Fandom School Class (1st period): Canon

Hello, dear readers! I noticed that my post "Fandom School" was quite popular, and one person commented "Do it!" Now, I can't actually set up a virtual fandom school (I don't know how), although there are lots of multifandom communities you can join on Google+ (I'm sure there are lots of multifandom Facebook and tumblr groups, too, but I wouldn't know). So, up first (i.e., our first period class) is Canon.

First of all, what is canon?

In general, canon refers to things that are understood to be true according to sources that are accepted. (It also refers to a musical round, but that's not relevant here.) To be a little more specific, there are two types of canon. 

The canon of the church

The church has a few written works that it accepts as canon. This includes the bible, catechisms, and other select works as defined by the denomination. For example, I belong to the Christian Reformed Church (a Protestant denomination of Christianity), which follows the Heidelberg Catechism, the Belgic Confession, and the Canons of Dordt. 

The canon of fandoms

This is the type of canon with which you, my readers, are probably most familiar with. This is determined by what happens in the TV show/movie/book and all related spin-offs (except for fanfiction, which may or may not be canon). It tells what happened and is true, and what didn't and should be ignored. Many people like to ignore the canon in favor of their own ships, fanfiction, etc. 

But more on that next class. I'll see you next week, with our 2nd period class: ships. (Please leave suggestions for classes you'd like to see at fandom school. Thanks!)