Religion - Beyond a Joke

I happened upon this story on the BBC Web site today. First, let me make it clear that I've never been a big fan of South Park for the simple reason that I find it distinctly unfunny. I know what I like when it comes to comedy - Stewart Lee, Richard Herring, Chris Morris, Kevin Eldon, the Office, the Simpsons, Flight of the Conchords, the Fast Show, Rik Mayall and Ade Edmondson all spring instantly to mind. South Park can't hold a candle to any of those.

That said, I do know that the raison d'etre of the program is to mercilessly rip the piss out of anything and everything no matter how taboo the subject matter. This I do understand - either everything is fair game to be lampooned, or nothing is. Case in point was Morris's outstanding Brass Eye special about paedophilia, or more specifically the UK media's peculiar fixation with child sex offenders and (subliminal, this) the brainwashed British public's allowance to be swept along on the tide of media hysteria. It was superb - and it upset a lot of people.

Anyway, the point is that if a subject as sensitive as paedophilia can be the subject of humour then anything can, surely? There are sick jokes about everything under the Sun, and some of them are brilliant:-

Michael Jackson and Farrah Fawcett die in the same week - what's the difference between them: "One fucked Majors, the other fucked minors."

What do you call the world's smallest pub? The Thalidomide Arms.

The Pope wants to scrap Christmas - or at least he said he wants to put an end to men in robes going into kids' bedrooms at night and emptying their sacks.

This is just a sampling, and I appreciate those are not going to be to everyone's taste but I find them amusing. I don't like racist jokes, but I realise they appeal to a certain mindset.

Now, if you can make quips about child rape, the deceased who aren't even cold yet or the deformed without Thalidomide victims being up in arms (sorry!) then why must religion be given special deference? I am specifically referring to Islam, as the most high-profile instances of religious groups taking offence has involved that religion (The Satanic Verses, The Danish cartoons and now South Park), but certainly the other Abrahamic faiths have their moments too.

You can mock the afflicted, the dead, politicans, nations, races - but religion is off limits. Why? Organised religion deserves to be the subject of satire more than all of those other groups combined. It never ceases to amaze me how religion causes people to lose all sense of perspective as it even trumps basic human decency. The violent reaction to the Danish cartoons caused many innocent deaths, an immeasurably greater crime than the one it purported to avenge.

So, yes, let's torment the unfortunate - they can take a joke can't they? But not the almighty, just because he's omnipotent doesn't mean he hasn't got major self-esteem issues. If God, any God, actually existed then perhaps we wouldn't have to treat him/them with kid gloves.

The real reason why religion is considered literally beyond a joke is that people are scared and usually not without good reason. Islam comes with an edge, a sharp one at that. Christianity is scarcely better. They know the evidence for the basis of their faith is spectacularly weak, so they resort to bullying and intimidation. Religion has thrived on this culture of fear for centuries.

Next week, I'll be dressing up as Jesus for Hallowe'en. I do not expect it to go down well, but nor do I care. He's just another fictional character.