What's Missing From Religion in Fantasy Fiction
- iyrunner9
- Jun 24
- 5 min read
Updated: Jun 26
Where Has Religion Gone in Fantasy?
Have you ever opened a fantasy novel and noticed that its gods—once the heart of ancient myths—barely appear after the prologue? Or if they do its as a token curse word, a mode of attainable being (**LitRPG and Brandon Sanderson** cough cough). Characters may cast divine spells or shout a deity’s name in battle, yet never stop to pray, worship, or wrestle with their beliefs. That’s faith, the inner conviction. But where is religion, the shared structure of rituals, festivals, sacred, and traditions?
Too often, fantasy shows us flashes of mere faith without building the religion that should shape its culture, politics, and people. And because of this, rare is the story to capture the same verisimilitude such as Tolkien’s Lord of the Ring.
Come, let us talk of why religion feels hollow in fantasy.
Mere Faith vs. Religion in Fantasy Fiction
In real life, faith and religion go hand in hand. Faith moves people to pray, question, and convert. It is the individual life. Religion creates the outward practices that reflect these beliefs: festivals, temples, music, education, art, and laws. The collective story from which the individual cannot be removed.
Together, they shape civilizations.
In modern fantasy novels, however, we often see faith without religion. Clerics may call on holy power, but we rarely see their religious hierarchy, sacred texts, or pilgrimages. Even rarer is to feel the downward ripple effects of religion on the writers world. When the “church” functions only as a quest-giver, we lose a powerful layer of depth in fantasy worldbuilding. Rendering but a 2D cut-out of a spaghetti western movie set.
Why Fantasy Writers Avoid Religion
I believe that there are several reasons authors hesitate or fail to include fully developed religions:
Secular Backgrounds: Many modern writers come from secular cultures and may not feel confident exploring religion authentically. In their straying they have lost the threads and understanding of how religion plays into reality and myth and tell the stories of even those who don’t believe.
Risk of Controversy: Religion can provoke strong opinions. Exploring belief systems, doctrine, and schisms may feel too sensitive or divisive. And for some authors they haven’t cultivated the virtue of fortitude to overcome those concerns.
Complexity: It’s easier to define a magic system, craft a political current, or wax prolific on the social plight than it is to invent (or recycle) sacred histories, rituals, and theological debates. Unfortunately skipping religion limits realism and emotional depth. To do this well is to lift a great and burdensome weight and without the proper formation or classical history it is near impossible.
A Poetic Glimpse of Faith’s Power
To illustrate my point on weight, bear with me as I share Francis Thompson’s poem “The Hound of Heaven” as I believe it perfectly captures the weight that properly transmitted belief has on just one person.
“I fled Him down the nights and down the days... But with unhurrying chase, And unperturbed pace, Deliberate speed, majestic instancy, They beat—And a Voice beat More insistent than the Feet…”
These lines show a soul haunted by the divine. Now imagine a fantasy culture built around that pursuit… Temples filled with art depicting the chase, songs echoing with longing, rituals of repentance and revelation. Even more so the people who carry that story within their hearts and every action. What do they say. How does this change the scents and colors. What does it mean for education or the silence of ones mind?
That is the story religion can tell.
What Fantasy Loses Without Religion
When religion is missing or underdeveloped, fantasy novels suffer a shallow despair. Here’s what’s lost:
1. Cultural Depth
Religions shape calendars, holidays, and architecture. Without them, worlds lack a sense of history and tradition.
2. Complex Characters
A hero struggling with doubt, divine silence, or moral questions within their faith creates more emotional tension than a simple sword fight.
3. Political Drama
Temples and religious orders can rival kings. Religious influence can lead to riots, censorship, or power struggles that enrich your plot.
4. Wonder and Mystery
Rituals, miracles, and prophecies can add awe. Unlike mechanical magic systems, religion adds uncertainty, interpretation, and myth. In addition, it robs readers of the chance to interpret symbolism and the ephemeral.
Fantasy Worlds Where Religion Feels Real
Some fantasy authors succeed in building full (or believable) religious systems:
Tolkien’s Middle-earth: Ilúvatar’s influence runs deep in Elvish songs, Númenórean rituals, and sacred sites. Religion shapes identity and legacy.
Gene Wolfe’s Urth Cycle: Secret religious orders and fading faith influence politics, quests, and even memory.
Izaic Yorks's Aithos: Dragonsfall Cycle: Small worldbuildng details that pervade and influence all things that will strike subtly at the readers subconscious. For example in a religion obsessed with balance readers will find even sibyllic naming structures for the characters. And for the characters who don't have this naming structure the reader will find they are either, disgraced, from a poor caste, or are considered unworthy of balance.
Brandon Sanderson’s Roshar (Stormlight Archive): The Knights Radiant take oaths tied to divine ideals. Religion influences law, holidays, and even military tradition.
These examples show how fictional religions can shape not just characters, but entire civilizations. Don’t believe me? Read the reviews. Amongst the accolades world building is always at the top.
How to Create Realistic Religions in Fantasy Worlds
1. Start with Personal Belief
Let characters pray, doubt, and wrestle with faith. Faith should guide decisions, not just power spells.
2. Build Communal Rituals
Design ceremonies, sacred spaces, holy days, and symbols. Show how religion influences food, fashion, music, and architecture.
3. Include Conflict and Mystery
Religions fracture. Heresies arise. Secret cults form. Keep some divine questions unanswered to preserve wonder.
4. Use Religion in the Plot
Reveal rituals through story events. Maybe a a prophecy affects politics. Let religion shape action, and deference, and not just backstory.
Why Religion Still Matters in Modern Fantasy
Fantasy’s greatest strength is making the impossible feel familiar. At its core the genre harkens to only a few core premises for why readers pick it up: Escape, wonder, and the awesome. When you treat religion as more than a spell source or set piece, when it shapes culture, community, and conflict, your world gains the reality of at least the first couple premises.
Let faith drive your characters and religion in fantasy fiction bind their world. When both live and breathe in your story all of us readers do too.
Cheers and if you enjoyed this content you might also like my post on the archetypal Struggle Between Light and Darkness and Why We Need it.
Your truly,
Izaic Yorks
Christian Fantasy Author and Virtue Guy
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