY. If only more people understood this.
11229033
Pull up that Google earth on north central Utah.
So, by way of information, and I may get flak for this, but we 'Mormons' prefer 'members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.' A mouthful to be sure, but we want to be clear that we worship Jesus, not Mormon or even Joseph Smith Jr.
The title, Seeker, is finally brought up on Sunday, though it's still not clear exactly why Sunset is seeking.
It is also thanks to this chapter that images of ponified biblical figures live rent free in my head now. Thanks for Pony Jesus. And Pony Moses.
11229028
Yes i understand that.
11229673
No problemo.
Your Friendly Neighborhood Jewish Time Unicorn is always here to lend a helping hoof.
Still open to co-author a sequel chapter with you re: Sci-Twi, Sunset, and Judaism.
Rabbi Clockwork can deliver!
Fluttershy would definitely be a good Christian person because she does embody what a Christian ought to be.
I feel like no matter how much you cherry-pick the bible or allow for misinterpretations, there really isn't a solid way to justify 'magical universe full of sapient animals and creatures from every religion since the Egyptians and Greeks' and also the general points of the Christian creation story, Adam and Eve, etc.
Also, really weird Fluttershy is the fundamental Christian one, considering one of the main reasons I personally started questioning those kinds of beliefs (admittedly I was raised Catholic so this might be different) was that my CCD (Confraternity of Christian Doctrine) teacher made me redraw my picture of what I thought heaven would be like, because I drew my dog there with a halo and she said 'animals don't have souls, they aren't in heaven'.
ah, love that i'm seeing a savedfic in miniature with Fluttershy here! Tree Hugger is an unexpected and fascinating choice
haha take that Zephyr
wrong answer, Sunset! hahaha!
definitely not lol
that is an interesting contrast you get with some Christians. the religion of the smiling, suburban, no-bad-feelings mom founded on a gory and torturous execution. what a world we live in!
interesting thing to think about right before making a winking joke at Fluttershy, haha
so true! Fluttershy is doing a great job here
that's partialism, Fluttershy! that's a bad analogy, Fluttershy!
oh yeah, this is one of those thinkers for the theologians to figure out! though for some reason the idea that pony Jesus is yet to come feels "wrong" to me intuitively. kind of like a time travel paradox, i guess?
i actually don't think Sunset would be able to deduce the mainstream evangelical Protestant doctrine of hell from what is gleaned and implied by this conversation! i'm sure she would understand there is to be some sort of punishment, but not that it would be Eternal Conscious Torment. agh, i really wish i could see that conversation with Fluttershy!
11228788
See I think the cliche STARTS there, but losing your parents early can break it. You question god and that leads to walking away.