Finding God in Anime: A Devotional for Otakus

by Laura A. Grace, Moriah Jane, Angela R. Watts

Being a Christian can be tough. Being an otaku can be tough. But being both at once?

Sometimes it seems easier to become Hokage rather than explaining your faith and passions to others. That is why we otaku have united in this devotional: To encourage otaku like you spiritually and through a medium we all cherish.

In this devotional, you will find God in the animes you know and love. Each devotional presents spiritual lessons found in animes ranging from the world-famous Attack on Titan to fan-favorite Haikyu!! to beloved classics like Cowboy Bebop. Each piece will feature a different theme such as:

- Human Will vs. The Holy Spirit in Yona of the Dawn
- Choosing to be Free in Free! Swim Club
- Not by My Might in My Hero Academia

…and many others! We believe that God can be seen throughout His creation—even in places where people might not intend! So pull out your cosplay and snuggle close with your plushies as you join us in Finding God in Anime.

Genres: Christian, Nonfiction

168 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 11, 2021

About the author

Growing up, Laura A. Grace dreamed of being a Sailor Scout and searching for the seven dragon balls so she could make a wish. Those dreams have continued to inspire her as co-founder and co-organizer of the devotional Finding God in Anime as well as a writer and YouTuber for Beneath the Tangles, a website that blends discussion of anime and Christianity. She also even started her own anime-inspired small business, Cheery Tangerine Creations! When she’s not busy brainstorming new pin designs or filming YouTube videos to convince others to read her favorite manga titles, you can find her playing video games with her husband and three children.

Come see what manga she is reading and recommending on her YouTube channel!

Reviews

[Nicole Dust · Rating 4 out of 5]

You're probably not supposed to read a devotional in one day, but I did anyways despite my best intentions. XD

I really, really enjoyed this devotional! It's inspiring to me how we can find the Gospel in all sorts of mediums, including anime. I laughed, I cried, I took heart from this collection.

[Jenna · Rating 4 out of 5]

As an anime lover, it's so awesome to see this fresh look on anime. The way these writers see God and Biblical lessons in anime makes me look at it with new eyes. Definitely a perfect read for any Christian otaku.

[Laura Grace]

Hey there! I'm not leaving a review exactly, but wanted to share I was one of the organizers for this and have two pieces in this anthology.

If you have ever desired to have a devotional where your love for Jesus and anime meet, then this devotional is for you! As an otaku myself, I found all these pieces deeply inspiring and have read this more than once on my personal time because it spoke to my heart.

Each piece is Jesus centered and has a variety of epic anime such as Haikyu!!, My Hero Academia, and Yona of the Dawn. Even with some of the anime I had not seen that were featured, I found those pieces still heart-moving.

If you would like to snag an e-copy for FREE, here are some links below where you can "purchase" Finding God in Anime. (And don't worry! If you're the manga reader who prefers to read paperback, there is one readily available on Amazon!)

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/ebook/dp/B094Q...

Other Retailers: https://books2read.com/u/3GvLxK

[S. J. Barnard · Rating 5 out of 5]

First off, how cool is it that you get your devotions done and spend time reminiscing about your favourite manga & anime?? I spent this week and the last reading from FGiA, and it has been a blast…and let me explain why you should be using this devotional as well.

Reason #1: My mum and I have recently reached the conclusion that it’s impossible not to see biblical themes reciprocated in certain manga/anime, starting from Ghibli and extending to AoT, TPN, &c. We often spend time discussing aspects of our favourite manga & anime and tying it into our personal devotions. So, if you don’t have someone like my Mum, you can still have this discussion with FGiA!

Reason #2: As an anthology, FGiA consists of short devotional entries that’s easy to follow and enjoy even if you don’t know the specific story. It’s a great pick-me-up first thing in the morning (even if you slept in) or the go-to for those small snippets of time you might have on hand.

Reason #3: All of the stories featured in FGiA are certified to be clean and God-honouring, even if some of them are darker than the others. It’s a great way to find out more about other manga & anime you were interested in but weren’t sure. I for one was reminded I was really into Yona of the Dawn a few years back and am thinking of giving Naruto Shippuden another read.

And lastly, just a personal side note: I was super hyped Renée Le Vine included Precure. I basically grew up watching Precure since it started and it has a special place in my heart! I also love Nausicaa (esp. the manga), so I was pleasantly surprised it was featured on more than one occasion. 🙂

So, if you’re an avid manga-reader or anime-lover and would love to explore biblical themes within them, this devotional is absolutely for you!

[Sarah Ryder · Rating 5 out of 5]

Until this year I’ve never watched anime or read manga, so by all intents and purposes this devotional wasn’t for me.

Yet it totally was. 100% ☺️

Most if not all the pieces were either exactly what I needed at the time I read them, or inspired me in some way. Several made me tear up. Others made me look at things in a new light. I read more then one most days. And I for sure will be checking out the animes mentioned!

This is a beautiful, inspiring devotional I highly encourage everyone to read whether you’ve watched hundreds of anime or none. It’s that good.

[Nathaniel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Okay, let's just take a moment to reflect on this book.
...
Moment over. I'm still not quite feeling ready to write this review but that's fine. Some things are better done without a lot of planning. SO... an anime devotional. If you asked me what types books I did not plan to ever read, this would be one of them, but here I am with a five star review.
Anime is not a big part of my life. Aside from Studio Ghibli (which some people hardly qualify as anime), I have never watched any. I don't know what an Otaku is or what any of these shows are. I just know that they sound really fun and this book had a lot of bite-sized lessons. Devotionals can be hard to get through but this one flew by because of the length of the stories. It really helped with the digestion and overall lessons that I pulled from this.
So I highly recommend picking up a copy, as it really seems like something worth your time. I have ordered a paperback so that I can write some notes and do some highlighting. I want this book on my shelf.

[Angela R. Watts]

I was honored to be a part of this collection of devotionals! I have 3 pieces in this book and each is so, so dear to my heart. Nonfiction is tricky to write but oh, so worth it.

I hope you pick up a copy of this book if you like fast, poignant, encouraging devotionals AND anime/manga!

[Kayla Green · Rating 5 out of 5]

From messages about trusting God's plan and needing God to save us to lessons reminding us to seek out God and that God can rekindle dying flames, Finding God in Anime is full of anime-inspired devotionals that spoke to my soul.

Some of the devotionals that stood out to me are:

- We Don't Need the Memories by Laura A. Grace
- Not By My Might by Hannah Carter
- Searching for the Real Father by Renee Le Vine
- Endeavor: A New Fire by Daniel Andrade
- A Matter of the Heart: Human Will vs the Holy Spirit by H. S. J. Williams

After completing this devotional, I am more aware that God can be found everywhere, even in places one might not expect. I enjoy several of the anime series mentioned in Finding God in Anime, and I am excited to continue watching these series (and others) with this new lens of seeking God.

I highly recommend this devotional to fellow otakus and those wishing to go deeper in their spiritual walk. I whole-heartedly plan to re-read this devotional.

[Moriah Jane · Rating 5 out of 5]

Are you allowed to write a review for an anthology you're in? LOL

This devotional is such a blessing and honestly super cool. There are a lot more Christians who experience God in Anime than I realized! It's been neat to see so many different authors writing about how they heard God's voice of comfort, reason, love, and so much more in their favorite shows.

I'm not one who reads loads of devotionals but I enjoy the layout of bite-size devos in here. I get overwhelmed easily by loads of info so it's really cool to have powerful messages wrapped up in 700 words or less.

Anyway, fantastic job to all!! I pray your pieces continue to encourage and inspire 💙

[Matt Starr · Rating 5 out of 5]

First Devo In Years

I give my disclaimer as the title because I’m not a regular consumer of Christian devotionals.
I was curious and excited, though more curious, as I saw this coming together and finally being released.

And I’m glad it finally came! I’m glad I’m not the only one who thinks that Japanese entertainment is underutilized as a starting point for discussion.

[Piper Bee · Rating 4 out of 5]

This devotional book is a short read with a consistent message: God can be found in anything bearing the beauty of truth. The enjoyment of stories is uniquely human, and one of the most powerful pieces of literature in the world is a big book full of them. But even deviating from the Bible, it's obvious that the creative world is filled with beauty, intrigue, and meaning.

What I loved about this devotional was the commitment of each contributor to find the buried truths in manga and anime. Even if the content of some of these stories could seem controversial to a Christian, there is always some light of God’s truth hidden in the narratives. I was moved by some of the observations, such as the chapters about Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind.

The book itself has some flaws. One of the most important to recognize is that it contains spoilers for some of the stories that are mentioned, and with little warning. Mostly this is avoided, and sometimes the spoilers are necessary for the author's conclusion to be understood fully.

For young otakus, new Christians, or anyone of any age or background who is curious to see how God can be found among a fairly god-free industry, I whole-heartedly recommend this book. God is everywhere, gently knocking on the hearts of those He created, and that is a major highlight in this devotional.

Full review at piperbeeauthor.com/blog

[M.H. Elrich · Rating 5 out of 5]

A touching and moving devotional for otakus

Do you love anime? Have you ever wondered if anime can have Christian messages? Check out this devotional! Each chapter contains a heartfelt devotional that conveys the truth of the gospel through anime. Highly recommend.

[Tiago Faleiro · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is a collection of essays about Christianity in anime. I liked that there were many essays by different people and the book's concept is great. But the delivery was disappointing.

First, the book is a lot more religious than I expected. Not necessarily a con for many, but I expected some philosophy but there wasn't any. Most importantly, the analysis provided was very superficial and short.

There was little serious religious insight, often being as casual as "taking care of your friends" or "not giving up". They do make a connection with Christianity but lacks any depth. The diversity of anime was poor, with many great animes that would fit this topic perfectly not covered at all, and many anime that aren't particularly suited repeated over and over again.

It's not horrible, however. For people who are super religious, don't like the abstraction of philosophy, and for a younger generation, I think the book would be great. And I don't mean that in a condescending way, I just think it's the correct target audience.

[The Lazy Reader · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't really like being the sole negative review for a book. Especially when the book has been made with the dual purpose of glorifying God and edifying Christians. 1) It makes my review significantly more noticeable as it can't just fade into the background of all the other reviews. 2) It makes me feel like I'm being mean even I have no mean intentions. But I'm deeply uncomfortable with not being truthful when I feel that something has a serious flaw, and I feel that way about this book.

There's nothing spiritually immoral or biblically inaccurate in this book, which should be any reader's chief concern. This is a very safe book to give someone whom you know is both a believer and a fan of anime, or someone who likes anime but isn't Christian but maybe are Christ-curious. There are a number of different anime's featured among the devotions, which means that there are multiple entry points for Christian anime fans. There's likely an anime featured that you've watched and enjoyed or that falls into a genre that you watch and enjoy. You may even learn about some new anime to check out. There are also multiple contributors to this project, so if you don't connect with some devotions, chances are there will be others that you do connect with.

But as I said at the start of my review, this devotional has a serious flaw that harms the book's overall presentation, that flaw being grammar and sentence structure issues. It's not present in all of the devotions. Some were quite well-written. But others had very obvious errors that I'm surprised were not fixed before sending the book to print. I'm not going to give examples, as I don't want to embarrass anyone, and considering the eBook version is free, I don't want to impose a standard that these authors really aren't required to meet for a free book. (And a book that's free for a really good and honorable reason.) But I purchased a physical copy as I don't read eBooks, and if this were a devotional published by a publisher where part of the intent of publishing it was to make money, I would be disappointed.

I don't want to be dismissive of these authors efforts, and I would certainly never say that the Lord would never use this book to bring others close to Him and teach them about His character. I think He would, and I think He will. I believe the Lord honors those who seek to honor Him, even if it's through a sometimes poorly written book. I'm actually praying the Lord does use this book in someone's life. I just would not recommend this book to most adults due to the quality of the writing (and the admittedly surface-level analysis of anime's and biblical truths in some of the devotionals). I would, however, recommend this for middle graders/early teens who like anime and are Christian. I think this is written at a good level for them. It's very simplistic, often too much so, but I think that's part of what makes it really suitable for a younger reader. Not all of the anime's mentioned are probably appropriate for that age group, so that's something that those thinking about recommending this book to their younger relatives, etc. will want to think about, but I can definitely see a young person enjoying this book.

[A.M. Reynwood · Rating 4 out of 5]

Finding this book was a God thing, for sure. I've enjoyed anime ever since I discovered it in my teens, but struggled with the doubt if it was actually 'okay' for a Christian to watch and enjoy it (don't ask me why, because it's not like anime is any worse than Marvel or Star Wars). But I did, and struggled with the guilt. And then, just a little while ago, I saw this book pop up on my Amazon 'recommended reads', and got such a kick out of the idea that I had to pick it up. What a blessing! This book is full of devotionals by other anime-loving Believers showing how they have seen biblical truths (like unconditional love, sacrifice, and our need for community) throughout anime, and it struck me: Well, why not? Anime, manga— they're stories, and God speaks to us and teaches us through stories. Jesus did it all the time. The medium doesn't matter all that much in the long run. It was such an encouragement to me to learn there were other otakus in the family of God—Believe it!

[Amy McConahy]

I am proud to be a contributing author of this devotional. I wrote three pieces on how "Sailor Moon" grew my faith and encouraged my walk with the Lord. "Finding God in Anime" is a much needed resource to connect with another generation of Otakus growing up in a Christian community that may not understand or may be hostile to their love of anime. I would not be the strong Christian I am today without the encouraging influence of anime and Japanese culture. Though mainstream Asian culture may be lost in idol worship, their focus on putting others before self is something that is very Christian and has always stuck with me. I highly recommend you read this devotional. The other authors are very talented and have done a great job connecting anime themes with Christian faith.

[C.O. Bonham · Rating 5 out of 5]

God can speak through anything, even anime.

Finding God in Anime is a multi-author collection of devotions centered around popular anime franchises such as My Hero Academia, Sailor moon, and Naruto. Each devotion analyses its chosen anime and picks out a theme that illustrates a scripture.

Like all such pop culture devotions it isn't to try to say that anime is Christian, but rather that God can speak to his followers through an medium he wishes. Even those weird Japanese cartoons.

I highly recommend this devotional for anyone who enjoys anime but has always felt conflicted about whether it was okay to watch it.

[Robin Fuson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is not my typical read. My grandchildren are into Anime and I wanted to see if this book would be a good fit for them. I recommend this book for anyone with a great imagination. These short devotions are perfect for teens and young adults. Each character sketch teaches a biblical character building principle. I read these not understanding the characters on the whole Anime world and still understood the devotions point. I love the themes and the short plotlines. If you are a teen or young adult or know such person, bless them with this book.

[C.L. Aguilar · Rating 5 out of 5]

Encouraging!

My son and I had a great time going through these short devotionals every day at breakfast. It was nice to mix our love of anime and our greater love of Jesus, giving us a fresh dose of encouragement before setting out to conquer our individual responsibilities of the day. A big thanks to all the contributors! You guys are awesome 😀

[Lynne Modranski · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book to check for the Biblical soundness so I could recommend it to a young friend who loves Anime and Cosplay. It wasn't my cup of tea, but it was well written and I think it will really connect with the author's intended audience! So, if you like Anime and that realm, I think this book can also help point to you Jesus!

[Drew Taylor · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is super niche & well-executed! If you’re an anime fan (and a Christian), I recommend this for extra-Biblical reading. I would not use it to sub a Bible study, but it’s cool to read and see how your fav anime has Scriptural backgrounds.

[Brianna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Finding God in Anime was great! Just finished it and really enjoyed it. Definitely recommend this one! I can't wait for future volumes!

[Jaime Peña · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is wonderful. It really blessed me and I felt God talked to me in particular ways the days I read the devotionals from this book. Thank you very much

[Eisley · Rating 5 out of 5]

OMG, I love this book so much! My parents gave it to me on Easter and I want to find a good devotional for me to read every morning but OK if I’m being honest here… A lot of devotionals are just straight up boring but this one was really great it connects my favorite animes to the Lord in ways I never firewood I love it so much and this is a great way to find connection in between your favorite anime to the Lord. We should try to connect everything. We love whether it’s reading and watching anime or doing anything your life to the Lord and. this book really helps connect your geek side to anime to the lord😊

[Matt Starr · Rating 5 out of 5]

I give my disclaimer as the title because I’m not a regular consumer of Christian devotionals.
I was curious and excited, though more curious, as I saw this coming together and finally being released.

And I’m glad it finally came! I’m glad I’m not the only one who thinks that Japanese entertainment is underutilized as a starting point for discussion.