GTA Wiki
Register
Advertisement
GTA Wiki
19,723
pages

Religion is a topic sometimes referred to in the Grand Theft Auto series, whether it be through the words of characters and radio, or through objects in the games' environments. These references are listed in this article.

Christianity, Atheism, JudaismEpsilonism, Buddhism, Altruism exist in the Universes of the game.

2D Universe

Grand Theft Auto 2

In GTA 2, the only way to save the game is by using the Jesus Saves church. They are identified by a neon sign with the name written on it, but every few seconds the J, E, and both S's in JESUS flicker off, causing the sign to read "U SAVE".

3D Universe

Grand Theft Auto III

In Grand Theft Auto III the "Jesus Saves" feature from GTA 2 was removed and replaced with the safe house based saving system.

Grand Theft Auto: Vice City

Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas

Religion is occasionally heard of in San Andreas in 1992, most notably the Epsilon Program.

Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories

  • As it is set in Liberty City, the Cathedral is in Bedford Point in 1998.
  • Toni Cipriani confesses sins to a 'priest' at the Bedford Point Cathedral (hinting that he's a Catholic). The priest turns out to be Ned Burner, a Liberty Tree reporter impersonating the priest who tells Toni to perform crimes, then reports on them with the full story.
  • What is a Punk Noodles factory in 2001 is the Holy rev. Joe's Flophouse. It is unknown who Reverend Joe is.
  • Donald Love is found performing traditional Buddhist meditation ("I'm just seeking spiritual enlightenment, if you must ask but, not today") in the cutscene of the mission Love on the Run.
  • On Chatterbox on LCFR, a caller tells Lazlow that he is campaigning to replace the Liberty Cathedral's garden with "a post-modern square building with Internet terminals and foosball tables to worship at". Lazlow disagrees with the caller, saying "come on, the church garden is beautiful!". By 2001, the church's main graveyard has been replaced by a large square concrete building, hinting that the plan was approved.

HD Universe

Grand Theft Auto IV

There are churches throughout Grand Theft Auto IV's rendition of Liberty City, as well as some characters making comments about religion:

  • There is a church in Leftwood, Alderney.
  • The Columbus Cathedral is a Catholic Church located in Hatton Gardens, Algonquin.
  • There is a church in Suffolk, Algonquin. Depending on the player's choice, one of the McReary brothers' funerals (either Francis or Derrick) is held here, as well as Roman and Mallorie's wedding.
  • Orthodox Jewish pedestrians are often seen in Broker. In real life, New York City has the highest number of Jewish citizens of any metropolitan area outside Israel, and Brooklyn's Borough Park is famous as an enclave of the Orthodox Jewish community.
  • Mori Green and Isaac Roth are likely Orthodox Jews.
  • Ilyena Faustin is very religious (likely a Russian Orthodox Christian). In No Love Lost, Mikhail berates her by saying "You superstitious old crone, I'll see you in hell! Someday I'll crucify you!". Soon after, in Rigged To Blow, she discusses souls with Niko and encourages him to have more faith and optimism.
  • Bryce Dawkins is a parody of a conservative Christian "culture warrior" of the sort who were influential in American politics during the Bush administration. His sex scandal in particular is based on anti-gay, conservative Christian politicians such as Larry Craig, Bob Allen, and Richard Curtis who themselves were later outed as homosexual.
  • The McRearys are a Catholic family. Francis studied to be a priest before going into law enforcement, and Packie says he literally "tried to cheat God" by cheating on his exams and pocketing money from the church collection plate. Packie feels a sense of Catholic Guilt over his criminal lifestyle, a concept he discusses by name during one of his friendship outings with Niko. Maureen and Kate live far more religious lifestyles, and Niko will always be unable to sleep with Kate after a date because she practices chastity.

The Lost and Damned

Grand Theft Auto V

Advertisement