General Christian Symbolism
Catholicism
We see more of the role of catholicism when the club goes to Belfast, Ireland. It is in Ireland that we see the huge role that Catholicism has to play in daily life. The IRA is closely tied with the Catholic church, and Father Ashby, a catholic priest with just as much blood on his hands as the club. Father Ashby was also friends with Chibs and JT. Chibs started off his criminal career with the catholic church and the IRA in Ireland, then to the Sons of Anarchy in Belfast, and patching over to the SAMCRO charter of the Sons in California. Through Chibs, we get the indication that the church has a great influence over many of the dealings of the IRA, and makes the judgement call when they feel that a member of their group has become immoral and needs to be killed.
Through Chibs and Father Ashby, we learn that the church can be forgiving if we confess our sins, stay true to God, and atone for our sins somehow.
Retaliation/Retribution
Retaliation is a common theme in the sons of anarchy. When another MC brings chaos to the SAMCRO they must retaliate. “Sons of Anarchy can be an exceptionally Catholic show in the way it visits consequences on characters” (Rosenburg, 2013). The show constantly revisits the idea that what you do comes back around. Sometimes the consequences of your actions are directly imposed on you by others, like Tig (another member of the club) killing the man who burned his daughter alive in front of him. Sometimes it’s indirect, just the way events unfold that leaves you with consequences for something you did before such as Clay’s murder of fellow member Piney, and later ending up in the same position as his dead friend.
It can also be very “an eye for an eye”, literally (Rosenburg, 2013). August Marks orders a man named Moses to torture Bobby. Moses removes his eye and cuts off his fingers before August delivers a bullet to Bobby’s head right in front of Jax. Jax and the club later track down Moses and hand deliver him the same fate as Bobby’s. Literally removing an eye for an eye, and four fingers for four fingers before shooting him in the head. The same thing can be seen with Otto Delaney (this is Kurt Sutter’s character) who loses an eye, and his tongue while in prison for the crimes he committed. Later he also pays for a murder he committed while in prison by getting…’rudely awakened’ by another inmate every morning. Otto is so tortured in prison for the things he does for the club that his death can be seen as mercy.
Church
Churches seem to bring out the best in people. Even during stressful times level heads can be found in the chapel at the hospital (Jon the Presbyterian, 2011). When Jax sees his mother, Gemma, after Clay beat her he is still able to keep calm despite the anger this caused. Even Gemma finds peace there during hard times (though certainly not often). During the trip to Ireland, in a time of madness, civil conversations can be had in the church where father Ashby spends his time (despite the fact that he’s a murderer-priest). Even in the boardroom that the club calls “the chapel”, the club’s members keep chaos at bay and typically have level heads. Chaos stays outside the church. Church of any kind can be a place of solace.
Sacrifice for Others
Sacrifice for others is also a huge theme. Numerous characters throughout the show have made Jesus-like sacrifices for the people close to them. A character known as half-sac allows himself to be shot in an attempt to save Tara and Abel. Opie, Jax’s best friend, volunteers to be brutally beaten to death to save his ‘brothers’. Jax too dies to save his sons and his club from everything he’s spent his criminal career trying to separate them from. Tara too was ready to sacrifice her own life to the club for her sons.
“I wondered at first if I should enjoy it- after all there is graphic violence and sex but as a christian I figured it was wrong to shy away from it...after all, it’s the old testament.”