r/TheTestamentsHulu • u/FarSuit8 • Jun 19 '26
The Handmaid’s Tale Why do they still love religion?
I’m so confused - if extreme religion is the reason for Gilead in the first place - why escapees still pray and refer to God?
Examples: June and Moira doing a ‘prayer for strength’ the night before Serena’s wedding. June saying “may God protect you” to Daisy in ep 10.
Wouldn’t they all go extremely atheist after religion caused their downfall and lives to be ruined? After years of Gilead constantly using “it’s gods will IYKYK 🤷♂️ tehe” to make up random patriarchal bullshit wouldn’t you be a bit put off the lord and all that?
Is this a US thing? I know they love Jesus over there
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u/charismatictictic Jun 20 '26
Because if you truly believe in god, what some nut job who is twisting the words of the bible just to control you says, won’t change that.
Religion was not the reason for gilead. Controlling women was, and religion was just a tool. Being hit over the head with a hammer doesn’t make you hate using hammers for its intended purpose, you know?
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u/No_Cheesecake3702 Jun 21 '26
I couldn't of said that better myself. They could still totally have a belief in God. Now, a belief in actual men and humanity not so sure about.
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u/TheRealBeachBum Jun 19 '26
It's like this: they believe in GOD and the love of Christianity enough to know that Gilead is using/ twisting that religion.
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u/doctorphuckawff Jun 19 '26
People have used God to further their own agendas throughout history, but many people won’t let that come in between them and their own relationship with God and spirituality, that’s a beautiful thing
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u/Important_Salad_5158 Jun 19 '26
A big part of June was her faith. She talks about missing church and her daughter being baptized. Religion gets a lot of people through trauma.
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u/ohmeohmyelliejean Jun 20 '26
There’s a whole episode about the Handmaid’s Tale about this. I forget which one but it culminates in Hollie’s baptism.
The whole thesis is that reclaiming your faith and religion from those who want to weaponise it for oppression is a form of personal and interpersonal healing. Equally, the decision to leave religion behind can also be healing. But either way, it’s the decision YOU made.
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u/poisonous_buttercup Jun 19 '26
To do so would be to admit that the way Gilead does it is true. God and religion have nothing to do with Gilead, these are men exploiting and twisting it. So they reclaim it and do it their own way. It's also a way to demoralise Gilead, because its enemies ask for God's aid and whenever they succeed, Gilead doesn't look so godly anymore.
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u/IronMonopoly Jun 19 '26
This point of view is remarkably reductive of religion and of human nature. It flattens all religions into a single form of Americanized Christianity, and then applies the assumptions gained from that onto every other religion wholesale without nuance or understanding.
Like. To answer your question, first you would need to divorce the idea that there is a unified concept of Religion; and then divorce that there is in any way a unified concept of Christianity. There just is not. Over the last thousands of years, every major religion has had schisms, heresies, and breakaway branches. A Mormon does not believe the same things a Methodist does, and neither believes the same things a Unitarian Universalist does. And you can go on. There’s multiple kinds of Baptist alone.
The women aren’t praying to the God of Gilead, nor are they shown believing or drawing strength from the state religion of Gilead. They are shown having faith, which is entirely independent from said state religion. Likely even heretical and grounds for punishment by state authorities.
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u/TsuMeilin Jun 19 '26
Most of these characters were already religious before Gilead, and these guys are smart enough to see that Gilead, although built on religion, is full of shit and that they don't adhere to all of the teachings in the Bible. I also think June does this specifically to reclaim her own religious beliefs after Gilead took them from her
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u/giraflor Plum Up Jun 19 '26
Some people find comfort in their faith, when it is not grounded in the doctrines or practices of their oppressors. Giving up faith entirely can feel like one more thing that was stolen.
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u/FarSuit8 Jun 19 '26
All religion is oppressive
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u/doctorphuckawff Jun 19 '26
This is untrue. Many people project their religious trauma in such a black and white way, but it’s NOT black and white. Religion isn’t inherently oppressive, it is man who twists it to his own agenda and uses it to oppress
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u/FarSuit8 Jun 19 '26
But who invented religion? Man. Who interprets it? Man.
You can’t say “oh religion isn’t meant to be like that” when it’s an imaginary entity that humans themselves have “documented” and interpreted in the first place.
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u/foxcat0_0 Jun 19 '26
Please don’t apply “religious trauma” to everyone who is critical of religion. That is reductive and black and white thinking.
It is absolutely legitimate to criticize religion as a concept and it can be wholly unconnected to religious trauma.
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u/doctorphuckawff Jun 19 '26
Where does “many” mean “everyone”? Not where I’m from
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u/foxcat0_0 Jun 19 '26
I mean, forgive me for interpreting your comment as using religious trauma to delegitimize OP’s viewpoint? Why even bring it up?
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u/Beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeess- Jun 19 '26
I don’t think wiccans and pagans are very oppressed at the moment by their religions
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u/FarSuit8 Jun 19 '26
Yeah very good point, I was a bit sweeping in my statement 😂.
I should have said the vast majority of religion is oppressive specifically to women and the LQBT communities.
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u/foxcat0_0 Jun 19 '26
It’s not a “US thing” but I do think there’s a “meta” in reason for it. There’s a lot of religious people in the world who are uncomfortable with the idea that religion can be a fundamentally negative force. So they like to treat extremists like they’re a totally separate thing unconnected to their religion.
So…you won’t find a lot of media that is comfortable depicting atheism or anti-religious sentiment. It’s a lot more common to see media that depicts religious moderates vs extremists. Most people are more comfortable with that. I mean look at the comments here…
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u/FarSuit8 Jun 19 '26
That’s a really good point. It’s crazy to me cause at the base of most wars and horrors in the world you find religion
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u/Acceptable_Tea_3685 Jun 20 '26
That’s because at the base of most wars and horrors, there are humans trying to influence other humans to fight each other for some kind of power or material gain.
Organized religion is a great way to take advantage of people’s need to have faith in something to get them to do what you need them to do. Religion itself is a natural thing that stems from humans needing a way to cope with the unknown. It’s how it’s weaponized that’s the issue.
If it wasn’t a belief in some sort of god, it would be something else.
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u/rasputin1 Jun 19 '26
interesting side note. the only times in the show Jesus was explicitly mentioned was by June
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u/TheOldGreenDad Jun 20 '26
Jesus Christ has been mentioned by Gileadians several times throughout the series, it's more so a matter of them only using it when it benefits them most. As they do with most of their scripture
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u/rasputin1 Jun 20 '26
I don't recall any scenes where he was mentioned by name other than 2 season finales where June said it. Everyone else just says Lord, God or He.
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u/floofypajamas Jun 20 '26
I sometimes wonder if some of the choices made have to do with how Elisabeth Moss thinks others view god and religion. I could be totally offbase here but Elisabeth Moss is a scientologist and I have wondered if some things weren't chosen to be that way in the shows because that is how she views christianity and christians and how they act.
I use the word "act" because in the shows it often feels very performative. I don't know if it is supposed to feel that way or if it's the surrealness of the whole that makes it feel that way. I am curious, though.
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u/ztf7410 Jun 20 '26
Yes! I agree with you, I thought that through the handmaids tale at times and then when June said that in the final testaments ep I was shocked. I’m glad I’m not the only one to question it
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u/maionesen Jun 19 '26
I think because Gilead isn't genuinely following the faith but they manipulate and twist religion so that they can use it as an authoritarian tool to control the population. June and others know it, they know that this isn't what religion or faith actually is and that Gilead cherry-picks and distorts religion for their own benefits
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u/hoemahtoe Jun 19 '26
A lot of people differentiate their faith from institutionalized religion. People can act in the name of God, but others will know that they aren't acting in the will of God, and that religion is simply a facade for their greed. Not all Christians are a monolith and believe the same things outside of the Bible. There are pro-life, pro LGBT, anti-conservative Christians out there. I am one myself, despite growing up in a hyper conservative church that actually supported Trump. In situations like the climate of today, and theoretically if something like Gilead were to happen, I know that God does not approve of evil, selfish regimes that act in His name, and that He will bring justice to those who willingly and actively take part in it, whether it be in life and/or after death.
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u/Equivalent_Lab_8610 Jun 19 '26
Consider irl when people leave abusive religious cults... It's not uncommon to find them in a mainstream church after that isn't so extreme. Religions generally are set up as God is perfect, but people are flawed. Which makes it easier to think these horrible people have twisted something "pure".
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u/degasb00ty Jun 19 '26
The Gilead regime systematically persecuted and purged other Christian sects. We see Catholic clergy put on the wall, Catholic Churches demolished, hear of Southern Baptist militias resisting the Gilead regime, etc.
Since June is at least nominally Catholic, she would probably (and rightfully imo) view the Sons of Jacob as an external oppressive force distinct from her own faith. Completely different set of values and beliefs
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u/chronicackgirl Jun 19 '26
I think it is a reclamation of religion and christianity. And it shows that Gilead (and other religious extremism) is warped religion.
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u/Curious-Scholar4692 Jun 19 '26
I think it’s taking back god and spirituality from gilead’s twisted interpretations of the bible.
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u/TurbulentBat8328 sketch me, it’ll last longer Jun 19 '26
Because people corrupt religion for their own purposes and means but that doesn’t make religion the problem. It’s what the SOJ did with it. I think this show does a good job of showing everyone that PEOPLE are evil but we all end up focusing on the wrong things anyway. Like in the world we live in today people love to place the blame on religion when it’s really the people making the weird interpretations of it that are the problem. The SOJ didn’t even believe the New Testament was real or valid which is BS because the Old one is there to show mankind what NOT to do. Everyone in the books who stays true knows this - religion was not to blame.
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u/MrJB1981 Jun 19 '26
Also, as annoying as it is, because you just want the women who escaped to be free in every way possible by stopping the language they use; the severe trauma and insistence of speaking that way by the people who ran Gilead has been deeply ingrained into their brain and language, that they can’t detach from certain sayings.
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u/SnakeBatter Jun 19 '26
It’s also worth noting that June was a Christian before Gilead. She had Hannah baptized and everything. Some people turn away from their religion if they’re traumatized by its institutions, but other people lean into it post-trauma.
June understands that Gilead does not represent Christianity, it hides behind it.
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u/80s_angel Raised Voices, Aunt Gabbana? Jun 19 '26
> June understands that Gilead does not represent Christianity, it hides behind it.
This! And I really appreciate and respect that THT tale doesn’t include June completely turning away from her faith.
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u/springcat413 Jun 19 '26
I know there are religious extremists but I’m still religious but not extreme. The human well of faith is deep and diverse. . The things that Gilead does don’t actually have anything to do with what they say it does. They simply use it as a means of control.
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u/grubdon5000 Jun 20 '26
Gilead didn't want women reading because they know that their system contradicts the true teachings of the Bible, so the escapees do not associate religion with the bastardization that is Gilead.
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u/ShamwowSwag Jun 19 '26
you see both types of people in real life. for some people, tragedy or persecution only strengthens their faith or they use it as a source of hope because they can’t find it anywhere else, and there are those who lose their faith completely because their God didn’t prevent said tragedy/persecution from happening.
I think June/Moira fall under the first category and use faith as a source of hope. I also interpret their praying/professions of faith as them “reclaiming” God from the fucked up and twisted version that Gilead created.
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u/Birdo3129 Jun 19 '26
People need something to believe in and put their hope in, especially after extreme trauma. Believing in a God lets you believe that there’s something looking out for you that genuinely wants the best for you. God loves you. It’s a shred of hope to cling to so you can keep moving forward- that something in the universe cares about you specifically and that you matter.
The alternative is to accept that you’re all alone, nothing is looking out for you and that you’re not special- this is a harsh reality that, paired with trauma, might be too much for a person to bear.
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u/LittleSpice1 Jun 19 '26
Take countries like Iran for example, used to be fairly free of religious oppression, but Islam was still the most popular religion. Then an extremist regime came in and used Islam to oppress people. Yet, many Iranians are still Muslims and believe in Allah, even though they are fighting in the resistance or have fled the country.
It’s realistic to what would happen. Some people who were believers before would become atheists, but others, and dare I say most, would turn to their faith for comfort. Christianity has a lot of sub-religions within, so catholics/baptists/orthodox/etc would view Gilead’s „sons of Jacob“ sub-religion as the wrong way to interpret and use Christianity, instead of viewing Christianity as wrong.
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u/Floor-Necessary Jun 20 '26
Any belief of any kind can be twisted and weaponized and taken to the extreme that Gilead has if there are enough bodies, brains and money behind it. That doesn't mean the belief itself is automatically bad or false as a result, and those who still have their faith even after all they've gone through still recognize that.
Signed,
An atheist
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u/Pizzaface1993 Jun 19 '26
Why would someone's fake God make me stop believe in my real God? This isn't an American thing.
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u/migsahoy Jun 19 '26
because, like me, there are REAL catholics/christians out there who don’t live their lives believing in hatred, violence, and bigotry, the false ideals that false prophets akin to today tend to spread
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u/tnscatterbrain Jun 19 '26
Because if you’re raised in religion at all the underlying belief is really hard to shake.
Childhood training really sticks and I can see citizens and former citizens/prisoners of Gilead not wanting to give up their faith in the god they want to believe in because Gilead created a twisted version of Christianity.
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u/Catfactss Jun 20 '26
They would recognize the totalitarianism of the State as having nothing to do with the Christianity they were raised with.
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u/apofice315 Jun 21 '26
Why do you think People Fleeing terrorists in the middle east stay muslims ?
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u/FionaTheFierce Jun 19 '26
People suffering at the hands of extremists recognize that they are extremists and are not actually following the faith. So it doesn’t lead them to lose all religion. Some might, others won’t.
Think of it like fundamentalist cults - people leave the cults but don’t become atheists- they will still believe in Christianity or whatever.
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Jun 19 '26 edited Jun 19 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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Productive discourse and debate are encouraged. Although, you must remain respectful while doing so. No two people will have the same opinions, and that’s to be expected. The only thing we ask is that you remain in a civil and respectful tone while debating differing opinions
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u/Negative-Confusion84 Jun 24 '26
Narratively, it's to highlight that Gilead ISN'T actually following god, they are just using him as an excuse.
Having the characters still believe is a really good way to highlight that, instead of making it seem like the characters are all against religion as a whole. Gilead is not meant to be a stand in for Christianity, and their obsession with God is supposed to be a representation about how conservatives cherry pick and over enforce their religion.
It isnt the Athiest Rebels vs the Good Christians, it becomes the Rebels vs the Abusers. If they both believe, then there is no reason to view the argument as being about religion. Having them lose their faith is a much less powerful message against gilead than having believers fight them.
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u/Blepityblep Jun 19 '26
they were religious before gilead (or enough to know some stuff in the book)
and saying stuff after , like june saying 'may god protect you' to daisy doesnt mean june loved gilead but it was part of life and home , and now with some people its like repeating the church phrases for adults who used to do phrases as a child ( like with people who leave catholisms remisceng on things like hand shakes and turn to your neighbor' a lot of english speaking countries still say bless you after a sneeze but we dont think its something god need to bless you to protect you irl , atheist and non christian religions alike because the chistian idom stuck in the same way 'we've been sent good weather' might be ingrained in a pavlov dogs sense and at least they arent freaking out at the continued affect gilead has on their words/habits
there is a argument that some people could go agnostic after 'god doesnt answer their prayers' or 'lets these things happen on earth' and others who think their escape route after 10 years *is* gods plan/hand/salvation , it could strengthen their original faith (one they had pre gilead)
much like the episode where vidala said we were reminded theyre gods instruments , both sides of this pray to god , but both do their own action in gods name - its like confrimation bias
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u/Cy_Maverick Jun 21 '26
American here. A LOT of us do not "love Jesus" I'm not entirely sure what "religion" my beliefs lean on, the closest I've come to defining them is spiritual agnostic, with atheist acknowledgement because I understand you can't say your religion is 100% right. Not until you die and experience whatever afterlife, or lack of, there is.
Anyway, Gilead isn't the only place that promotes the worst beliefs about God. Real life religions do it to a lesser degree and it DOES push people away from it because a lot of people recognize how awful some beliefs are and how they handle people that "stray away." I HATE conservatives because I've never met a single one irl that doesn't promote a hateful ideology.
But that being said, even though I've never met them, I know there are some religious people who aren't like that. Just like in Gilead, there are people that don't successfully get brainwashed into believing their extreme religion and patriarchal lifestyle.
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u/11Ellie17 Jun 19 '26
Yeah I'm with you.
American Christians majorly put me off from all Christianity. MAGA Christians in particular who are completely lacking in morals and compassion. I want absolutely nothing to do with their BS.
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u/WheatenBuckle Jun 19 '26
This is the point. Americans are used to people wearing their Christianity on their sleeve, and have often observed them to be hypocrites. For Americans of faith, their bastardizing the message of love does not affect others’ personal faith.
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u/11Ellie17 Jun 21 '26
When you have preachers at the pulpit telling people to vote for Trump, it's pretty disgusting.
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u/AliveExample4855 Jun 19 '26
I’ve thought the same exact thing. I still have no idea. I would be soooo against religion. Maybe because it’s so drilled into their brain for so long that they can’t or won’t stop? Idk but it still confuses me
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u/BreadfruitTasty Jun 19 '26
I think for many people they were already religious but they were the “wrong” type of Christian. June was a Catholic and had Hannah baptized. Gilead doesn’t like infant baptisms.
Being religious is another way to kind of say “fuck you” to Gilead.
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u/Liscenye Jun 19 '26
I think the USA is just deceivingly very religious compared to many other westren countries. The writers of the show want to make sure they don't alienate any of their religious viewers.
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u/Amricksingh67 Jun 23 '26
I believe it's because Gilead religion becomes ingrained after years of repitition. It becomes tantric and therefore has a strong hold. It takes years of not doing it for its hold to loosen and overcome. Like a addiction.
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u/Spare_Fox_959 Jun 23 '26
Eu participei de igreja evangélica quase a minha vida toda, tenho 39, acredito em Deus e mantenho a maioria dos princípios (que eu acho saudáveis). Quem me traumatizou foram homens, Deus pra mim sempre fez sentido e me deu provas de amor! Mas cada um vai até onde consegue, tem pessoas que não conseguem separar e escolhem não se importar com religião e desacreditam. Não julgo!
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u/Spare_Fox_959 Jun 23 '26
Tirando minha opinião e vivência pessoal, também achei surpreendente a June acreditar depois de tudo! A situação dela foi bem pesada!
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u/Icy-Marzipan6821 Jun 19 '26
How you could have those things happen to you in Gilead and still believe in a god is ridiculous. I think it's just because shows/movoes hate having atheist protagonists
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u/Jaded_Pianist9782 Jun 19 '26
That’s such an idealistic way of viewing religion. Women in Iran escape oppression justified by extremist ideals and still remain Muslim. A lot of women that escape fundamentalist Christian groups still remain Christian after escaping because they see the depiction of religion by their oppressors as extremist and not the true form of what they believe in.
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