A couple of weeks ago I asked if snark had any place in the Christian faith. Since then one of my favorite bloggers Matthew Paul Turner has stirred up quite a bit of controversy with his brand of humor.
Last week Turner wrote a hilarious parody of Joel Osteen’s latest book It’s Your Time. While most of the comments agreed that Osteen was full of baloney, some wondered if Turner was being judgmental. I personally saw nothing wrong with the post, but then again I have a pretty cynical sense of humor.
However, Turner might have gone a little too far this past Sunday when he mocked John Piper. It all started Saturday when Piper wrote on his Twitter, “Is anyone really addicted to porn? Put a blow torch in their face; they will turn off the computer. IF they believe its real.” In response, Turner wrote a response asking him to explain himself. Excerpt:
Now, if that Tweet had come from somebody like Glen Beck or Bill O’Reilly, most people would probably giggle and wait for the truth to get released on TMZ.com. But it’s you, John–the Optimus Prime of the Christformers–TMZ.com doesn’t care about you. Only America’s ELECT care about you, and they are waiting for an answer. Well, some of them are waiting for an answer, the ones who have been predestined before the foundations of the earth to be waiting for an answer. They can’t help that they’re waiting for your answer, John. It’s not their choice.
Comments were mixed. Some thought it was dead-on, while others considered it “mean-spirited” and “flippant.” Turner responded to the criticism by saying, “Perhaps you’re correct. There’s certainly a fine line between harsh/whiny and truth. But the difference is this: Piper’s often harsh/whiny statements are about God or mass amounts of people. My post is just about Piper.”
Which brings us back to my original question: when are snarky comments okay? Is it alright to point out a fellow believer’s baloney in a satirical manner? When does it become holier-than-thou judgment?
I ask this in light of the recent Carrie Prejean news. First, it was revealed that she made a sex tape when she was 17 for her then-boyfriend. Then last night on Larry King she accused him of asking “inappropriate” questions, and then took off her microphone. Prejean is great for giving a satirical guy like me plenty of material. However, with the controversy surrounding Turner’s latest blog entries, I’m afraid I might go too far. That I might cross the line, and fall into holier-than-thou judgment.
What do you think?
