making fun of religion

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Overcomer
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making fun of religion

Post #1

Post by Overcomer »

A provocative article on comedians who are atheists and their use of religion as comic fodder appeared in the National Post recently. Its author wrote:
But there is another gang of hyper-confident male atheists for whom knee-slapping humour is front and centre in their atheist proselytizing, far more than science or intellectual debate. . . .

As it often does on the schoolyard, their cruel mockery conceals an insecurity, and it offers a pop cultural case study on the ancient human tendency to demonize and vilify people who think differently.
The author quotes an academic named Chris Miller:
In his paper on these comedians, Chris Miller, a PhD student in religious studies at the University of Waterloo, uses the term “boundary maintenance� to describe a sort of social therapy by which human communities reassure themselves about their own beliefs by “describing another group’s world in the language of one’s own.� Thus are religious people painted not as the normal adherents of ancient traditions, but as “laughable and confused at best� and “manipulative or harmful at worst,� Miller said.
Another quotation from Miller reads:
“These and other comedians defend their particular worldview by negating or critiquing the worldview of others,� Miller said. “When atheists make fun of religious people, they are therefore pointing out what they believe ‘should’ be seen as normal.�
The author also quotes David Feltmate, a sociologist of religion at Auburn University, Alabama, who says:
. . . this type of humour relies on . . . “ignorant familiarity,� the idea that people think they are familiar with matters about which they are woefully ignorant. Other people’s religion is a classic example of this.

As Feltmate put it: “When enough people share an ignorant familiarity, they can go ahead and act collectively on their ignorance, without being checked, or having to suffer serious consequences for their prejudice.�
As I said, the statements are provocative. Is there any validity to them?

The complete article is here:

http://nationalpost.com/news/the-new-ga ... t-religion

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bluethread
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Post #11

Post by bluethread »

Tcg wrote: [Replying to post 9 by bluethread]

There are a number of comedians that do a great job revealing the absurdity of religion.

The greatest humor however comes from the apologists who attempt to support religion. The level of humor produced by those who are blind to the absurdities they support far exceeds that of those who see it and point it out clearly.
Humor is a subjective thing and I also often find that the most humorous things are said in all seriousness by those with which I disagree. Theistic debaters do not have a corner on the market of absurd ideas.

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