Sarah Mitchell
Philip Pullman's trilogy *His Dark Materials* has been criticised for its anti-Catholic and anti-Christian themes. The story chronicles an attempt to overthrow the Christian God and his kingdom in heaven, with the great evil in the books being the sinister Magisterium, a loose stand-in for the Catholic Church. The trilogy has been described as a critique of organised religion and a paean to Blakean joy in life, with God himself portrayed as a merciless tyrant. The author has been accused of presenting an all-out attack on the faith of Christians and Jews, with the Catholic League urging parents to boycott the film adaptation of the first book, *The Golden Compass*. Despite this, some critics have defended the series, with one describing it as a critique of authority in general, rather than a specific attack on Christianity or Catholicism.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Anti-Christian | God is a merciless tyrant |
| The Church is an instrument of oppression | |
| True heroism consists of overthrowing God and the Church | |
| Anti-Catholic | References to the Roman-Catholic Church are omnipresent |
| The Church hierarchy is caricatured | |
| The Church is a dystopian and authoritarian organization interested in ruling power | |
| Anti-God | God is the "Authority" |
| God is evil | |
| God is a benign imposter | |
| Anti-Religion | The work is a critique of organized religion |
| The work is anti-religious | |
| The work is atheism for kids | |
| The work is against those who misuse religion | |
| The work is against any doctrine with a holy book and a priesthood that wields unchallengeable authority | |
| The work is against any doctrine that dominates and suppresses human freedom | |
| The work is against any doctrine that perverts religion |
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What You'll Learn
The books' ecological message is absent from the TV adaptation
Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials trilogy, published from 1995 to 2000, consists of three novels: The Golden Compass, The Subtle Knife, and The Amber Spyglass. The books centre on the orphan Lyra Belacqua, who discovers a kidnapping plot related to an invisible cosmic substance called Dust. In the parallel world of the story, Dust is a gift of the universe that brings about adult consciousness in humans, including knowledge of good and evil, sexual maturity, and spiritual conflicts.
The trilogy has been adapted into a television series by HBO, Bad Wolf, and New Line Productions, with the first season airing in 2019, the second in 2020, and the third and final season in 2022. While the show has received generally positive reviews for its visuals, performances, and faithfulness to the source material, it has been criticised for its depiction of Catholicism and the absence of the ecological message present in the books.
The books' ecological message is derived from the concept of Dust, which replaces the Christian notion of a corrupting "fall" with a deep ecological notion that consciousness is the universe coming to awareness of itself. In the books, the arrival of Dust and the corresponding elevation of consciousness is not a fall into sin but a moment when humans fully participate in the spirit of the cosmos. Knowledge of good and evil is a cause of celebration rather than lamentation.
However, the TV adaptation of His Dark Materials has been criticised for not including this ecological message. Since the message does not appear until the second and third books of the trilogy, it may yet be incorporated into the show in later seasons. Nonetheless, the absence of this message in the first season made it more challenging for viewers to look away from the harsh depiction of "the Magisterium", a loose stand-in for the Catholic Church, which some viewers found disturbing.
While the TV adaptation of His Dark Materials has been mostly free of religious backlash, the previous film adaptation, The Golden Compass (2007), faced significant criticism from Christian groups. The film's creators attempted to make the material more palatable to conservative audiences, but this only succeeded in alienating fans of the series. Despite the filmmakers' efforts, religious critics still considered the movie to be anti-Catholic and urged parents to boycott it.
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The Magisterium is a stand-in for the Catholic Church
Philip Pullman's trilogy, His Dark Materials, has been the subject of much controversy and criticism, particularly from Catholic and Christian groups. The trilogy is considered by some to be anti-Catholic and anti-Christian. The books have been described as "a critique of organised religion, a paean to Blakean joy in life, and, for all its controversy, the most vividly imagined 'secondary world' in 20th-century children's literature".
The Magisterium, the governing body of the Church in the trilogy, has been described as a "loose stand-in for the Catholic Church". The Magisterium is ruled by a figure known as the "Authority", who is portrayed as a merciless tyrant. The Church, or the Magisterium, is depicted as an instrument of oppression, with true heroism consisting of overthrowing both God and the Church. The Magisterium's members have been described as "clearly look [ing] like men of the cloth", and their headquarters resembles the Vatican. The organisation also shares the same name as the governing body of the Catholic Church.
The trilogy contains numerous references to the Bible, as well as to other religious texts such as Milton's Paradise Lost and the works of William Blake. Pullman's work introduces and reinterprets various dogmatic concepts from these texts, presenting them in a new context that enables an allegorical reading. The traditional Christian concepts of Original Sin and the Fall of Man are also referenced and reworked in the trilogy.
The depiction of the Magisterium as a sinister and oppressive force has been interpreted as a critique of the Catholic Church's structure and power dynamics. The Church in the trilogy is described as a "villainous criminal organisation" whose sole objective is to gain power. Pullman's work has been accused of portraying Christianity as evil, with one critic stating that the books are "an agenda-driven epic that tells kids Christianity is evil".
Despite the backlash, some have defended the trilogy, arguing that it is not specifically targeted at Catholicism or Christianity but rather at any form of organised religion and its misuse of power.
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God is a merciless tyrant
Philip Pullman's trilogy, His Dark Materials, has been criticised for its anti-Catholic and anti-Christian themes. The series has been described as "a shattering tale" that is "anti-religious" and "a critique of organised religion". The story chronicles an attempt to overthrow the Christian God and His kingdom in heaven.
In the world of Pullman's fiction, God Himself (referred to as "the Authority") is depicted as a merciless tyrant, with His Church described as an instrument of oppression. The Magisterium, a stand-in for the Catholic Church, is the great evil in the books, governing and punishing anything considered "heresy" or "blasphemy". The Church's hierarchy is caricatured, and its doctrines and public attitudes are criticised. The arrival of ""Dust" in the story grants humans adult consciousness, including knowledge of good and evil, which is a cause for celebration rather than sin. This replaces the Christian notion of a "fall" with an ecological notion of consciousness.
Pullman's work has been described as "atheism for kids", with some critics calling it an attack on their faith. The author himself has denied this, stating that his story is against those who "pervert and misuse religion" and that it is a critique of authority in general, not specifically organised religion or Christianity.
The visual presentation of the series, with the garb of clerics and the magisterial headquarters, has been noted for its resemblance to the Vatican and Roman collars, amplifying the anti-religious sentiments of the source material. Despite efforts to make the material more palatable to conservative audiences, Christian groups have criticised both the books and their adaptations.
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The Church is an instrument of oppression
Philip Pullman's trilogy, His Dark Materials, has been criticised for its negative portrayal of the Catholic Church. The story chronicles an attempt to overthrow the Christian God and his kingdom in heaven, with the Church, governed by the "Magisterium", exerting a strong control over society. The Magisterium has been described as a "loose stand-in" for the Catholic Church, with its headquarters bearing a resemblance to the Vatican.
The trilogy has been called "atheism for kids", with God himself described as a "merciless tyrant" and the Church as an "instrument of oppression". Pullman's work has been interpreted as a critique of organised religion and a celebration of the Blakean joy in life. The author himself has stated that his story is against those who "pervert and misuse religion, or any other kind of doctrine with a holy book and a priesthood and an apparatus of power that wields unchallengeable authority, in order to dominate and suppress human freedoms".
The Church in Pullman's world is portrayed as a villainous criminal organisation, with its sole objective being the acquisition of power. This is achieved through the strict governance and punishment of anything considered "heresy" or "blasphemy". The Catholic Church's hierarchy is caricatured, and its doctrines and public attitudes are criticised. The traditional Judeo-Christian vision of God ("the Authority") as good and the "rebel angels", or demons, as evil, is flipped on its head.
The arrival of "Dust", which enables humans to reach adult consciousness, is presented as a gift of the universe, rather than a fall into sin. This elevation of consciousness is a cause for celebration, not lamentation, as it represents humans fully participating in the spirit of the cosmos.
While the recent HBO series adaptation has received relatively little pushback from religious groups, the 2007 film, The Golden Compass, faced significant criticism and condemnation from Christian organisations. Despite efforts to make the material more palatable to conservative audiences, religious critics urged parents to boycott the film and books, describing them as "bait" and "the stuff of nightmares".
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The story is an attack on the Judeo-Christian vision of God
Philip Pullman's trilogy, His Dark Materials, has been criticised for its anti-Christian and anti-God themes. The story chronicles an attempt to overthrow the Christian God and His kingdom in heaven. The great evil in the books is the sinister Magisterium, a loose stand-in for the Catholic Church. The Magisterium is governed by the same name as the authority of the Catholic Church and exerts a strong control over society. Pullman's fictional "Pope John Calvin" moves the centre of power from Rome to Geneva.
The trilogy has been described as "a broadside against the traditional Judeo-Christian vision of God ('the Authority') as good and the 'rebel angels,' or demons, as evil". In Pullman's world, God is a merciless tyrant, and His Church is an instrument of oppression. True heroism consists of overthrowing both. The arrival of Dust and the corresponding elevation of consciousness is not a fall into sin but the moment when humans fully participate in the spirit of the cosmos. Knowledge of good and evil is a cause of celebration, not lamentation.
The story is inspired by John Milton's Paradise Lost, in which Satan rebels against God. The first book, The Golden Compass, features a "rebellion" on two fronts, both of which involve severing children from their daemons before they "settle." The first front is the Magisterium's war on Dust, motivated by a desire to escape "original sin," or the conscious awareness of adulthood. The second front comes from scientists who wish to harness the power of Dust to free humanity from the limits of nature, but this will end with the destruction of everything.
Pullman's depiction of the Magisterium has been described as "quite harsh," with his anti-religious sensibilities amplified by HBO's visual effects. The garb worn by the clerics in the show resembles Roman collars, and the magisterial headquarters looks like the Vatican. However, some have defended the series, arguing that it critiques authority in general, not organised religion or Christianity specifically.
The story contains numerous references to the Bible, as well as to Milton's Paradise Lost and the works of William Blake. Pullman employs various strategies to introduce these dogmatic precepts, either rewriting them in a new light or presenting them in a completely new context that enables a different, allegorical reading.
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Frequently asked questions
Yes, the trilogy contains numerous references to the Catholic Church and has been described as "atheism for kids".
The trilogy contains numerous references to the Catholic Church, including the Magisterium, which is a stand-in for the Catholic Church, governed by the same name as the authority of the Catholic Church. The Church in the books has been described as a "villainous criminal organisation" with the sole objective of gaining power.
The Catholic League, an anti-defamation group, urged parents to boycott the film adaptation of the first book, *The Golden Compass*. The Catholic Herald also called the books "the stuff of nightmares" and "worthy of the bonfire".
Pullman has denied that his books are anti-Catholic, saying that his story is "against those who pervert and misuse religion, or any other kind of doctrine with a holy book and a priesthood and an apparatus of power that wields unchallengeable authority, in order to dominate and suppress human freedoms".
The recent HBO series has received less pushback from religious groups compared to the 2007 film adaptation of *The Golden Compass*. However, some have noted that the TV series' depiction of the Magisterium is quite harsh and amplifies Pullman's anti-religious sentiments.
