Minecraft: Pilgrims Progress

In 2016, a youth camp was held at Hothersall Lodge, and the theme for the weekend was the story of 'Pilgrim's Progress'. A map was created for the weekend on Minecraft, to help tell the story in a way that the young people could easily relate to. The story tells the metaphorical story of the journey a Christian will take throughout their life. The map is an exploration map, allowing players to explore the environment, and thus undertake their own journey of faith. The map is not built to perfection, as it was built with a focus on function (to tell the story).

The story of Pilgrim's Progress was written by a man named John Bunyan, who was criticised and imprisoned for his beliefs. He wrote the story whilst he was imprisoned, and the result is an inspiring story that every Christian can relate to. It is told through the similitude of a dream, meaning the events of the book are said to have been a dream. The story speaks of a man named Christian, and how he sets out from his home town 'The City of Destruction', and travels to the 'Celestial City', encountering many difficulties on the way.

The Minecraft map has all of the major landmarks in the story built within, including Beelzebub's Castle, Castle Beautiful, The Valley of the Shadow of Death, Vanity Fair, Doubting Castle, and The Celestial City. There is little to restrict the player taking a route that isn't reflected in the story; this is to reflect that everyone is different, and their journey of faith will be unique to them. It is very much advised for players to have read the 'Pilgrim's Progress' story before playing through the Minecraft map, though it is not essential. If you do choose to download the Minecraft map, then simply unzip the file, and place it in the save location for your Minecraft game.

Download Minecraft Map

The following are images of a number of landmarks that can be found in the Minecraft Map