WReligious satire is a form of satire that refers to religious beliefs and can take the form of texts, plays, films, and parody. From the earliest times, at least since the plays of Aristophanes, religion has been one of the three primary topics of literary satire, along with politics and sex. Satire which targets the clergy is a type of political satire, while religious satire is that which targets religious beliefs. Religious satire is also sometimes called philosophical satire, and is thought to be the result of agnosticism or atheism. Notable works of religious satire surfaced during the Renaissance, with works by Geoffrey Chaucer, Erasmus and Albrecht Dürer.
WThe All-Joking, All-Drunken Synod of Fools and Jesters (1692–1725) was a club founded by Peter I of Russia. The group included many of Peter's closest friends, and its activities centered mostly around drinking and reveling. The group was not without controversies; some of its parodies against the Church in particular were heavily criticized.
WApologetiX is a Christian parody band from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The band was founded in 1992, and since then, has played in almost all 50 states, released 40 studio albums, and built up a fan club that includes over 65,000 people. The band is currently composed of J. Jackson on vocals, Keith Haynie on bass guitar, Jimmy "Vegas" Tanner on drums, Bill Hubauer and Chris VonBartheld on keyboard, and Tom Milnes and Tom Tincha, both on lead guitar.
W"The Archbishop" is the third episode of the first series of the BBC sitcom Blackadder. It is set in England in the late 15th century, and follows the exploits of the fictitious Prince Edmund as he is invested as Archbishop of Canterbury amid a Machiavellian plot by the King to acquire lands from the Catholic Church. Most of the humour in the episode relies on religious satire.
WBattle Pope is an independent comic book created by Robert Kirkman and Tony Moore, which was published by their own small press company under the moniker of Funk-O-Tron originally in 2000. The series was reprinted in color by Image Comics in 2005, with plans to possibly continue it with new stories after collecting the original material.
WEnid Strict, better known as The Church Lady, is a recurring character from a series of sketches on the American television show, Saturday Night Live, that appeared from 1986 to 1990, and again in 1996, 2000, 2011, and 2016. She also appeared on The Dana Carvey Show in March 1996, reading a Top Ten List, "New Titles for Princess Diana."
WThe Church of Euthanasia is a religious organization, founded by Chris Korda and Robert Kimberk in Boston, Massachusetts in 1992.
WThe Church of the SubGenius is a parody religion that satirizes better-known belief systems. It teaches a complex philosophy that focuses on J. R. "Bob" Dobbs, purportedly a salesman from the 1950s, who is revered as a prophet by the Church. SubGenius leaders have developed detailed narratives about Dobbs and his relationship to various gods and conspiracies. Their central deity, Jehovah 1, is accompanied by other gods drawn from ancient myth and popular fiction. SubGenius literature describes a grand conspiracy that seeks to brainwash the world and oppress Dobbs's followers. In its narratives, the Church presents a blend of cultural references in an elaborate remix of the sources.
WDinkan is a fictional anthropomorphic superhero mouse who appears in an eponymous Malayalam comic story series in children's magazine Balamangalam. Some modern day rationalists of Kerala use Dinkan to mock organized religion and religious intolerance.
WDinkoism, the Dinkoist religion, or Dinkamatham is an Indian parody religion and a social movement that emerged and evolved on social networks organized by independent welfare groups in the Indian state of Kerala. Adherents describe Dinkoism as a genuine religion.
WDrinkers Masses, to include Gamblers Masses, was a genre of medieval Latin poetry which parodied the Roman Catholic Latin Mass in order to make fun of drinking and gambling monks and clerics. These masses were written between about 1100 to 1700 by clerici vagantes, with the first example being the gamblers mass, found in the Carmina Burana. The genre is somewhat related to other medieval ecclesiastic parody, such as the Feast of Fools and the Feast of the Ass.
WDudeism is a religion, philosophy, or lifestyle inspired by "The Dude", the protagonist of the Coen Brothers' 1998 film The Big Lebowski. Dudeism's stated primary objective is to promote a modern form of Chinese Taoism, outlined in Tao Te Ching by Laozi, blended with concepts from the Ancient Greek philosopher Epicurus, and presented in a style as personified by the character of Jeffrey "The Dude" Lebowski, a fictional character portrayed by Jeff Bridges in the film. Dudeism has sometimes been regarded as a mock religion due to its use of comedic film references and occasional criticism of religion in its traditional sense but its founder and many adherents take the underlying philosophy seriously. March 6 is the annual sacred high holy day of Dudeism: The Day of the Dude.
WElder Pastitsios is a satirical figure of a fictitious monk who first appeared in a Facebook page. The satire is mostly based on the famous Greek Orthodox monk Elder Paisios, with his name and face substituted by pastitsio—a local pasta and béchamel sauce dish, thus combining Greek Orthodox and Pastafarian imagery. The page ran for about a year until it was closed down after the arrest of its creator for blasphemy on September 21, 2012. The case, which started as a Facebook flame, reached the Greek Parliament twice and created a strong local as well as international political impact.
WEverybody Draw Mohammed Day was a 2010 event in support of artists threatened with violence for drawing representations of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. It stemmed from a protest against censorship of the American television show South Park episode "201", led by the show's distributor Comedy Central, in response to death threats that had been made against some of those responsible for two segments broadcast in April 2010. A drawing representing Mohammed was posted on the Internet on April 20, 2010, with a message suggesting that "everybody" create a drawing depicting Mohammad on May 20 in support of free speech.
WThe Fake Show is a talk show and news satire program covers the biggest news stories in Iraq and the Arab World. In politics, pop culture and more. Hosted by Sami Quinn, an alien in human form. The show first premiered on October 25, 2019 on YouTube, inspired by American television programs like The Daily Show, Last Week Tonight, and The Opposition with Jordan Klepper. The fake show is the first satire show in Arabic language that breaks every taboo and makes fun-uniquely, even of the clerical establishment and its icons in a straightforward fashion. Comedy, It's no laughing matter. Especially when it attempts to drive humor from the political process in Iraq or the Arab world, that's why The Fake Show plays with self-referential humor, black comedy, and dark sarcasm, by shaping serious-delicate issues like ISIS, racism, Iran-backed militias, assassinations, women's rights, and human rights violation in a form of humor that makes you catch the differences between political satire, comedy itself, and the regular daily news. The main message focuses on major goals such as fighting for free speech and exposing the political corruption in the Arab world and the political parties in Iraq after the 2003 invasion, by making half-half funny-serious segments of people trying to hide their actions behind a fake cloud of holiness, either under a religious excuse, family historical-sacred titles, or their own political and military history.
WThe Flying Spaghetti Monster (FSM) is the deity of the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster, or Pastafarianism, a social movement that promotes a light-hearted view of religion and originated in opposition to the teaching of intelligent design in public schools. According to adherents, Pastafarianism is a "real, legitimate religion, as much as any other". It has received some limited recognition as such.
WGod Nose is a 42-page American comic book produced in 1964 by Jack "Jaxon" Jackson and is considered one of the first underground comix. God Nose centers on philosophical discussions between God and the "fools he rules."
WHudibras is an English mock-heroic narrative poem from the 17th century written by Samuel Butler. Published in the aftermath of the English Civil War, it is a scathing satire of Puritanism and the Parliamentarian cause from a Royalist perspective.
WThe Ichthys symbol is a sign typically used to proclaim an affiliation with or affinity for Christianity. The fish was originally adopted by early Christians as a secret symbol, but the many variations known today first appeared in the 1980s. Some of these are made by Christians in order to promote a specific doctrine or theological perspective, such as evolutionary creation. Other variations are intended for the purpose of satire by non-Christian groups.
WThe Iglesia Maradoniana is a religion, created by fans of the late Argentine football player Diego Maradona, whom they believe to be the best player of all time.
WThe Invisible Pink Unicorn (IPU) is the goddess of a parody religion used to satirize theistic beliefs, taking the form of a unicorn that is paradoxically both invisible and pink. She is a rhetorical illustration used by atheists and other religious skeptics as a contemporary version of Russell's teapot, sometimes mentioned in conjunction with the Flying Spaghetti Monster.
WThe Jedi census phenomenon is a grassroots movement that was initiated in 2001 primarily among residents of a number of English-speaking countries, urging them to record their religion as "Jedi" or "Jedi Knight" on the national census.
WThe Jyllands-Posten Muhammad cartoons controversy began after the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten published 12 editorial cartoons on 30 September 2005, most of which depicted Muhammad, a principal figure of the religion of Islam. The newspaper announced that this was an attempt to contribute to the debate about criticism of Islam and self-censorship. Muslim groups in Denmark complained, and the issue eventually led to protests around the world, including violent demonstrations and riots in some Muslim countries.
WThe LOLCat Bible Translation Project was a wiki-based website set up in July 2007 by Martin Grondin, where editors aim to parody the entire Bible in "LOLspeak", the slang popularized by the LOLcat Internet phenomenon. The project relies on contributors to adapt passages. As of March 27, 2008, approximately 61% of the text had been adapted, and Grondin stated that he hoped the entire New Testament would be complete by the end of 2008.
WMatrixism or The Path of the One is a purported religion inspired by the motion picture trilogy The Matrix. Conceived by an anonymous group in the summer of 2004, it claimed to have attracted 300 members by May 2005, and the religion's Geocities website claimed "over sixteen hundred members". There was some debate about whether followers of Matrixism are indeed serious about their practice; however, the religion received some attention in the media.
WThe Original Kleptonian Neo-American Church (OKNeoAC), mostly shorted Neo-American Church, is a religious organization based on the use of psychedelic drugs as a sacrament.The psychedelic churches exist to promote and defend the psychedelic religion, a religion which sees in the transcendental experience produced by the sacred substances the key to understanding life and improving the condition of man on earth.
WJames Parry, commonly known by his nickname and username Kibo, is a Usenetter known for his sense of humor, various surrealist net pranks, an absurdly long signature, and a machine-assisted knack for "kibozing": joining any thread in which "kibo" was mentioned. His exploits have earned him a multitude of enthusiasts, who celebrate him as the head deity of the parody religion "Kibology", centered on the humor newsgroup alt.religion.kibology.
WReverend Billy and the Church of Stop Shopping is a radical performance community based in New York City. The Stop Shopping Choir is accompanied by a comic preacher, Reverend Billy, portrayed by performer William (Billy) Talen. The philosophy of the Church of Stop Shopping surrounds the imminent "Shopocalypse", which assumes the end of humanity will come about through manic consumerism.
WRussell's teapot is an analogy, formulated by the philosopher Bertrand Russell (1872–1970), to illustrate that the philosophic burden of proof lies upon a person making empirically unfalsifiable claims, rather than shifting the burden of disproof to others.
WThe Trans-Universal Zombie Church of the Blissful Ringing is a contemporary religion in Slovenia, founded in March 2013 and registered in the national registry of religious communities in 2014. As of late 2014, the church had over 10,000 members, making it the fifth largest religion in Slovenia.
WThe United Church of Bacon is an atheist /skeptic philosophical parody church whose main goals are social progress and raising money for other charities, founded in 2010, by John Whiteside and friends. The church offers all kinds of traditional religious services, including weddings, baptisms, and funerals. Its founder chose a strange name for the church, and its belief in bacon, as a social critique that all churches have strange beliefs, seen from the outside. The church opposes special privileges to religions because religious people are somehow superior to for having strange beliefs. The church promotes separation of church and state, science education and critical thinking, and an end to discrimination against atheists. The official symbol of the organization is two pieces of bacon praying with the sun in the background.
WVext is a fictional character created by Keith Giffen and the star of a short-lived 1999 comic book series published by DC Comics. The series was written by Keith Giffen, pencilled by Mike McKone, inked by Mark McKenna, lettered by Bob Lappan, and colored by Lovern Kindzierski with separations by Digital Chameleon for all six issues. The series was the last one edited by Kevin Dooley before he left comic books and was assisted by Harvey Richards.