Disclosure: Meeple Mountain received a free copy of this product in exchange for an honest, unbiased review. This review is not intended to be an endorsement.
In the midst of Suzannah Herbert’s tremendous documentary Natchez, religious fundamentalists stage a Westboro Baptist–style protest outside an LGBTQI+ event. They stand there with their signs, decrying sin and the fate of the wayward souls inside. One man reads scripture into a megaphone, citing chapter and verse to support his belief that the drag queens emceeing will go to hell.
For some reason, it struck me in that moment as particularly absurd that this man was citing documents written over 2,000 years ago to explain his beliefs now. Well, “to explain” is wrong, and I even think “to justify” wouldn’t quite get across what I felt. I believe in and understand the power of citing the Bible as a collection of parables to relay lessons, questions, universal experiences. This man was not doing that. He was quoting the best-selling book of all time as edict. Those dusty old words were why he is presently required to believe that gay people will go to hell.
To that man, and those around him, the text of the faith is the faith. It is the destination, rather than the compass. To him, the scripture can neither change nor can it be changed. It is unyielding, unsparing, unimpeachable. Some words written down over two millennia ago are to be followed to the letter even now, when a function once served by animal sacrifice is fulfilled by opening the weather app on my phone.
I don’t think that’s how religion works. I don’t think that’s how much of anything works, really. History shows that religions are constantly in flux, shifting from one set of priorities to another, breaking and reforming and schisming all over the place. That is certainly the argument put forward by designer Greg Loring-Albright with his new game, Keep the Faith, in which players tell the story of “a religion in transition.”
You start with six pillars, separated into two groups of three. These form the Orthodox and Schismatic sects. If the Orthodox branch believes in the necessity of spreading the word, for example, the Schismatic branch believes in protecting our secrets. If the Schismatics hold it as a truth that we should take a proactive role in shaping our destinies, the Orthodox believe in accepting our fate. Players take turns adding a single Aspect card to any one of the pillars and telling a story. I add Plants to Welcome the Outsider and say, “Because the religion originated in a barren area, we have always placed great cultural emphasis on plant cultivation. The outside of every temple is festooned with vines, shrubs, flower bushes, and benches in which even the non-faithful are welcome to sit and be with nature. Of course, we always make sure to have literature handy in case they express interest.”
Keep the Faith is primarily an exercise in story-telling, and the manual says as much. It advises players to make decisions that result in the best story rather than pushing for what the game itself sees as a meaningless victory. There are gamic elements, secret Goals each player strives to realize by the end of the game’s five rounds, but these are expertly calibrated to give you motivation when you don’t have any and to stay out of your way when you do.
As the game continues, the definitions shift. What is Orthodox may soon be Schismatic. The religion as a whole moves from Stable to Fractious and back again. Or maybe it doesn’t. It’s up to you the players, up to the story you want to tell. The more Aspects a pillar gains, the more emphasis we as a collective place on it, the more central it becomes to the religion. As an argument—and it is an argument—Keep the Faith is clear-eyed and humanist. Religions grow and change due to the entropy of human nature, and shift with the times we live through. To treat our beliefs as unerring is to misunderstand the function of a belief. You should always question it. That’s the only way your faith can grow stronger.
