Christian Principles and the Death Note Anime

There are 7 of them

Death Note is an early 2000s Japanese manga. Manga are Japanese (usually black and white) graphic novels or comics. Anime is Japanese cartoon animation. This article will reference the anime. SPOILERS FOLLOW.

What is Death Note? Recap in a nutshell

Death Note is an anime about a brilliant, but bored young man named Light Yagami. He obtains otherworldly power to kill people by using a supernatural black notebook called a Death Note. All Light has to do is visualize a person’s face, write their name on a page of the notebook and seconds later the person is dead. However, there’s a catch: each notebook has a shingami — a grotesque, Grim Reaper-like, spirit — attached to it. Once a human uses the Death Note, the spirit follows them everywhere.

After Light accepts the notebook, he enthusiastically begins to kill criminals. His ultimate goal is to create a crime free world where he can rule as God. His killing spree lasts for years.

The piles of bodies catch the attention of L, a super genius, world-renown detective. He antagonizes Light throughout the first half of the anime as Light continues to murder criminals with the Death Note. L relentlessly pursues Light without knowing about the existence of the notebook or the shinigami.

What are the principles?

1. There is only one God. Light wanted to become “God of the New World.” He first decided that he alone was capable of deciding who deserved to live or die. Then he started executing criminals with the power of the Death Note.

Adam and Eve both also wanted to be like God. That’s why they chose to eat the fruit instead of obeying the Almighty. In the book of Isaiah, God’s enemy is soundly defeated. His crime? He craved the Lord’s power and status. He too wanted to be like God.

2. Worship only God. Misa Amane worshiped Light because it was love at first sight for her. She blindly obeyed every order she received and committed multiple murders for him. Teru Mikami also worshipped Light and killed for him as well. He openly referred to Light as God.

Christians are directed to serve only God. It’s not a request. It’s not a suggestion. The very first commandment He gave the Israelites was to not worship other gods. Moses reiterated the same sentiment. And Jesus followed up centuries later.

3. Leave magic alone. The Death Note has supernatural power. It is a magic notebook that causes the death of anyone who’s name is written in it. Sounds like magic. The Bible forbids any dark craft, including any kind of magic, witchcraft, and sorcery.

4. If you keep on doing wrong, it eventually won’t bother you anymore. At first Light hesitated to write a name in the notebook. When he first tested it, he expressed remorse for killing people. It didn’t last for long. He began a daily habit of writing names in the notebook.

Soon, Light’s conscience dwindled into nothingness. He no longer felt remorse or guilt for committing murder. He once even contemplated killing his younger sister to further his agenda. The apostle Paul wrote about the dangers of a hardened, unrepentant heart.

5. Don’t play with the devil. Light constantly talked to Ryuk, the shinigami. He fed it apples. He also entertained Ryuk and alleviated its boredom by eluding law enforcement.

Using the Death Note opened a portal that Light couldn’t and finally didn’t want to close. As the notebook possessed him, he became obsessed with killing. He was determined to live on his own terms and it finally caught up to him.

During his death throes, Light’s life literally flashed before his eyes. He caught a glimpse of what could have been if he’d just left the Death Note alone.

Jesus refused to entertain the devil. During the wilderness temptation, He quickly refuted every one Satan’s offers with Scripture. James, the brother of Jesus, also exhorted believers to resist the enemy.

6. The sixth commandment. There’s no way to even begin to tally Light’s body count.

7. Pride will eventually lead to your downfall. Light was arrogant and prideful. He gleefully killed law enforcement officer Raye Penber and smirked while Raye died at his feet. He also snickered as he sent Penber’s fiancée to her death. Later, as L died, Light sneered in the face of the man who’d dared to bring him to justice.

When law enforcement apprehended him, Light still arrogantly refused to believe that he’d been outsmarted. Light’s pride was partly responsible for his capture and downfall. The once self-proclaimed ‘God of the New World’ died on the run and alone.

The book of Proverbs warns against a prideful heart and haughtiness. God absolutely hates pride but He approves of a humble person.

If you like this article, check out this one about the Black Butler anime and the feasibility of selling your soul here. Or, this one about “zombies” in Scripture. You may also be interested in this one about the men in the Bible who never died.

Thanks for your time. Thanks for reading.