I get that it’s supposed to be a joke, but I’m not liking how far it goes into the philosophy that “God fell in love with Mary and got her pregnant” scenario.
There was no implication about “God fell in love with Mary and got her pregnant”. The only implication is God got her pregnant that’s why Joseph reacted that way.
oh amy, i definitely laughed harder at your response than the actual comment. it’s like you are willing to laugh at blasphemy, but nothing TOO blasphemous. if you can’t see that being self-righteous about blasphemous humor is completely absurd well then, perhaps i must bid you adieu.
I agree, Amy. I’ve never understood how people are so freaking angry about Christianity. Seriously. So freaking angry. Yes, I appreciate that it’s funny to some of you people, but not to others. So let’s move on to other “funny” stuff. Hey, how about something along the lines of priests and young boys? That’s HILARIOUS! It’s like being in 4th grade all over, when the angry kids whose parents are divorced or whose older brothers bullied them turn into vile little things and see “humor” in otherwise benign things … like pulling the legs off a grasshopper and watching it writhe in agony. Yes, humorless liberals, you continue to laugh at our faith. Go on. Laugh. Ah, yes, that’s more like it. Oh yeah, more. More…
oh amy, i definitely laughed harder at your response than the actual comic. it’s like you are willing to laugh at blasphemy, but nothing TOO blasphemous. if you can’t see that being self-righteous about blasphemous humor is completely absurd well then, perhaps i must bid you adieu.
The “you don’t have a sense of humor” response always angers me. It has nothing to do with humor. It’s a very personal thing that people who don’t understand, like to make fun of. The feeling we have is like this: (the FEELING, not the situation) Imagine a woman that loses a child in a horrible manner and someone comes up and makes a joke about it. When she gets upset the man says “you just don’t have a sense of humor” For a true Christian, that is how we feel. I know you don’t believe what we believe but at least respect us enough to not make fun of it. I’m not really talking about this cartoon as much as people thinking we don’t have a sense of humor because we can’t laugh at something that is very serious in our lives.
No, Luke, that is NOT how you feel. Or if it is, there is a real problem with your attitude to God.
If you love God and believe in Him as the omnipotent, loving and living creator of everything, you may feel hurt by the disrespect of an unbeliever, or you may feel humiliated if you’re that sort of person. But you do NOT have anything like the “feeling” a woman feels after she loses a child and hears a dead child joke. It has nothing to do with her sense of guilt, helplessness, loss, yearning and loneliness. You’re comparing a touched nerve to ripping open deep wounds.
Go back to your playpen and read up on false dichotomies before you come and chat with the adults again. You’ve been incredibly offensive and you haven’t even had the decency to try to be amusing while you’ve done it.
You are right in that I should have used another example. There are way more hurtful feelings envolved in the example I used and I’m sorry if I offended anyone. It’s not about a touched nerve, however. It’s about people who do not understand the feelings they bring up and then make Christians feel like we’re the stupid ones for not laughing at something that is painful to us. But yes, I should have picked something else.
I appreciate the apology, and your point. There’s no use laughing at people and then asking them to laugh along with you.
Sadly, as long as so many Christian churches are as corrupt as they are, and while those corrupt churches have so much influence over how the world works, and while so many individual Christians practice a deep hypocrisy in terms of the difference between the teachings of Christ and the utter selfishness and materialism with which they lead their day to day lives even as they attempt to control the behaviour of others and of non-Christians, it’d be remiss if no one was making fun of Christianity, however much that hurts.
As you pointed out earlier, though, that’s all beside the point to this funny little cartoon, which is simply doing what Christianity invites us to do: see the vision of a God that loved humanity enough to become human himself, subject to all our petty pains and discomfort.
I understand that you’re offended. I myself COULD be offended by your ‘true Christian’ comment, since you presume to speak for me, as if all ‘true Christians’ react the same way. But what would be the point of my being offended?
I like that the cartoon invites us to look at people from Scripture as if they really lived and had real feelings. It doesn’t literally and accurately reflect Joseph’s attitude toward God, but the implication is clear: if you or I were in Joseph’s shoes, what would we have done?
I have really enjoyed this blog for the last several months but I have no appreciation for irreverent humor involving God. He is God. We can be irreverent of anything of man but not of God. The only right attitude towards God is one of reverence. If you don’t understand that you don’t understand who or what God is.
I don’t think people realize that maybe just MAYBE Abraham doesn’t have the same ideas and beliefs that they do. Ok so you (not you but just people) want to be serious about god and never make jokes or include religious stuff, good for you; but who says that he feels the same way or even that you should tell him to feel the same way. At the end of the day it’s his blog, if someone doesn’t like what he posts feel free to not look.
@ R W Rouse: Seeing as how God lets blasphemers go unpunished day in and day out, it seems HE has a better sense of humor than many of his earthly defenders.
This will not always be so. He will make all things right in his timing.
“For we know him who said, ‘Vengeance is mine; I will repay.’ And again, ‘The Lord will judge his people.’ It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.” (Hebrews 10:30-31)
Love to laugh, and always do at what you post here. I’m usually the one pushing the line of reverence, but I gotta say this one crosses the line a little, even for me.
I understand that many people, including Abraham, may not see God the same way I do, but I gotta say that this cartoon is belittling of God, Jesus, and the virgin birth which are all pretty sacred tenets of Christianity.
Just because something is funny or clever doesn’t make it RIGHT. In my opinion, this is funny, clever, and pretty wrong.
But, I’m not crying about it. It’s just a cartoon on a blog.
The “Abe can post whatever he wants so shut it” argument gets used a lot around here and it’s pretty silly, IMO. Of course he can post whatever he wants, but he posts things for people to see and react to. If this stuff was just for his personal enjoyment, he wouldn’t post these things to the world with a comment form underneath it.
People should be able to react however they want. Feel free to disagree with people’s responses, but don’t tell them they should be quiet if they don’t like something that Abe posts. That’s not how this blog thing works, and it’s clearly not how Abraham wants to do things. He never moderates comments that I can see, which is the way it should be.
Just telling people to “go somewhere else if you don’t like it” is pretty lame and non productive. Contrary reactions are one of the things that makes 22 Words awesome.
I agree with every word in this comment. I get what’s supposed to be funny in the strip, but it’s offensive nonetheless. Definitely a MISS here, Abraham.
This is a brilliant comic about limited human depictions of God, not God Himself. It’s a play on the idea of the holy family which doesn’t correspond to anything anyone actually believes (unless you really do think heaven is like this, in which case, well… the comic is probably accurate). I am a Christian, btw, in case anyone thinks that is relevant. Love 22 Words!
I’m a Christian. I think it’s hilarious. This isn’t saying, “This is the way it happened” it’s saying, “If someone got your wife pregnant, wouldn’t it be awkward? Well, that’s kinda what happened with Mary and Joseph. Funny!” I don’t understand why Christians get so uptight about keeping God out of humor. He created humor. He knows what makes me laugh. I’m sure He laughs at us! Check some of the stuff in the Bible! It shows Him angry, it shows Him loving, but if you look closely, you’ll see the humor too. Like when Jesus was sleeping on the boat and the disciples woke Him from the terrible storm, and He’s all, “Why did you wake me?” That wasn’t a serious question. Jesus knew how bad the storm was. He knew the disciples were afraid for their lives, so asking why they woke Him, probably elicited laughter and maybe a playful shove from Peter saying, come on Jesus, help us!
Those who choose not to see the humor i’m the Bible aren’t paying attention. Like when Samson told that riddle to his wife and she told the wedding guests the answer. His response? “If you hadn’t plowed with my heifer, you would not have solved my riddle.” How much more sarcastic humor can you get?? God understand a humor and he’s not out to get you for laughing.
And btw, whoever posted those verses from the book of Hebrews, they’re talking about the established church, believers. God will judge “His people” for every word and deed. We are the ones who should be mindful of that. The only thing an unbeliever will be judged for is his unbelief. Because if you don’t believe in Jesus, you already stand condemned, and there is no further need for judgment. Whether you laugh at religious comic strips or not.
Abraham, I find it interesting that my second comment was removed and that you have blocked me from commenting further. You and I both know that I said nothing to warrant such action but take comfort in knowing that I have removed your blog from my Google Reader subscription list.
It’s hilarious! I always wondered how Joseph must have felt… “Honey, I’m pregnant, and the father is God.” You couldn’t blame him for being a little pissed about it; he was human after all.
I completely agree Mary. I can only imagine that Joseph always had to have at least a small portion of his mind doubting the validity of whether the child was actually immaculately conceived- he(Joseph) was human after all. And since there is very little in the Gospels on their interaction I’ve always been curious as to how that doubt may have shaped the relationship between Joseph, Mary, and Jesus, and potentially with Joseph’s other children as well (not like there isn’t a precedent of great sibling rivalries in the Bible! -it even surfaces at one point when Jesus’ siblings come to see him and he denounces his family saying my brothers and sisters are the ones who follow me.). I’ve always thought it would make for a great historical novel to explore those potential relationships. I’m sure many people (and probably some who have posted on here) would blast it as blasphemous and offesive with out ever actually reading it. Yet with no sense of irony they would uphold the works of Kierkegaard as a great theologian on faith, even though he reframed the Abraham story in multiple fashions to explore and examine the relationships therein.
It’s true, there was a dream… and I’m not saying that there may not have been some part of Joseph’s mind that could accept it. But I also can’t personally excluded the idea that at least a small part of him may have been skeptical. Abraham was told by God himself to sacrifice his only son, yet Kierkegaard is well able to paint him as struggling to accept this burden. I only keep bringing up Kierkegaard because he is such a central figure to Christian fideistic thought and his character sketches actually strengthen the character of Abraham- for had he wanted to follow God’s command it would not have been such a profound act of faith to be willing to carry it out. I just don’t think it is a stretch to imagine Joseph struggling to accept his charge as well.
I find it interesting that you can get away with this, making fun of the Christian figures of God, Jesus, Mary and Joseph, without being threatened with murder, but, if you were to insult the “God” of Islam and his “prophet” Mo, there would be death threats sent your way within minutes.
See what you did there is called stereotyping. I’m friends with many, many Muslims and I highly doubt that any of them would be so offend by a joke that they would threaten to kill someone. Muslim extremists are just like Christian extremists…. they’re an exaggerated unrealistic interpretation of the normal follower and a bad represeation of them.
So sad that you can’t think beyond what you hear and get to know some people to find out that they are in fact, humans.
I find it interesting that the US is the only Western country where the head of state can’t get elected without assuring the population that he subscribes to the values of the New Testament and to Jesus’s teachings, but it’s still the only country in the world to have wiped out thousands of innocent women and children in a single heartbeat with a nuclear bomb.
Non, meet sequitur.
If all the other religions were jumping off a cliff, would you do it too?
I found the religious pointless banter about whose religious dick is biggest much more entertaining than the cartoon I got a laugh out of. Seriously all you ‘Christians’, grow up. I am not asking you to have a sense of humor, I am asking you to stop waving around your biblical penis and showing it off. Who the hell cares who is more ‘Christian’ that who? Wasn’t the teaching of Christ to live, love, and forgive? I mean, seriously, does anyone even listen to his words anymore or is it all a whip out your bible to see whose is biggest contest? You are not improving the ideal that many think of when they hear the word ‘Christian’. I read this, and worry about what pompous asses they are turning into. And please, reflect and think about the name of your religion, ‘CHRIST’ is in the name. Do as he would do folks.
And I actually ranted. Well, that was anger relieving.
Well, I’m going to have to respectfully disagree with you Joey, though I will give you points for creativity: I can’t say I’ve ever heard anyone argue in nearly the same breath to emulate Christ more and reference Scripture less. In fact, Jesus is constantly quoting the Hebrew Scriptures which he held sacred, as well as engaging in dialogue concerning their teachings- both with the scribes and scholars, as well as with common folk. In the only canonized story we have of him as a boy his parents lose track of him only to find him in a Temple amazing the elders with his knowledge of Scripture. He replies that they (his parents) should have known he would be in his father’s house- which in light of the original post here could have been a snide, bratty comment- something to the extent of “you’re not my real dad!” But it also could have been a purely innocent response. The thing is, it is all nuanced and subject to interpretation (and that is all within a single language, start trying to translate these texts from ancient Greek into English and you run into a whole new set of problems!) As a result there are many differing views on what the Bible is actually telling us and how then shall we live our lives. I am guessing that you and I would both agree that it would be absurd to measure one’s “Christian-ness” on whether or not they think this comic is funny- I laughed out loud the first time I read it, and still chuckle at it. However, I believe it is good and healthy to engage in thoughtful discussion on matters of faith and religion- both amongst believers, as well as between believers and non-believers, if we hope to live in a sustainable and understanding community. And I do believe that that example was set by Christ.
I had deduced that you were not a Christian from your previous comment… imagine that- a Christian with logistic skills!?! But you do seem to care since it provoked you enough to post a comment on here in the first place. And a rant at that! Nobody rants without caring. You also said it was relieving anger, which I would not doubt nor condemn- but I would say that shows that you do in fact care!
The point I was trying to make is that if you are going to admonish Christians (or any other religious/cultural group for that matter) to follow their own teaching, please at least do some digging and research of your own toward understanding their traditions and beliefs. Don’t generalize and say “Listen to his words” or “Do as he would do” without knowing his words or actions yourself.
Rigby, I’m so speechless by how impressed I am with your rebuttals that I tried to formulate my own response four times before giving up!
In response to other comments:
Being a Christian myself I do see where this comic might be insulting… then again I also see the humor an got a bit of a giggle from it.
I used to have a friend who was an “on the fence” Christian, one day she believed, the other she had doubts, the next she went the opposite direction -satanism, and then right back to praying to God… Needless to say, we did not see eye-to-eye on almost every issue we ever discussed, and were not friends for long. However, one day we were watching “House” and some episode came up which brought up the scientific
theory behind a virgin birth… I say “theory” because while it explains how it COULD have been a real possibility, there has never been a case of it in known scientific history. We talked for a while, Myself arguing on the side of the biblical writings of immaculate conception, SHE arguing for the side that “Someone fucked the bitch.” (excuse my language. Those were her words). I my mind, I could see this as someone depicting God the father taking human form and fornicating with Mary… which is a possibility my former friend would have firmly believed (for about a day).
IF that wasn’t confusing enough I have further comments, yay!
In response to Luke and the sub comments on his reply. I agree, I often am irked by how people feel as though they can insult my faith, and then say “oh get a sense of humor”. It is very much a form of bigotry.
You have to understand though, just as races and sexualities are stereotyped, so are religious views (and yes, Christians are JUST AS GUILTY of stereotyping OTHER forms of religion), and Christians are stereotyped as grasping, judgmental, hypocritical, superior (as a complex), and yes, even violent. I have had a few occasions where a friend who is atheist told me he liked talking to Christians and proving how hypocritical they were. This, however gave me a chance to speak with my friend at length about the true values of a follower of Christ, vs. how society twists the image based on a few bad men who took Christs name as their banner unjustly, or how people see “chameleon Christians”; Christians who are only Christ-like when it suits them. I think that through conversing with me in a levelheaded, informed, and clear manner, my friend may have a better opinion of Christians and our views. He still may not believe in God, but he has dropped some of his intolerance and his personal stereotype for those who do.
I had more BUT I shall spare you all.
FOR THE RECORD, I love 22 words, have always loved it since I joined. Occasionally, yes, I do find a certain post to be offensive but I have tried to teach myself to realize a couple of things
A: Abraham posts things he finds interesting for the sake of discussion, not to heckle anyone. I firmly believe he enjoys to see varying viewpoints, and no one should take this as a personal affront.
B: It’s the fucking internet. There will ALWAYS be something offensive.
Jesus: Fed an entire peoples with a loaf of bread and fish.
2. turned water into wine (as admitted by the comic above.
3 Prevented the stoning of one Mary Magdalene by the drawing of a line in sand and speaking the words ‘He who is without sin, cast the first stone’.
4. Spoke the words many refer to as the golden rule, ‘Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.’
5. When talking of being wronged, he said, ‘Turn the other cheek’.
6. Love thy neighbor is another popular one.
7. When betrayed by Judas in the garden, he also fixed back on the ear to the guard Peter had struck, then instructed them not to fight but be fishers of men.
8. Knew he was to die, but took the punishment anyway.
I can keep going on. I was raised Roman Catholic. I also never doubted you had skills of logic. Never said anything to the contrary actually, that was out of your mouth (or rather keyboard?) I believe. I personally favor the King James version, as it was passed down to me from my family, though I am no longer of their faith. Oh, since you are a Christian, perhaps you can help me understand why there are Christmas trees up even though in Jeremiah the bible strictly prohibits it? It even goes as far to say, ‘Do not as the heathens do’ and not to ‘take a tree from the forest and nail it upright, and deck it out in gold and silver’. I would love to know your take on it. I’m not mocking, I seriously would enjoy it being explained, as no one will give me a straight answer. Thanks sweetie.
I appreciate your response Joey. I apologize, I know that you never questioned my logic, but it often seems that is a stereotype which is cast upon religious folks- not just Christians- that it is an absurdity of logic to believe in the divine. I apologize that I generalized that position on to you.
Yes, the examples you gave are all aspects to the Gospel stories- with a few slight deviations (as far as we know it wasn’t Mary Magdalene who was to be stoned, it was loaves and fishes in the plural, etc.- but yes you have the gist of those stories). But there is also that time when Jesus stormed through the Temple flipping over tables in righteous indignation. There are times in which he condemns cities, sends demonic swine over a cliff and curses a fig tree (which subsequently dies) because it wasn’t producing fruit. What I’m saying here is things aren’t always cut and dry- like your question out of Jeremiah, which I shall return to with the best of my abilities. Your primary argument was something to the effect of “All you Christians stop debating over what the Bible says, just do what Christ does.” My answer is that is a simplified, unrealistic expectation for the following reasons A) There are multiple accounts, as well as varying interpretations of the accounts, pertaining to the life of Jesus. In order to sort through these and come to some understanding of how all of these stories work together, there needs to be dialogue, discussion and debate. And again, that only pertains to the Gospels and the life of Jesus, leaving alone the thousands of other stories in the Bible which don’t always seem to harmonize with each other. B) These questions and their applications all come to bear on an ethical question “How then shall we live?” They are not answered in a vacuum where there are neat and tidy answers, but rather in real life where things are messy and complex. There are many perspectives on what we should draw from each individual story- it is certainly possible (and actual) that two conflicting ethical answers arise from the same passage. C) Regardless of how you interpret the stories, you would be hard pressed to paint a picture of the character of Jesus who would not encourage and embrace a full and open dialogue concerning matters of scripture. He was quite thoroughly versed himself and as I noted before, was constantly engaged in dialogue with scholars and tax collectors alike. So I would argue that for most Christians the idea of studying, discussing, and debating the true meaning of Scripture is part of the “Do as Jesus would do” charge.
In regards to Jeremiah- while yes that small snippet of text seems rather damning of the beloved conifers, it is useful and appropriate to examine the text surrounding it for context. To my understanding that passage is referring to a historical practice of carving an idol from a cut down tree and worshipping it as a God. That would be forbidden. I don’t personally know anyone, Christian or not, that views their X-mas tree as a God. The passage is not saying you can’t cut down a tree, put it in your house, and decorate it for a celebration. It is a slight, but important distinction of intent.
No worries. I have a Roman Catholic family, like most Hispanic decent peoples. I know the bible, and was an alter server for many years. I have many very religious friends who I would never engage a battle of views in because it would be like two brick walls arguing. My adoptive mother is VERY Christian, my birth mother VERY Roman Catholic. But they also have a huge sense of humor, so I guess I’m used to people who just roll with the punches better. After all, you only live once so don’t take life too seriously. In regards to people judging logic, that’s idiotic to me. You posting on the internet gives me no clear sense to who you are as an individual and frankly me judging you on an internet based experience is immature and idiotic. Everyone has logic and to say otherwise would prove that you have none to begin with. While I don’t share your views, or agree with them, I do respect them. After all, to each their own right? Hell, I even have a Jewish branch of my family, and even a few Pagans but family dinners and such are still amazingly fun and we all make fun of each other. I guess I’m just disappointed that people can’t just leave their religions at home with others and just get to know them as a person, not a symbol or a stereotype. After all, being a Pagan doesn’t mean I burn churches. It just means I don’t follow your holy book. Even though I have three Bibles, and a Qur’an right next to me as I type. I love to study things, and get a perspective from a neutral set of eyes on what it says. But, that is neither here nor there. thank you for taking the time to discuss things with me about that passage as it was actually turning into a family argument between my mother and cousins. Go figure, the Pagan is the one who really doesn’t care about the friggin tree! I hope you have a great day, and that your God blesses you with happiness.
I’m an active, devoted, educated Christian. Yes, folks, there ARE progressive, left-wing, devoted Christians. The only issue I have with this is the whole “God is an old bearded white man” image! And there is zero understanding of Holy Spirit or of the Trinity here. I guess it’s kinda funny for someone who has no real understanding of theology. But those who are offended by supposed blasphemy really need to lighten up. Do you honestly think that our Almighty is so small to be offended by this sort of pre-adolescent humor? Puh-lease!
Blasphemous? I don’t think you understand the meaning of that word… there is no “evil speaking” in this cartoon. It could be considered heretical, but even so it is not meant to be taken seriously, so there would be no obvious intent. Many Christians reject the very idea that humour can be commingled with scripture, however, and I respect them for their views. However, I respectfully disagree, and I believe that there is a long history of comedy intertwined with the holy.
I find the cartoon silly, after all Jesus did make the last of the wine at the wedding, which was typically the lesser quality by the end of the festivities. Also, Joseph was arguably suspicious of the conception until an angel appeared in his dreams. (Mat 1:18-19)
All that aside, I can’t think of a single charge of heresy due to comedy in history. The Jesuits certainly didn’t burn any comedians at the stake. I have never heard of anyone being excommunicated for making light of the scriptures. If such things were prohibitive, wouldn’t Dante Alighieri have been burned at the stake? Certainly the writers of biblical morality plays during the 15th century would have suffered painful deaths for inserting scatological jokes between acts? How about Medieval Latin comedy in northern France? Should I even mention Chaucer?
And there’s quite a bit of humor in the Bible… a few of my favorites:
“He who sits in heaven will laugh, the Lord will mock them.”
“”Was there a lack of graves in Egypt, that you took us away to die in the wilderness?”"
“Is it to your master and to you that my master has sent me to speak these words? Is it not to the people sitting on the wall, who will eat their dung and drink their urine with you.”
God told them: “Go and cry to the gods which you have chosen; let them rescue you in the time of your torment.”
“Call with a loud voice, for he is a god. Perhaps he is talking, or he is pursuing enemies, or he is relieving himself, or perhaps he is sleeping and will awaken.”
Carr: Fixed. Now, please don't call the wild-eyed racist. http://twentytwowords.com/2013/05/21/9-more-ladies-of-disney-portrayed-more-realistically/ – 5 ladies of Disney portrayed more realistically
Seems kind of Mormon…
Definately not Mormon, being as I am one, but I am going to hell for laughing at that.
Seriously, where are all the jew-jokes? Christian-bashing has gotten so trite.
I get that it’s supposed to be a joke, but I’m not liking how far it goes into the philosophy that “God fell in love with Mary and got her pregnant” scenario.
He did not get her pregnant?
There was no implication about “God fell in love with Mary and got her pregnant”. The only implication is God got her pregnant that’s why Joseph reacted that way.
oh amy, i definitely laughed harder at your response than the actual comment. it’s like you are willing to laugh at blasphemy, but nothing TOO blasphemous. if you can’t see that being self-righteous about blasphemous humor is completely absurd well then, perhaps i must bid you adieu.
I agree, Amy. I’ve never understood how people are so freaking angry about Christianity. Seriously. So freaking angry. Yes, I appreciate that it’s funny to some of you people, but not to others. So let’s move on to other “funny” stuff. Hey, how about something along the lines of priests and young boys? That’s HILARIOUS! It’s like being in 4th grade all over, when the angry kids whose parents are divorced or whose older brothers bullied them turn into vile little things and see “humor” in otherwise benign things … like pulling the legs off a grasshopper and watching it writhe in agony. Yes, humorless liberals, you continue to laugh at our faith. Go on. Laugh. Ah, yes, that’s more like it. Oh yeah, more. More…
oh amy, i definitely laughed harder at your response than the actual comic. it’s like you are willing to laugh at blasphemy, but nothing TOO blasphemous. if you can’t see that being self-righteous about blasphemous humor is completely absurd well then, perhaps i must bid you adieu.
Bracing myself for all the responses of people without a sense of humor. Luckily at this time none of them have seen this FUNNY cartoon yet.
The “you don’t have a sense of humor” response always angers me. It has nothing to do with humor. It’s a very personal thing that people who don’t understand, like to make fun of. The feeling we have is like this: (the FEELING, not the situation) Imagine a woman that loses a child in a horrible manner and someone comes up and makes a joke about it. When she gets upset the man says “you just don’t have a sense of humor” For a true Christian, that is how we feel. I know you don’t believe what we believe but at least respect us enough to not make fun of it. I’m not really talking about this cartoon as much as people thinking we don’t have a sense of humor because we can’t laugh at something that is very serious in our lives.
Then take that seriousness somewhere else and leave us to have fun.
No, Luke, that is NOT how you feel. Or if it is, there is a real problem with your attitude to God.
If you love God and believe in Him as the omnipotent, loving and living creator of everything, you may feel hurt by the disrespect of an unbeliever, or you may feel humiliated if you’re that sort of person. But you do NOT have anything like the “feeling” a woman feels after she loses a child and hears a dead child joke. It has nothing to do with her sense of guilt, helplessness, loss, yearning and loneliness. You’re comparing a touched nerve to ripping open deep wounds.
Go back to your playpen and read up on false dichotomies before you come and chat with the adults again. You’ve been incredibly offensive and you haven’t even had the decency to try to be amusing while you’ve done it.
You are right in that I should have used another example. There are way more hurtful feelings envolved in the example I used and I’m sorry if I offended anyone. It’s not about a touched nerve, however. It’s about people who do not understand the feelings they bring up and then make Christians feel like we’re the stupid ones for not laughing at something that is painful to us. But yes, I should have picked something else.
I appreciate the apology, and your point. There’s no use laughing at people and then asking them to laugh along with you.
Sadly, as long as so many Christian churches are as corrupt as they are, and while those corrupt churches have so much influence over how the world works, and while so many individual Christians practice a deep hypocrisy in terms of the difference between the teachings of Christ and the utter selfishness and materialism with which they lead their day to day lives even as they attempt to control the behaviour of others and of non-Christians, it’d be remiss if no one was making fun of Christianity, however much that hurts.
As you pointed out earlier, though, that’s all beside the point to this funny little cartoon, which is simply doing what Christianity invites us to do: see the vision of a God that loved humanity enough to become human himself, subject to all our petty pains and discomfort.
I understand that you’re offended. I myself COULD be offended by your ‘true Christian’ comment, since you presume to speak for me, as if all ‘true Christians’ react the same way. But what would be the point of my being offended?
I like that the cartoon invites us to look at people from Scripture as if they really lived and had real feelings. It doesn’t literally and accurately reflect Joseph’s attitude toward God, but the implication is clear: if you or I were in Joseph’s shoes, what would we have done?
I have a sense of humor, which God gave me. But making light of his holy name is not funny.
I have really enjoyed this blog for the last several months but I have no appreciation for irreverent humor involving God. He is God. We can be irreverent of anything of man but not of God. The only right attitude towards God is one of reverence. If you don’t understand that you don’t understand who or what God is.
Or maybe he disagrees about who or what God is. He’s allowed to, you know. It’s his blog.
I don’t think people realize that maybe just MAYBE Abraham doesn’t have the same ideas and beliefs that they do. Ok so you (not you but just people) want to be serious about god and never make jokes or include religious stuff, good for you; but who says that he feels the same way or even that you should tell him to feel the same way. At the end of the day it’s his blog, if someone doesn’t like what he posts feel free to not look.
Amen.
rAMEN.
@ R W Rouse: Seeing as how God lets blasphemers go unpunished day in and day out, it seems HE has a better sense of humor than many of his earthly defenders.
This will not always be so. He will make all things right in his timing.
“For we know him who said, ‘Vengeance is mine; I will repay.’ And again, ‘The Lord will judge his people.’ It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.” (Hebrews 10:30-31)
Well, so much for “Turn the other cheek” and “Love your enemies”, I guess.
I’d be pissed if some sky doode knocked up my lady too. Especially w/out consent.
I think I like your comment the best. It almost implies you might be okay with it, had “sky dude” asked first.
Still no mention of “your lady” having a say, though.
I think “Name” meant the lady’s consent. Remember, as the story goes, Mary was essentially raped.
blasphemous.
Love to laugh, and always do at what you post here. I’m usually the one pushing the line of reverence, but I gotta say this one crosses the line a little, even for me.
I understand that many people, including Abraham, may not see God the same way I do, but I gotta say that this cartoon is belittling of God, Jesus, and the virgin birth which are all pretty sacred tenets of Christianity.
Just because something is funny or clever doesn’t make it RIGHT. In my opinion, this is funny, clever, and pretty wrong.
But, I’m not crying about it. It’s just a cartoon on a blog.
The “Abe can post whatever he wants so shut it” argument gets used a lot around here and it’s pretty silly, IMO. Of course he can post whatever he wants, but he posts things for people to see and react to. If this stuff was just for his personal enjoyment, he wouldn’t post these things to the world with a comment form underneath it.
People should be able to react however they want. Feel free to disagree with people’s responses, but don’t tell them they should be quiet if they don’t like something that Abe posts. That’s not how this blog thing works, and it’s clearly not how Abraham wants to do things. He never moderates comments that I can see, which is the way it should be.
Just telling people to “go somewhere else if you don’t like it” is pretty lame and non productive. Contrary reactions are one of the things that makes 22 Words awesome.
I agree with every word in this comment. I get what’s supposed to be funny in the strip, but it’s offensive nonetheless. Definitely a MISS here, Abraham.
This is a brilliant comic about limited human depictions of God, not God Himself. It’s a play on the idea of the holy family which doesn’t correspond to anything anyone actually believes (unless you really do think heaven is like this, in which case, well… the comic is probably accurate). I am a Christian, btw, in case anyone thinks that is relevant. Love 22 Words!
I’m a Cristian.
I dont see how this is offensive.
Christian*
Sorry it’s DEFINITIVELY too early for me to be awake.
Yes, “DEFINITELY” too early.
See how this is offensive is different than thinking it’s offensive. If you are Christian, I SURE hope you can see how this could be offensive.
I’m a Christian. I think it’s hilarious. This isn’t saying, “This is the way it happened” it’s saying, “If someone got your wife pregnant, wouldn’t it be awkward? Well, that’s kinda what happened with Mary and Joseph. Funny!” I don’t understand why Christians get so uptight about keeping God out of humor. He created humor. He knows what makes me laugh. I’m sure He laughs at us! Check some of the stuff in the Bible! It shows Him angry, it shows Him loving, but if you look closely, you’ll see the humor too. Like when Jesus was sleeping on the boat and the disciples woke Him from the terrible storm, and He’s all, “Why did you wake me?” That wasn’t a serious question. Jesus knew how bad the storm was. He knew the disciples were afraid for their lives, so asking why they woke Him, probably elicited laughter and maybe a playful shove from Peter saying, come on Jesus, help us!
Those who choose not to see the humor i’m the Bible aren’t paying attention. Like when Samson told that riddle to his wife and she told the wedding guests the answer. His response? “If you hadn’t plowed with my heifer, you would not have solved my riddle.” How much more sarcastic humor can you get?? God understand a humor and he’s not out to get you for laughing.
And btw, whoever posted those verses from the book of Hebrews, they’re talking about the established church, believers. God will judge “His people” for every word and deed. We are the ones who should be mindful of that. The only thing an unbeliever will be judged for is his unbelief. Because if you don’t believe in Jesus, you already stand condemned, and there is no further need for judgment. Whether you laugh at religious comic strips or not.
I thought the guy that ran this is a christian.
I may have to unsubscribe.
This is a using the Lord name in vain.
You are using his likeness, God, without purpose. Hopefully you can clear see this is a sin.
It ain’t funny. I’m offended for Joseph. It is an insulting way to depict a man who put so much trust in the Lord and in his wife.
I really miss the old 22 words.
Me too.
Abraham, I find it interesting that my second comment was removed and that you have blocked me from commenting further. You and I both know that I said nothing to warrant such action but take comfort in knowing that I have removed your blog from my Google Reader subscription list.
I didn’t block anyone because of this post.
It’s hilarious! I always wondered how Joseph must have felt… “Honey, I’m pregnant, and the father is God.” You couldn’t blame him for being a little pissed about it; he was human after all.
I completely agree Mary. I can only imagine that Joseph always had to have at least a small portion of his mind doubting the validity of whether the child was actually immaculately conceived- he(Joseph) was human after all. And since there is very little in the Gospels on their interaction I’ve always been curious as to how that doubt may have shaped the relationship between Joseph, Mary, and Jesus, and potentially with Joseph’s other children as well (not like there isn’t a precedent of great sibling rivalries in the Bible! -it even surfaces at one point when Jesus’ siblings come to see him and he denounces his family saying my brothers and sisters are the ones who follow me.). I’ve always thought it would make for a great historical novel to explore those potential relationships. I’m sure many people (and probably some who have posted on here) would blast it as blasphemous and offesive with out ever actually reading it. Yet with no sense of irony they would uphold the works of Kierkegaard as a great theologian on faith, even though he reframed the Abraham story in multiple fashions to explore and examine the relationships therein.
? Well, there was the whole angel of the Lord appearing to Joseph in a dream thing, so maybe he (Joseph) was okay with it. *shrug*
It’s true, there was a dream… and I’m not saying that there may not have been some part of Joseph’s mind that could accept it. But I also can’t personally excluded the idea that at least a small part of him may have been skeptical. Abraham was told by God himself to sacrifice his only son, yet Kierkegaard is well able to paint him as struggling to accept this burden. I only keep bringing up Kierkegaard because he is such a central figure to Christian fideistic thought and his character sketches actually strengthen the character of Abraham- for had he wanted to follow God’s command it would not have been such a profound act of faith to be willing to carry it out. I just don’t think it is a stretch to imagine Joseph struggling to accept his charge as well.
I for one, would like to say this is hilarious. Great find, great post, definitely made my day
I find it interesting that you can get away with this, making fun of the Christian figures of God, Jesus, Mary and Joseph, without being threatened with murder, but, if you were to insult the “God” of Islam and his “prophet” Mo, there would be death threats sent your way within minutes.
See what you did there is called stereotyping. I’m friends with many, many Muslims and I highly doubt that any of them would be so offend by a joke that they would threaten to kill someone. Muslim extremists are just like Christian extremists…. they’re an exaggerated unrealistic interpretation of the normal follower and a bad represeation of them.
So sad that you can’t think beyond what you hear and get to know some people to find out that they are in fact, humans.
I find it interesting that the US is the only Western country where the head of state can’t get elected without assuring the population that he subscribes to the values of the New Testament and to Jesus’s teachings, but it’s still the only country in the world to have wiped out thousands of innocent women and children in a single heartbeat with a nuclear bomb.
Non, meet sequitur.
If all the other religions were jumping off a cliff, would you do it too?
I found the religious pointless banter about whose religious dick is biggest much more entertaining than the cartoon I got a laugh out of. Seriously all you ‘Christians’, grow up. I am not asking you to have a sense of humor, I am asking you to stop waving around your biblical penis and showing it off. Who the hell cares who is more ‘Christian’ that who? Wasn’t the teaching of Christ to live, love, and forgive? I mean, seriously, does anyone even listen to his words anymore or is it all a whip out your bible to see whose is biggest contest? You are not improving the ideal that many think of when they hear the word ‘Christian’. I read this, and worry about what pompous asses they are turning into. And please, reflect and think about the name of your religion, ‘CHRIST’ is in the name. Do as he would do folks.
And I actually ranted. Well, that was anger relieving.
Well, I’m going to have to respectfully disagree with you Joey, though I will give you points for creativity: I can’t say I’ve ever heard anyone argue in nearly the same breath to emulate Christ more and reference Scripture less. In fact, Jesus is constantly quoting the Hebrew Scriptures which he held sacred, as well as engaging in dialogue concerning their teachings- both with the scribes and scholars, as well as with common folk. In the only canonized story we have of him as a boy his parents lose track of him only to find him in a Temple amazing the elders with his knowledge of Scripture. He replies that they (his parents) should have known he would be in his father’s house- which in light of the original post here could have been a snide, bratty comment- something to the extent of “you’re not my real dad!” But it also could have been a purely innocent response. The thing is, it is all nuanced and subject to interpretation (and that is all within a single language, start trying to translate these texts from ancient Greek into English and you run into a whole new set of problems!) As a result there are many differing views on what the Bible is actually telling us and how then shall we live our lives. I am guessing that you and I would both agree that it would be absurd to measure one’s “Christian-ness” on whether or not they think this comic is funny- I laughed out loud the first time I read it, and still chuckle at it. However, I believe it is good and healthy to engage in thoughtful discussion on matters of faith and religion- both amongst believers, as well as between believers and non-believers, if we hope to live in a sustainable and understanding community. And I do believe that that example was set by Christ.
Wouldn’t really know or care. I’m not christian.
I had deduced that you were not a Christian from your previous comment… imagine that- a Christian with logistic skills!?! But you do seem to care since it provoked you enough to post a comment on here in the first place. And a rant at that! Nobody rants without caring. You also said it was relieving anger, which I would not doubt nor condemn- but I would say that shows that you do in fact care!
The point I was trying to make is that if you are going to admonish Christians (or any other religious/cultural group for that matter) to follow their own teaching, please at least do some digging and research of your own toward understanding their traditions and beliefs. Don’t generalize and say “Listen to his words” or “Do as he would do” without knowing his words or actions yourself.
Rigby, I’m so speechless by how impressed I am with your rebuttals that I tried to formulate my own response four times before giving up!
In response to other comments:
Being a Christian myself I do see where this comic might be insulting… then again I also see the humor an got a bit of a giggle from it.
I used to have a friend who was an “on the fence” Christian, one day she believed, the other she had doubts, the next she went the opposite direction -satanism, and then right back to praying to God… Needless to say, we did not see eye-to-eye on almost every issue we ever discussed, and were not friends for long. However, one day we were watching “House” and some episode came up which brought up the scientific
theory behind a virgin birth… I say “theory” because while it explains how it COULD have been a real possibility, there has never been a case of it in known scientific history. We talked for a while, Myself arguing on the side of the biblical writings of immaculate conception, SHE arguing for the side that “Someone fucked the bitch.” (excuse my language. Those were her words). I my mind, I could see this as someone depicting God the father taking human form and fornicating with Mary… which is a possibility my former friend would have firmly believed (for about a day).
IF that wasn’t confusing enough I have further comments, yay!
In response to Luke and the sub comments on his reply. I agree, I often am irked by how people feel as though they can insult my faith, and then say “oh get a sense of humor”. It is very much a form of bigotry.
You have to understand though, just as races and sexualities are stereotyped, so are religious views (and yes, Christians are JUST AS GUILTY of stereotyping OTHER forms of religion), and Christians are stereotyped as grasping, judgmental, hypocritical, superior (as a complex), and yes, even violent. I have had a few occasions where a friend who is atheist told me he liked talking to Christians and proving how hypocritical they were. This, however gave me a chance to speak with my friend at length about the true values of a follower of Christ, vs. how society twists the image based on a few bad men who took Christs name as their banner unjustly, or how people see “chameleon Christians”; Christians who are only Christ-like when it suits them. I think that through conversing with me in a levelheaded, informed, and clear manner, my friend may have a better opinion of Christians and our views. He still may not believe in God, but he has dropped some of his intolerance and his personal stereotype for those who do.
I had more BUT I shall spare you all.
FOR THE RECORD, I love 22 words, have always loved it since I joined. Occasionally, yes, I do find a certain post to be offensive but I have tried to teach myself to realize a couple of things
A: Abraham posts things he finds interesting for the sake of discussion, not to heckle anyone. I firmly believe he enjoys to see varying viewpoints, and no one should take this as a personal affront.
B: It’s the fucking internet. There will ALWAYS be something offensive.
Blah I’m done.
Jesus: Fed an entire peoples with a loaf of bread and fish.
2. turned water into wine (as admitted by the comic above.
3 Prevented the stoning of one Mary Magdalene by the drawing of a line in sand and speaking the words ‘He who is without sin, cast the first stone’.
4. Spoke the words many refer to as the golden rule, ‘Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.’
5. When talking of being wronged, he said, ‘Turn the other cheek’.
6. Love thy neighbor is another popular one.
7. When betrayed by Judas in the garden, he also fixed back on the ear to the guard Peter had struck, then instructed them not to fight but be fishers of men.
8. Knew he was to die, but took the punishment anyway.
I can keep going on. I was raised Roman Catholic. I also never doubted you had skills of logic. Never said anything to the contrary actually, that was out of your mouth (or rather keyboard?) I believe. I personally favor the King James version, as it was passed down to me from my family, though I am no longer of their faith. Oh, since you are a Christian, perhaps you can help me understand why there are Christmas trees up even though in Jeremiah the bible strictly prohibits it? It even goes as far to say, ‘Do not as the heathens do’ and not to ‘take a tree from the forest and nail it upright, and deck it out in gold and silver’. I would love to know your take on it. I’m not mocking, I seriously would enjoy it being explained, as no one will give me a straight answer. Thanks sweetie.
I appreciate your response Joey. I apologize, I know that you never questioned my logic, but it often seems that is a stereotype which is cast upon religious folks- not just Christians- that it is an absurdity of logic to believe in the divine. I apologize that I generalized that position on to you.
Yes, the examples you gave are all aspects to the Gospel stories- with a few slight deviations (as far as we know it wasn’t Mary Magdalene who was to be stoned, it was loaves and fishes in the plural, etc.- but yes you have the gist of those stories). But there is also that time when Jesus stormed through the Temple flipping over tables in righteous indignation. There are times in which he condemns cities, sends demonic swine over a cliff and curses a fig tree (which subsequently dies) because it wasn’t producing fruit. What I’m saying here is things aren’t always cut and dry- like your question out of Jeremiah, which I shall return to with the best of my abilities. Your primary argument was something to the effect of “All you Christians stop debating over what the Bible says, just do what Christ does.” My answer is that is a simplified, unrealistic expectation for the following reasons A) There are multiple accounts, as well as varying interpretations of the accounts, pertaining to the life of Jesus. In order to sort through these and come to some understanding of how all of these stories work together, there needs to be dialogue, discussion and debate. And again, that only pertains to the Gospels and the life of Jesus, leaving alone the thousands of other stories in the Bible which don’t always seem to harmonize with each other. B) These questions and their applications all come to bear on an ethical question “How then shall we live?” They are not answered in a vacuum where there are neat and tidy answers, but rather in real life where things are messy and complex. There are many perspectives on what we should draw from each individual story- it is certainly possible (and actual) that two conflicting ethical answers arise from the same passage. C) Regardless of how you interpret the stories, you would be hard pressed to paint a picture of the character of Jesus who would not encourage and embrace a full and open dialogue concerning matters of scripture. He was quite thoroughly versed himself and as I noted before, was constantly engaged in dialogue with scholars and tax collectors alike. So I would argue that for most Christians the idea of studying, discussing, and debating the true meaning of Scripture is part of the “Do as Jesus would do” charge.
In regards to Jeremiah- while yes that small snippet of text seems rather damning of the beloved conifers, it is useful and appropriate to examine the text surrounding it for context. To my understanding that passage is referring to a historical practice of carving an idol from a cut down tree and worshipping it as a God. That would be forbidden. I don’t personally know anyone, Christian or not, that views their X-mas tree as a God. The passage is not saying you can’t cut down a tree, put it in your house, and decorate it for a celebration. It is a slight, but important distinction of intent.
No worries. I have a Roman Catholic family, like most Hispanic decent peoples. I know the bible, and was an alter server for many years. I have many very religious friends who I would never engage a battle of views in because it would be like two brick walls arguing. My adoptive mother is VERY Christian, my birth mother VERY Roman Catholic. But they also have a huge sense of humor, so I guess I’m used to people who just roll with the punches better. After all, you only live once so don’t take life too seriously. In regards to people judging logic, that’s idiotic to me. You posting on the internet gives me no clear sense to who you are as an individual and frankly me judging you on an internet based experience is immature and idiotic. Everyone has logic and to say otherwise would prove that you have none to begin with. While I don’t share your views, or agree with them, I do respect them. After all, to each their own right? Hell, I even have a Jewish branch of my family, and even a few Pagans but family dinners and such are still amazingly fun and we all make fun of each other. I guess I’m just disappointed that people can’t just leave their religions at home with others and just get to know them as a person, not a symbol or a stereotype. After all, being a Pagan doesn’t mean I burn churches. It just means I don’t follow your holy book. Even though I have three Bibles, and a Qur’an right next to me as I type. I love to study things, and get a perspective from a neutral set of eyes on what it says. But, that is neither here nor there. thank you for taking the time to discuss things with me about that passage as it was actually turning into a family argument between my mother and cousins. Go figure, the Pagan is the one who really doesn’t care about the friggin tree! I hope you have a great day, and that your God blesses you with happiness.
I want to riot call a RIOT! ARREST the “cartoonist” if that is what they call themselves! I am so deeply offended. Wah, wah, wah.
I’m an active, devoted, educated Christian. Yes, folks, there ARE progressive, left-wing, devoted Christians. The only issue I have with this is the whole “God is an old bearded white man” image! And there is zero understanding of Holy Spirit or of the Trinity here. I guess it’s kinda funny for someone who has no real understanding of theology. But those who are offended by supposed blasphemy really need to lighten up. Do you honestly think that our Almighty is so small to be offended by this sort of pre-adolescent humor? Puh-lease!
Am I the only one who sees George Carlin in this depiction of God? Because that’s funny.
but there is no god…
Blasphemous? I don’t think you understand the meaning of that word… there is no “evil speaking” in this cartoon. It could be considered heretical, but even so it is not meant to be taken seriously, so there would be no obvious intent. Many Christians reject the very idea that humour can be commingled with scripture, however, and I respect them for their views. However, I respectfully disagree, and I believe that there is a long history of comedy intertwined with the holy.
I find the cartoon silly, after all Jesus did make the last of the wine at the wedding, which was typically the lesser quality by the end of the festivities. Also, Joseph was arguably suspicious of the conception until an angel appeared in his dreams. (Mat 1:18-19)
All that aside, I can’t think of a single charge of heresy due to comedy in history. The Jesuits certainly didn’t burn any comedians at the stake. I have never heard of anyone being excommunicated for making light of the scriptures. If such things were prohibitive, wouldn’t Dante Alighieri have been burned at the stake? Certainly the writers of biblical morality plays during the 15th century would have suffered painful deaths for inserting scatological jokes between acts? How about Medieval Latin comedy in northern France? Should I even mention Chaucer?
And there’s quite a bit of humor in the Bible… a few of my favorites:
“He who sits in heaven will laugh, the Lord will mock them.”
“”Was there a lack of graves in Egypt, that you took us away to die in the wilderness?”"
“Is it to your master and to you that my master has sent me to speak these words? Is it not to the people sitting on the wall, who will eat their dung and drink their urine with you.”
God told them: “Go and cry to the gods which you have chosen; let them rescue you in the time of your torment.”
“Call with a loud voice, for he is a god. Perhaps he is talking, or he is pursuing enemies, or he is relieving himself, or perhaps he is sleeping and will awaken.”