All week long, we’ve been celebrating 15 years of Beneath the Tangles, but today is the day. It’s our birthday! Happy birthday to us!
On September 12th, 2010, we went live with my very first article, entitled “My So-Called Virtual Life.” A short rumination on Love Plus, digital girlfriends, and the loss of authentic relationships for manufactured ones, the article officially launched our ministry. Five thousand, four hundred and seventy-two posts later, it sometimes feels like everything has changed, including the landscape and approach to anime ministry (and our role in both). But in a few vital ways—and much like the topic of that first article—some things haven’t changed at all.
Turning 15
It’s an exciting time for us to turn 15, to be a “teenager” in anime ministry. It’s a bit like a 15-year-old receiving an invite to the hot party in town. After all, anime is absolutely blowing up: Movies hit the top charts on Netflix and screen regularly in theaters (headlined today by new Demon Slayer movie, which just opened), manga rules almost all positions on the New York TImes comics charts, multiple anime conventions are held every single weekend, and 54% of Gen Z-ers report that they “like or love” anime—a double-digit leap from the previous generation. What a time to share our passion for the medium, and what a vast group of people to share our faith with, too!
The landscape was certainly different fifteen years ago. Most notably, social media was still in its infancy. For instance, while we did have a presence on Twitter shortly after lifting off, my primary platform for discussing anime was still through website forums (what’s that?!). And though we now post content on all manner of platforms, we only had one at the very start: this blog. WordPress was the center of amateur anime analysis in 2010, and blogging—though it had already peaked—was the primary creative outlet in the anime sphere for those who would become known as content creators.
Continuing with the party analogy—I knew that when I walked through those WordPress doors, it couldn’t be the guise of some fake, overtalkative guy schmoozing his way into an event he wasn’t invited to. No, I was allowed to be here because I prioritized being part of the group before jumping in. I spent months commenting on others’ blogs and getting to know the experts in the space, while also beefing up on my knowledge of and experience with current anime. I also carefully searched for other ministries in the anime space so I wouldn’t step on any toes or, even worse, divert eyes away from good work that was already being done for the kingdom. After doing my due diligence, I opened Beneath the Tangles and dove in.
The first decade of ministry was a lot of fun—a wondrous journey filled with incredible people. While change was happening in the digital space, it was a relatively slow and evolving process. Over time, BtT started investing more in social media as a way of promoting our work, but more importantly—and this is still true—to grow and invest in our relationships. Some people left us, including wonderful staff people who contributed to Beneath the Tangles during a season or two (or ten!), while others clung more tightly, especially once we opened our official Discord server (as opposed to the informal one…but that’s a different story).
When 2020 hit, though, everything changed—and rapidly. As COVID raged, young people started to come of age during a new era of increasing isolation and hyperfixation on The Wired, er, digital connections. Social media became the way we interacted regarding cultural and political issues. And video media really took over. If I’m being honest, I was left a bit flat-footed by the changes; my way of doing things needed to evolve even as we continued to prioritize remaining authentic to our audience and faithful to Christ.
Ultimately, that meant joining a new party—and inviting people into ours.
Today’s Party
In the context of this post, “party” has two meanings: a celebration, like our birthday party today (yay!), and also the party you join in an expedition. A party of heroes, banding together on a quest—to help others, to save the world. And even though today’s a significant day in the history of Beneath the Tangles, it’s that latter “party” that I’m really focused on because in our 15th year, I see us as a ministry joining a larger party, one more important than our own—while also still inviting people to join ours.
The very idea, though, that we’re a small fish in a big pond is new and exciting to me; it’s something that wouldn’t have rung true five years ago, before all the changes in this space. As 2020 began, this was the state of things:
- There were virtually no other “anime ministries” other than Beneath the Tangles
- Beneath the Tangles inspired people to start their own anime ministries
- People who used anime in digital ministry all partnered with us or joined our staff
- There were a small number of nerd-focused ministries
- Gaming ministry was in its infancy
- Conventions, organizations, and collaborations involving nerd ministries were rare
- Non-Christians were usually the ones to say I didn’t belong in the anime space
By 2025, everything has shifted:
- There are hundreds of people and organizations doing “anime ministry”
- Most people who use anime in digital ministry have never heard of us—they started their ministries fully apart from our influence
- In almost all cases, I do the initial work in reaching out to anime ministries rather than the other way around; few of those connections result in collaborations or long-lasting partnerships, and virtually no one with an already-established ministry joins our own
- There are thousands of people involved in nerd-focused ministries
- The digital ministry space is largely led by gamers
- Collaborations among nerd ministries are a regular occurrence, several churches and non-profits focus on nerds, with many operating exclusively in the digital space, and several conventions now educate and bring together nerd missionaries
- Other Christians are the ones who say anime doesn’t belong in the ministry space
Nerd ministry, including that aimed at otaku, has a long way to develop, but as you can see, it’s evolved very quickly. And frankly, at first, this change left me feeling confused, jealous, shaky, worried—you name it! I felt like we were forgotten veterans, passed by and without a place in this new landscape. Was God telling us that we weren’t needed here anymore?
Thankfully, I think the answer is no—we have a role here, one that’s vital now, maybe more than ever. So many of the people doing ministry out there in gaming and other spheres have been kind in sharing their insights and offering encouragement in this new age. I’ve learned a lot from their work. Since many of them doing digital or nerd ministry full-time and we’re volunteers their experiences are sometimes deeper than our own—and so through incredible ministries like Geek Devotions and Anime Relatable, and awesome conferences like Nerd Culture Ministry Summit (pre-registration now open for 2026) and ReachConf (register using the code “tangles” for $5 off), along with wise leaders on our staff, we confidently move forward with our mission to model and share our faith to otaku as we celebrate anime with them.
So what’s our role now? Well, in part, we continue to do what we’ve always done well—connecting with people through strong analysis here on the blog, modeling faith in a way that shows people you can be passionate about anime and still faithful to Christ, and building a community for those who struggle to find it. But we’re evolving, too, and finding new roles as well. For instance, I’m in a few leadership capacities now where I get the chance to share wisdom with others doing anime and nerd culture ministry, and another where I facilitate sharing and encourage ministry partners. We’re also leaning more into media; if you haven’t watched Whit’s stream, which has recently undergone a reboot, I encourage you to! And check out Mike’s wise and warm podcast as well!
But in all the change, we won’t lose sight of being used as God’s hands and feet. And we won’t lose sight of the things we do well, like writing analysis that encourages readers to think deeply about their faith as we continue to bring the mind of Christ to our readers and this new global fellowship. We won’t lose sight of developing loving community on Discord, which is at the very heart of our ministry. And finally, we won’t forget our love for you, our readers, followers, and loved ones. You are vital to our community—whether you’re among those enjoying our content or on this side of the glass, helping us in our mission.
Party On, Anime Fans
Those of you reading this might be connecting with us on just one of our platforms—maybe through email or Substack, for instance. But I hope you’ll consider joining us in other ways, too—on those platforms you frequent, where we can be a dose of artistic passion and Christian teaching in your (doom?)scrolling. And you can find us pretty much everywhere—
Facebook • Instagram • Podcast • Substack • TikTok • Tumblr • Twitch • Twitter • YouTube
It’s a major part of our mission to serve you wherever you are! But as I mentioned above, there’s something incredible happening out in the anime fandom. Christians are starting to feel a desire—perhaps stirred by the Holy Spirit—to reach others in the fandom and talk about anime in relation to faith. If you feel it, we encourage you to pray about it and test it. You can always reach out to me if you want advice or to simply chat; I’m available by email, on Discord, or by messaging any of the platforms above. We also have a server called the Anime Ministry Network for those interested in collaborating with others.
Many of you are also called to support ministries from the background. If that’s you, I definitely encourage you to follow our platforms, but to also take a step further and join our prayer groups. You can join any of the platforms below to receive daily prayer topics:
We also appreciate our friends who support us financially. You help keep us afloat through your gracious and generous donations. You can give through Patreon, Ko-Fi, PayPal, or Throne. You can also benefit Whit specifically by subscribing to Twitch and one of our community members who struggles with homelessness by purchasing a t-shirt.
Whatever way you decide to join in our ministry or in anime ministry at large—community member or volunteer, prayer warrior or financial backer, commenting and replying or supporting behind-the-scenes—we are grateful to you. You’ve joined the party—and this party is bopping and ever-growing toward a celebration that’s centered on what God is doing among anime fans.
What a joyous time! And what a time to have a birthday!
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