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| “ | The Lord is my shepherd. I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures. He leadeth me beside the stillwaters. He restoreth my soul. He leadeth me, in the paths of righteousness for His Name's sake. Yea though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil. For thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me. | „ |
| ~ Dogma's secret lines (being a reading of Psalm 23), heard when it uses its attacks. |
| “ | Your child must repent, and so shall you. Take away his games, the Devil's playthings, that he may be spared. Shield him from the influence of evil, in its many forms and shapes. This is your responsibility as a parent. If your love is strong, and your faith unwavering, you may even receive guidance directly from Divine Power. If you are so fortunate, be sure to heed His every word, and follow His every instruction. When a soul is corrupted by evil, you can be sure that extraordinary measures are required to restore its purity. | „ |
| ~ Dogma to Magdalene, as revealed in the physical edition's prequel comic. |
Dogma is the overarching antagonist of The Binding of Isaac and The Legend of Bum-Bo.
It is the physical manifestation of the Christian fundamentalism that split Isaac's family apart and drove his mother to fanatical madness.
Appearance[]
Dogma takes the form of a fetus made out of TV static with white glowing eyes and an umbilical cord that connects it to the TV it came out of. Once the TV is broken, it falls to the floor, briefly becomes a puddle and then rises out of it as a sphere with four angelic wings, still made out of TV static. In this phase, it occasionally transforms into a large ring with several wings attached to it.
Biography[]
Past[]
As revealed in the physical edition comic, Dogma acts as a religious television broadcast for Isaac's mom, referring to her specifically. Taking the form of a televangelist, Dogma inquires on if Isaac has been playing violent video games, to which he is appalled to find out that he does. When Isaac's mom mentions further that he plays role-playing games with pen and paper, Dogma is disgusted even further, stating that these games are gateways to unleashing demonic forces upon the world.
When Isaac's mom asks how she can fix this, Dogma directly tells her to take away Isaac's games, to lock him in his room, and to listen to God's every word. Isaac's mom worries about her supposed carelessness, before Dogma assures her that everything will be alright - as long as she repents.
As the comic pans out, Dogma shifts from the human form to one more resembling their in-game form, and states that they hope to see Magdalene very soon.
The Binding of Isaac: Repentance[]
Dogma is encountered in the final area of the game, Isaac's own home. Reading Dad's Note, mainly unlocked by placing either the Polaroid or the Negative obtained from defeating Mom into the Strange Door that appears after defeating the boss "Mother" for the first time, causes Isaac to stop his descent into the depths and start making his way back up to the surface. Rather than descent further into guilt and madness, he decides to confront the source of his problems directly. As he does so, he hears the final argument between his mother and his father before he left her and Isaac, unable to take her religious fanaticism anymore.
Once Isaac reaches his home again and sleeps in his mother's bed, he experiences a short flashback to him and his mother watching the Christian broadcasts she was enthralled by, only for the broadcast to change into TV static and form a face that looks back at Isaac. Upon awakening, all the lights in the house have turned off while the TV in the living room turned itself on, showing only the same static. Approaching it causes Dogma to emerge from the TV and attack Isaac. Defeating Dogma causes it to transform into a large cross that falls onto Isaac, filling his eyes with its static and his mind with its fanatical preachings. As Isaac convulses and shifts between his dead forms on the ground, the house around him falls apart to reveal a hellish realm. Overcoming the fundamentalist ramblings within him, Isaac sprouts angelic wings just as the demonic Beast rises from the sea of flames below.
Quotes[]
| “ | But if we are living in the light, as God is in the light, then we have fellowship with each other! And the blood of Jesus, His son, cleanses us from all sin! If we claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves, and not living in the truth! But if we confess our sins to him, He is faithful, and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all wickedness! And so I tell you... every kind of sin and slander to be forgiven, but blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven! Impurity, lust, and evil desires! Don't be greedy, for a greedy person is a idolator, worshipping the things of this world! Because of these sins, the anger of God is coming! No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind! And God is faithful! He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear! Fits of rage! Selfish ambition, dissensions, factions, and envy! Drunkenness, orgies, and the like! I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this, will not inherit the kingdom of God! But if we walk in the light, as He is in the light! We have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, His son, purifies us all from sin! For the wages of sin is death! But the free gift of God is eternal life, in Jesus Christ, our lord! But if we are living in the light, as God is in the light, then we have fellowship with each other! And the blood of Jesus, His son, cleanses us from all sin! If we claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves, and not living in the truth! But if we confess our sins to him, He is faithful, and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all wickedness! Pride! Greed! Wrath! Envy! Lust! Gluttony, and Sloth! So put to death the sinful, earthly things lurking within you! Have nothing to do with sexual immorality! BLASPHEMY AGAINST THE HOLY SPIRIT! All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags! We all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind, our sins sweep us away! No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind! And God is faithful! He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear! "Vengeance is mine; I will repay!" says the Lord! There hath no temptation taken you but as is common to man! But God is faithful! Who will not suffer you to be tempted above all?! |
„ |
| ~ The propagandic screaming of various televangelists as part of Dogma's boss theme, "Living in the Light", with thoughts and beliefs such as these being integral for Dogma's existence. |
| “ | Don't be so naive, Magdalene! The Devil uses video games as a tool to corrupt impressionable young minds! The children are unaware of his foul programming. But soon they, themselves, have been programmed! | „ |
| “ | They call them role-playing games. But the only role you actually play is that of a pawn in Satan's service! That 'innocent' game is nothing less than a gateway drug. Those who play it will soon crave bigger thrills... and they'll be willing to take more dangerous risks. I know it looks harmless, Magdalene. But through that game, ordinary kids learn forbidden rituals and cursed incantations that unleash powerful forces of evil! Is that what you want for your child? To be the agent who unlocks a gateway to the domain of damnation? Ask yourself: Do you really want that portal to be opened in your own home? I think you know the answer. | „ |
| “ | Your child must repent, and so shall you. Take away his games, the Devil's playthings, that he may be spared. Shield him from the influence of evil, in its many forms and shapes. This is your responsibility as a parent. If your love is strong, and your faith unwavering, you may even receive guidance directly from Divine Power. If you are so fortunate, be sure to heed His every word, and follow His every instruction. When a soul is corrupted by evil, you can be sure that extraordinary measures are required to restore its purity. | „ |
| “ | We all must be vigilant, Magdalene. The Devil has no influence unless we allow him to have it. | „ |
| ~ Dogma in the prequel comic. |
| “ | Have no fear. I'm sure everything will work out for you in the end. I hope to see you again... soon. HAW HAW HAW. | „ |
| ~ Dogma in the prequel comic. |
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- In contrast to every other boss in the game, Dogma's splash screen before its boss fight is white in color rather than black.
- Furthermore, Dogma is the only boss to have a unique boss health bar, with its health bar being static instead of red.
- The theme for the fight against Dogma, called "Living in the Light", features fundamentalist preachings as vocals that start once the fight reaches its second phase. Dogma can also be heard reciting one of these preachings in one of the attacks of its first phase.
- The two forms Dogma takes in its second phase resemble a Seraph and an Ophanim, high-ranking castes of biblical angels.
- Defeating Dogma grants Isaac an item with the same name, which gives him angel wings and refills some of his lost health for his upcoming battle with the Beast and the Ultra Harbingers. It is likely that this represents him taking the few kernels of positivity hidden within the Christian fanaticism that Dogma represents for himself while rejecting the rest.
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 Villains
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Bosses Seven Deadly Sins The Harbringers Final Bosses Other The Legend of Bum-bo The Binding of Isaac: Four Souls Warp Zones | ||