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The Holy Nerd—A Look at the Spirituality of Tabletop Gamers by a Unitarian Universalist Public Deposited

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  • My thesis argues that there is a spiritual need by the members of the tabletop role-playing and miniature gaming community that is going unfulfilled and that Unitarian Universalism as theology can hellp fulfill that need and create a conversation among gamers about the spirituality of their games. That need is the recognition of gaming as a spiritual practice. This need is currently going unfulfilled because of the rising numbers of non-religious members of the population, a rift between religion and gaming caused by the persecuation of the gaming community by conservative faith leaders, and the difficulties of theology to deal with play and fictional worlds. Unitarian Universalism, being a liberal faith tradition and open to exploring a more comprehensive range of expressions of spirituality and theology, allows for a broader and more open view of spirituality to examine gaming and the theology of gamers. Additionally, this thesis will support Unitarian Universalism's significant commitment to anti-racism, anti-oppression, and multiculturalism in calling for social action and justice by its members to aid others struggling in a divided and conflicted world. While the population of adult gamers typically represents a lower socioeconomic population, it also points out how gaming has grown across all demographics. With the growth of digital publishing, cost reduction of 3D printing, and the growth in the use of online virtual gaming tables since COVID-19, the cost of miniature war games and role-playing games has opened these games up to more players with less money to invest in the hobby beyond past levels. Allowing players to be able to pick up multiple games, books, and miniatures, when before players would be limited in one or two games at most.
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  • 09/26/2023

MLA citation style (9th ed.)

Carmichael, Jeffrey, II. The Holy Nerd—a Look At the Spirituality of Tabletop Gamers by a Unitarian Universalist. meadville.ir.atla.com/concern/etds/03f10e57-e947-4a42-af5c-fac8ca9cba3a.

APA citation style (7th ed.)

C. J. Ii. The Holy Nerd—A Look at the Spirituality of Tabletop Gamers by a Unitarian Universalist. https://meadville.ir.atla.com/concern/etds/03f10e57-e947-4a42-af5c-fac8ca9cba3a

Chicago citation style (CMOS 17, author-date)

Carmichael, Jeffrey, II. The Holy Nerd—a Look At the Spirituality of Tabletop Gamers by a Unitarian Universalist. https://meadville.ir.atla.com/concern/etds/03f10e57-e947-4a42-af5c-fac8ca9cba3a.

Note: These citations are programmatically generated and may be incomplete.

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