Humor and satire can oftentimes illustrate important truths by pointing them out ad absurdum. And perhaps nothing is more absurd than a meme. But through the medium of ridiculousness, a salient point can often be made. For Christians, that point is sometimes a little too true and it would hurt too much if we didn’t package it up in a little humor with Christian memes. 

Here are nine Christian memes that are funny/not funny because they’re true.

1. Hangry Worshipers

Of all Christian memes, this one is among the most evergreen. As someone who worked in the food service industry for a short time in high school and college, I can confirm. The after-church lunch crowd can be brutal. 

This meme was originally posted here.

2. Making America Great Again to Build Back Better

As a movement, American evangelicalism has always had an issue with mixing politics and theology. And whenever that’s the case politics typically end up taking the driver’s seat. 

Never has that been more apparent than in the past five or so years, where we have seen Christian leaders adopt public stances that are completely incongruent with biblical Christianity but entirely aligned with their own political tribe. 

This meme was originally posted here. 

3. Too Soon on Multiple Fronts

Will Smith has been making headlines for a violent outburst at the 2022 Academy Awards, wherein he stormed the stage and literally slapped Chris Rock in the face for making fun of his wife. 

But all too familiar within the American church are stories of abuse that were covered up, whether through intimidation, non-disclosure agreements, or hush money. Most recently, former Hillsong Church pastor Brian Houston is currently facing charges for playing a part in covering up the child sex abuses of his late father. But he is far from the only one. 

It should be noted that the Academy almost immediately launched an inquiry into the Will Smith/Chris Rock situation, something that many Christian institutions often forestall or obstruct for as long as humanly possible, particularly when a beloved leader is involved. 

This meme was originally posted here.

4. The Babylon Bee Isn’t as Funny as It Thinks It Is

Twitter recently became a better place after The Babylon Bee’s Twitter account, as well as the accounts of its editor-in-chief and its founder were all suspended for a string of hateful tweets directed at the trans community. 

While Christians should continue to hold to a traditionally understood definition of gender, thankfully, more and more of them are careful not to express those views with the crassness that has become characteristic of The Babylon Bee. 

The Bee does have its faithful fans, though.

This meme was originally posted here.

5. God’s Not Dead, but the Movie Franchise Should Be

In my opinion, the “God’s Not Dead” franchise of movies is a total bummer. Poorly written with acting performances that are even worse, the series of films plays up fears of persecution in America to a point of absolute insanity. 

Even if the movies were an attempt at satire (which they aren’t), it would still be a bit much. 

This meme was originally posted here.

6. “Diversity”

There are very few American church leaders who, if asked, wouldn’t say that they value diversity in their churches. Many would add that people of all backgrounds are made to feel comfortable in their spiritual community and at their weekend services. 

And yet, the staff pages on most of their websites still tend to look like this. 

This meme was originally posted here.

7. Better a Toxic Male Pastor Than a Female Pastor of Any Kind 

Unfortunately, American Christians are too often quick to employ a hermeneutic of trust when it comes to male church leaders, even to the point of allowing toxic cultures to develop and abuses to go unchallenged. 

At the same time, they employ a hermeneutic of suspicion with even the most qualified women leaders, quickly questioning their credentials, intentions, and interpreting much of what they say in the most cynical way. 

This meme was originally posted here. 

8. Heroes and Villains and Hipster Attire

Cool church pastors and worship leaders are some of the best dressed people I know. But beneath the veneer of relevance, toxic church cultures can still rear their ugly heads. 

Unfortunately, such has been the case with many within the leadership at Hillsong Church. (You can read more about that here.) With a change of leadership, my prayer is that structures will be changed to address the systemic issues that have recently been uncovered. 

This meme was originally posted here. 

9. And Finally, My Personal Conviction

Some of you may absolutely love Crocs. I understand that this is a free country and you’re entitled to make your own fashion choices. But I just have to tell you, I don’t think Crocs are of God. May they be cast into the Lake of Fire along with JNCO jeans, Tommy Bahama tropical shirts, and male rompers. 

But in all seriousness, we really need to stop acting like every new technology has a high likelihood of being the Mark of the Beast.

This meme was originally posted here. 

While Christian memes don’t constitute a serious medium of public discourse, they can help us to see the absurdity of certain things that we allow to persist in our churches and in our lives. And if we can see absurdity to the point of it being laughable, we should be urgent in seeking to rectify it.

In this small sense, Christian memes can play an important role in our discipleship. 🙂