CTT:Rumors
This website has been around for some time now, and has created a bit of a buzz. With that, of course, comes the occasional rumor about it that is entirely untrue. The purpose of this page is to dispel some of the more frequent rumors I've heard concerning the matter.
Rumor #1: Xathael used to work for Squaresoft.
Response: I have never worked for Squaresoft, nor have I had any sort of contact with them outside of calling up Square of America in an attempt to reach Square of Japan. ^_^
Rumor #2: The Total RPG Staff (http://www.totalRPG.net) once contacted the game designers from Square of Japan and were told that Chrono Trigger was in no way associated with or patterned after the Bible.
Response: Not true. I have contacted the Total RPG Staff concerning the matter, and they verified that they never, ever had such contact with Squaresoft.
Rumor #3: Being predominantly Buddhist and Shinto of religion, the Japanese have no reason to use the Bible as a base for symbolism or inspiration.
Response: I'm not sure where this argument came from, but I hear it a lot, and it holds absolutely NO validity. It is impossible to deny that the Japanese have used the Bible as a base for not only symbolism, but entire stories. Consider the recent anime, Angel Sanctuary, which is based largely on Biblical-type angels, or Evangelion, which incorporates countless Biblical names and subtle roles (the Three Magi in Gendo Ikari's room, the Path of the Sephirot, Lilith, scenes of crucifixion, etc.). Also, consider Xenogears, another Squaresoft release that was worked on by most of the Chrono Trigger team. Xenogears is chock-full of Biblical allusions, names, and symbolic roles. If you know anything about the Bible and have played Xenogears, you know what I'm talking about (the Three Magi, the angelically-named Neo Elements who serve the pseudo-gods, crucifixion, baptism, Cain and Abel, Time of the Gospel, mankind's fall from grace, etc.). The fact that much of the Chrono Trigger team worked on Xenogears shows that they definitely have strong interest in Biblical stories, strengthening the probability of Chrono Trigger's countless parallels having been intentional. Christianity has existed in East Asia for hundreds of years, since missionaries went to spread it in the 19th Century. In fact, issues of Christianity were what fueled the Taiping Rebellion, a fanatical pro-Christian rebellion against Imperial China, and the Boxer Rebellion, an anti-Christian rebellion, both of which took place in the late 19th/early 20th Centuries.