ANTI-RELIGIOUS PROPAGANDA | NOVEMBER 19, 2020

Family Guy’s Unfunny Religious Bigotry

This country, while having no official religion, was heavily influenced in its formation by its Judeo-Christian heritage. As but one example, America was founded by individuals who believed that the rights we celebrate in the Constitution were not granted by men; they were granted by God.

That one idea is perhaps the essential difference between a people who believe that they were born free vs. a group whose members believe they are dependent on the government to grant that freedom.

Family Guy — Image by Source, Fair Use, Wikipedia

Those individuals, guided by such principles, fashioned and established our country the best way they knew how. Even today these principles guide us to better versions of ourselves and make us a better nation.

Though these truths are immutable, some are vexed by them. They seem to be on a mission to invalidate those principles, which include religious freedom, and those who put them into practice. It appears they want to supplant those beliefs with something else.

For these types, religious people have become an “acceptable” group to demean and disparage. There seems to be some sort of pseudo-“sophisticated” glee in mocking their beliefs. The inside, unsaid joke is “aren’t those guys really stupid”?

This brings us to a Nov 8 episode of Family Guy. Much was made of mocking one of the most sacred rituals of Christianity, while simultaneously presenting a clichéd, shopworn and, bluntly, anti-Semitic version of a rabbi. To say this wasn’t close to funny would be an understatement.

America was founded by individuals who believed that the rights we celebrate in the Constitution were not granted by men; they were granted by God.

Even though I’m not a Catholic or a Jew, I was offended by this faux “humor,” which in fact belittled sacred traditions. What is the message? That religious people are deluded and deserve to be mocked? To push such an idea out to millions is despicable to say the least.

Rather than mock Christians and Jews like Family Guy, say “thank you” to them. Their influence is a big part of the reason that America grew from its infancy to be a model for religious tolerance and freedom for nations around the world.

People don’t deserve to be mocked for their religion. They should be respected.

After all, the Judeo-Christian notion of freedom being granted by God versus government is what underlies the First Amendment. Rights included therein are what allow Family Guy to be broadcast in the first place.

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AUTHOR

Roger Harrison

Roger operates professionally as a jazz piano player, singer, voice-over artist and bandleader. He is passionate about the importance of religious freedom and the dangers of religious bigotry.

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