Anime Lectio: Tomodachi Game

                                                           1. Why do Anime Lectio? 

Anime Lectio is a time for us to stop and take a breath. Between work, activities, family life, and social media, our minds are always moving. We rarely take time to contemplate and ask, why am I watching this anime? What’s the point of all this? And, how is this making me feel? 

2. Put away all distractions 

(phones, work, etc.)

We are so enslaved to things that stimulate our minds. Let this be a moment for us to free our minds, look inside of ourselves, and be at peace.

3. Deep Breathing

Take several deep breaths. Let your mind relax. If you’ve had any questions, desires, or struggles that you’ve been hiding or stuffing away, let them rise up to the surface. 

4. Open yourself to God’s Presence

Remember God places all our thoughts and desires inside of us, and He uses them to draw us closer to Himself. God gives us a community to help us understand who we are and what He is calling us to do. The faces of other people you know and don't know are like signs of God’s presence.  

5. Think About What’s on Your Mind in Relation to the Anime

Think about what’s been on your mind in relation to the anime.  The following is an example of such thoughts written by me.

What is more important to you: your friends or money?  In theory, the answer to this question would be, or at least should be, your friends, but in practice, especially in certain situations, the answer to this question would most likely be money.  People say one thing, but when it comes to making a certain choice, people may do another thing depending on what they have to do.

6. Brief and written explanation of the anime

Pay attention to how the brief and written explanation of the anime seen on this blog, or seeing the anime for yourself since that's better than any explanation, might “speak” to you or shed light on the things that have been on your minds.

In the anime series Tomodachi Game, the friendship of five friends is tested when not only the money for their class trip is stolen, but they are accused of stealing this money, which leads to them accusing each other of stealing it. This also causes the five of them to end up playing a bizarre game where they all have debt and the debt can either increase or decrease depending on what happens in the game. One of these friends usually tries to manipulate the situations that they end up in, which results in these five friends turning against each other, helping each other, and getting into more trouble depending on who the friends are and what they do

7.  Reflect on the anime

Has this brief and written explanation of the anime shed any light on what's been on your minds?  The following is an example of a reflection on the anime from me.

You won't know what you say you're going to do until you actually do it. You may want to do something based on what you think about what you have to do based on information you are initially presented with, but actually doing it is a different matter. You may think you initially like what you want to do, think you want to do, and are told/asked to do, but doing it is something you may actually not like based on the circumstances. Making the right decisions is difficult, especially if you have to choose between friends and money in certain situations, but it also takes time and shouldn't be rushed.

8. Final Prayer

Please voice any prayer intentions for friends, family, or people around the world that relate to this anime.  The following is an example written by me.

Let us pray that we can make the right decisions for ourselves, like when it comes to choosing between friends and money in certain situations.