Ship of Fools, an online magazine which describes itself as the "Private Eye of the Christian world", is looking for the funniest, and most offensive, Christian jokes.Note the limitation of the search: Christians are searching for offensive jokes about Christianity. Making someone else's religion into a joke is another matter. Not that I think it should be against the law.
In the face of legislation [in Britain] it fears will limit what people can joke about in a religious context - a claim strongly rejected by ministers - it wants to provoke a debate about what is humorous and what is offensive.
"It's vital we have such criticism at the heart of our way of life and religion," says co-editor Stephen Goddard, who thinks an interactive debate is healthy for Christianity.
"But no-one knows quite where humour goes into offence, because one man's joke is another man's offensive comment. We're trying to find the theology of humour - how to understand humour from a Christian perspective, and we're giving people the chance to judge their own views by other people's."
But why is religion so often a source of comedy? Mr Goddard says it because there's a black humour to the Bible stories.
"The prophets did crazy things to draw the attention of people to repentance and a return to godly ways, like dragging dogs through the streets or sitting on a pillar for 40 years. Religion tends to draw certain extreme people, which can be very good material for humour."
(Please don't be offensive in the comments!)
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Today in Christian history, June 6:
Jan Hus, the Bohemian heretic or reformer (depending on your point of view), was burned on this day in 1415. He had been promised safe conduct by the Council of Constance if he came and told them a bit about his interesting new theology. Having no obligation to keep their word to heretics they then killed him.
okay, not exactly ha ha funny, but it is sort of inoffensively ironic funny, right?
Cobra Verde: Among other things, it seems to me that it's similar to the way it feels completely different to make fun of yourself and to have somebody else make fun of you. Self-deprecating humor has a sweetness to it. Running someone else down seems mean.
Why don't Southern Baptists have sex standing up?
Because people might think they are dancing.
Anyone north of Kansas might be scratching, but in the Bible belt -- it's friggin' high-larious. (Says the SBC'er)
More silly than offensive.
OK, I just know that someone on this thread has a Baylor Bear or two in the family besides me.
Just a comment about 'Ship of Fools.' It is hysterically funny. Another place to go to see Christians satirizing the Church and all the crazy things Christians do in the Name of Christ, is 'Wittenburg Door.' (That's right, the magazine misspells 'Wittenberg.')
There was this guy who just happened to be a fundamentalist Christian. He was born with a frog attached to the top of his head and it grew to be a massive frog. One day this fellow was walking around and noticed a Synagouge and wandered in, right in the middle of their prayers. The Rabbi stopped and approached the fellow and couldn't help but notice the massive frog sitting on top of his head. The Rabbi asked, " what can I do for you, Mister?" and the frog replied, " you can start by removing this wart from my ass".
A woman dies and goes to heaven, and St. Peter takes her on a tour of heaven. They pass a pit where there were people gnashing their teeth and wailing, and the woman says, "Who's down there?"
St. Peter says, "Those are the Catholics who ate meat on Fridays."
They walked a little farther and there was another pit with more groaning and wailing, and she says, "O.K., who's down there?"
St. Peter answers, "Those are the Baptists who went to dances."
And a little farther along, there was another pit and people down there gnashing their teeth and crying and ripping their garments, and she says, "And those people?"
And St. Peter says, "Those are the Episcopalians who ate their salads with their dessert forks."
Q. How many televangelists does it take to change a lightbulb?
A. Just one; but for the message of change to continue, keep your gifts coming.
Q. How many Pentecostals does it take to change a lightbulb?
A. Five. One to change the bulb and four to bind the spirit of darkness.
Q. How many Presbyterians does it take to change a lightbulb?
A. They don't change bulbs. They were predestined to burn out.
Yes to Ship of Fools and The Door - both are good.
And it's not a source of jokes, but another good Christian satire site is LarkNews.com.
How many Lutherans does it take to change a lightbulb? Two. One to change it, and one to say he liked the old lightbulb better.
Episcopalians: when two or three are gathered, there shall be a fifth.
Mary's not sure what to name her baby. Walking into the manger, one of the wise men bumps his head on a timber. "Jesus Christ!" he exclaims. "Hey, great name," says Mary.
How many Muslims does it take to change a light bulb?
One.
What?!? you think I'm stupid?
This fat one needs no fatwa.
A Priest, a Minister and a Rabbi are at the funeral of a man that helped everyone in town. Whenever someone offered him money for his efforts he always refused saying "you can't take it with you." The Priest decides he is going to give the old guy something to take with him and puts a $100 bill in the coffin. The minister not wanting to be upstaged did the same. The Rabbi watched this and decided he also wanted to get in on the act. So he wrote a check for $300 and took $200 change.
As the son of a pastor and raised a missionary kid, I'm cracking-up at the jokes, especially the Baptist ones - you should hear a bunch of old missionaries crack jokes.
Some of these are oldies-but-goodies, I've always enjoyed interdenominational religious humor and as a "bad Christian," one year I sent out a Christmas card (not to everybody) which featured Jesus standing at an open door, and Mary shouting, "Jesus Christ, shut the door! What, were you born in a barn?" :-)
Noumenon: We should start a new search: for the nerdiest relgious jokes.
I guess you have to be white trash to appriciate it. Having spent much of my formative years in a trailer-park, I snort milk out of my nose watching him.
What combination of 50 U.S. coins makes a dollar?
40 pennies, 8 nickels, and 2 dimes.
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