In The Far Future Year of 6000
Continuing from yesterday, what’s needed in the current argument over religion and cartoons is a positive example. It should be possible for one who is observant in a faith to make fun of that faith, its adherants, and its traditions. To poke humor at one’s self and fellow faithful (especially one’s ex). To be able to admit that faith is a slippery thing and that you can try hard and still come up short of doctrinal perfection. To explain, if necessary, what makes such things funny. Heck, to play with stereotypes, too.
Welcome to ShaBot 6000. It’s a two-character play, essentially, featuring:
… a pious Jew who purchases a robot to work as Shabbos Goy for his household. The inquisitive robot, ShaBot, decides that he is Jewish, and is therefore unable to fulfill his duties as servant. ShaBot spends his days asking questions about Judaism, trying to find logic in a religion that sometimes DOES NOT COMPUTE.
That’s courtesy of creator Ben Baruch, who no doubt would like all the ladies on JDate to know that he’s very attractive.
Surely he’s not the only person who can do this. There have to be others devout in their beliefs, that can show the world that they’re willing to laugh at themselves. On the off chance that you (yes, you personally) were considering rioting to get me to not disrespect your religion? It’s a hell of a lot simpler for all concerned if you put that energy into jokes. I’m never going to understand the full details and implications of any religion, Orthodox Jewish or otherwise (but there’s a nice story about growing up Orthodox here — scroll down to the 3rd story); it will always be alien to me. But if you can laugh at yourself, we can meet halfway. So start looking through the Hadith, Bhagavad-gita, Lotus Sutra, Tao Te Ching, Confessions of Saint Augustine, Book of Mormon, or Book of the SubGenius for material, pick up a pen, and do some toons.
Then we can all get together and make fun of Scientologists.
Not $ci3|\|70l0gy! They’ll shut down your site!
By Christopher B. Wright on 02.10.06 8:49 pm
Well, there’s always Apocamon, to get the ball rolling.
By nic on 02.10.06 10:48 pm
Goddammit.
By Nic on 02.10.06 10:55 pm
It may be in Danish, but Egoland has made fun of God (and Danes) for more than twenty years. (He was put in an institution within a fortnight.)
By Sili on 02.11.06 5:35 pm
[…] … so it’s not a surprise that the site is generally oriented to those who are (shall we say) unconvinced by theistic philosophies. Just as unsurprising, the webcomic features Jesus as a main character. Much like Shabot 6000, the focus at Russell’s Teapot is on what Binkley would have called the sneaky inconsistencies (and outright idiocies) inherent in religion(s). Okay, a lot of it probably counts as the same sort of impertinent questions that got me smacked back in Sunday school, but even the faithful (with a sense of humor) ought to enjoy the issues raised. […]
By Fleen: Written by bitter, haggard wordbeasts » Holy … Um, Maybe Not on 01.02.07 4:20 pm
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