I think this cartoon gets at a very essential truth about beleivers and the need to feel special and unique – which is probably why they resist the idea of multi-culturalism/diversity – the idea that we’re all unique and special in our groups and as individuals reverts us back to no group or person being automatically special
Yeah, this would seem to be a restatement of the problem of tribalism, the elevation of one’s own group above others. Actually, I’m amazed that Mo has the self-awareness to even realize he’s doing it… but it’s probably just a momentary epiphany.
When I identified myself as a Christian, I thought of myself as very tolerant and open-minded; not a biblical literalist or fundamentalist. But looking back now I can see how I excluded non-believers, in my thoughts if not my actions. It’s a basic human problem, and religion seems to make it worse.
@Wright: Its not a bug, its a feature!
I guess you might have identified one of the primary purposes of a religion:
In- group favouritism and identity and out-group antipathy.
Reading this strip it occurred to me that if believers actually engaged in this kind of very honest dialogue-with-self they might well talk themselves out of their ridiculous beliefs.
There is no cure, it seems to be part of the human condition to believe the unbelievable and use it as a form of social control. However, somehow social control has to happen if we are to keep the various things that make up our so called civilized society. We would never have had the internet if there were no rules and I can’t quite see how humans would ever have come up with the rules if there had been no big stick to frighten them with. [BTW my cat looks like this Steinlen picture (my avatar) and she is definitely god. ;)]
YourCatIsGod, For much of my life, the only time I saw that phrase written out, it was the wrong spelling, so don’t feel abashed. It wasn’t so long ago that I figured out the correct version. I now remember it because the original word was abated, before it got shortened to ‘bated and then bated.
Nina took 21 minutes to fulfil your wish. You have excellent breath control. Always good when you have a fish on your tongue.
…I can’t quite see how humans would ever have come up with the rules if there had been no big stick to frighten them with.
Maggs, I may be misunderstanding you, but you seem to be suggesting that societal prohibitions against robbing, raping, murdering etc originate in belief in god. Is that what you mean? If so, how do countries with no tradition of believing in god(s) manage? Do you imagine that in god-free societies there are/were no rules against these type of things?
Heh. Jesus’ default position is that self aggrandisement is a good thing. No surprise coming from a human character who claims to be the omnipotent, omniscient Creator of the Universe.
Actually, now that I think of it, does the claim that Jesus is part of the triune God ever get made by his character in the Bible?
@JohnnieCanuck – he certainly did (at least, John’s version of him). “I and the Father are one” etc etc. The Wiki “Trinity” article has a lot to say on this topic.
Mind you if you are going to make grandiose claims you might as make the most of it. Mo seems positively modest by comparison 🙂
I just referred a whole bunch of folks to this website. I was reading a blog about the new Hubble pics and their comments section blew up with religion this, God that, Science this etc. I don’t know if we can collectively drag these people into the “KNOW”. As a matter of fact I think that is what the Author has created in us. (Bowing, Genuflecting, Praising, respectively…)
@spoing.
If I’m not mistaken, muslims seem to believe that Mo is not a god himself, just a devinely speaking, infallible messenger sainty profet (lol) sorta like the catholics worship the pope for same reason. Not quite god, yet important enough to be a godly megaphone..
The utterly crazy trinity thing got invented by the roman branch of christianity around the 4th century, when certain babble writings were cannonised as the only true ones (in Rome of course, by the church and Ceze himself, what a coincidence..). Various other christian groups who were believing Jesus was just a prophet, not god himself, were then shut up, murdered or burned by the empire christianity (as so happened with the gnostics and arianists and many other *untrue* christians). Lots of blood was spilled over this insanity of belief that some dead prophet was in fact the same deity he was marketing for.
Watching a priest tying his brain in knots trying to explain the Trinity to a little heathen was one of the funniest things I’ve seen.
“God is the Father, God is the Son, God is the Holy Spirit”
“So there’s three gods”?
“No, there’s only one”.
“So it’s just three names for the one god”?
“No, they are seperate, but the same”.
“Eh! How does that work then”?
“They are seperate but inseperable”.
“Oh, like conjoined triplets”?
“No, they’re not joined at all”.
“So they ARE seperate”?
No, they are the one God”.
“So not three seperate entities then”?
“Yes, three seperate entities, but at the same time just the one”.
“Eh! How does that work then”?
And so on for ages, until said priest until the inevitable “You’re too young to understand something so complex, now stop pestering me with your silly questions. You’re supposed to be learning about God”!
The funny thing is, a lifetime later I still don’t get it, and have never yet met the priest that did either”.
Jesus & Mo (the characters) are absurd, blinkered, and oddly very sweet. J&M (the cartoon) is brilliant: sharp, delicious, irresistible. Salman Rushdie
Jesus and Mo cartoons are wonderfully funny and true. Richard Dawkins
Jesus and Mo make the world a better place, bless their little hearts. Ophelia Benson
In a world defined by outrage and offence and liberal spinelessness, Jesus and Mo is a treasure, whose value we should never fail to recognize. Read them. Laugh. And think. Kenan Malik
The brilliant, celebrated, freaking hilarious atheist comic strip ... Greta Christina
...rays of sanity in a befuddled world. Keri Hulme
The liveliest depictions of Muhammad currently available... Malise Ruthven
J & Mo is the funniest and most consistently thought-provoking cartoon strip on the Net. In a saner world, it would run in a major newspaper. Nelson Jones, Heresy Corner
Consistently amusing, frequently thought-provoking and often heart-warming. New Humanist
Jesus & Mo is one of the most wonderful things on the internet.. JT Eberhard
Wittily captures much of the absurdity of religious apologetics. Mano Singham
I love jesusandmo.net cartoons - witty and sharp! Katha Pollitt
Often hilarious, frequently wry, these cartoons do what all the best cartoons do: they tell the truth through humour. Terry Sanderson, NSS President
...a wonderfully acid British cartoonist... Nick Cohen
I love the scrappy mockery of Jesus and Mo. Freedom of speech
includes the freedom to mock any person, any thing, any activity, and
any belief -- and J&M stands up for this unflinchingly Richard Stallman
...empowering, important and deeply progressive, not to mention hilarious... Council of Ex-Muslims
January 9, 2007
Hurray, a new one! A new dawn rises on the Comments Section… I wait with baited breath…
[to ‘the’ all-too-human facility]
I think this cartoon gets at a very essential truth about beleivers and the need to feel special and unique – which is probably why they resist the idea of multi-culturalism/diversity – the idea that we’re all unique and special in our groups and as individuals reverts us back to no group or person being automatically special
nina: it could be an essential truth about people in general, as well? i’m wondering if there’s some evolutionary advantage to that attitude.
great cartoon. nina hit it on the spot i think.
Yeah, this would seem to be a restatement of the problem of tribalism, the elevation of one’s own group above others. Actually, I’m amazed that Mo has the self-awareness to even realize he’s doing it… but it’s probably just a momentary epiphany.
When I identified myself as a Christian, I thought of myself as very tolerant and open-minded; not a biblical literalist or fundamentalist. But looking back now I can see how I excluded non-believers, in my thoughts if not my actions. It’s a basic human problem, and religion seems to make it worse.
@Wright: Its not a bug, its a feature!
I guess you might have identified one of the primary purposes of a religion:
In- group favouritism and identity and out-group antipathy.
CatIsGod, I’ll bet your cat loves it when your breath is “baited.” Do you use tuna, or something more expensive?
I’m beginning to suspect that the Author doesn’t do new drawings for each episode.
Damn, caught out on the homonyms again…
@catballou – nice!
Reading this strip it occurred to me that if believers actually engaged in this kind of very honest dialogue-with-self they might well talk themselves out of their ridiculous beliefs.
Author, you may have come up with a ‘cure’. lol.
There is no cure, it seems to be part of the human condition to believe the unbelievable and use it as a form of social control. However, somehow social control has to happen if we are to keep the various things that make up our so called civilized society. We would never have had the internet if there were no rules and I can’t quite see how humans would ever have come up with the rules if there had been no big stick to frighten them with. [BTW my cat looks like this Steinlen picture (my avatar) and she is definitely god. ;)]
YourCatIsGod, For much of my life, the only time I saw that phrase written out, it was the wrong spelling, so don’t feel abashed. It wasn’t so long ago that I figured out the correct version. I now remember it because the original word was abated, before it got shortened to ‘bated and then bated.
Nina took 21 minutes to fulfil your wish. You have excellent breath control. Always good when you have a fish on your tongue.
…I can’t quite see how humans would ever have come up with the rules if there had been no big stick to frighten them with.
Maggs, I may be misunderstanding you, but you seem to be suggesting that societal prohibitions against robbing, raping, murdering etc originate in belief in god. Is that what you mean? If so, how do countries with no tradition of believing in god(s) manage? Do you imagine that in god-free societies there are/were no rules against these type of things?
Heh. Jesus’ default position is that self aggrandisement is a good thing. No surprise coming from a human character who claims to be the omnipotent, omniscient Creator of the Universe.
Actually, now that I think of it, does the claim that Jesus is part of the triune God ever get made by his character in the Bible?
@JohnnieCanuck – he certainly did (at least, John’s version of him). “I and the Father are one” etc etc. The Wiki “Trinity” article has a lot to say on this topic.
Mind you if you are going to make grandiose claims you might as make the most of it. Mo seems positively modest by comparison 🙂
Author, nice to get a mention on Tropes. Another great strip, btw!
Author!
Does Mo use the new I’m Haram search engine? Inquiring minds wish to know!
Putting stuff into that search engine just to see the levels of objection is great fun: ‘swine flu’ is Haram level 1, for example!
I just referred a whole bunch of folks to this website. I was reading a blog about the new Hubble pics and their comments section blew up with religion this, God that, Science this etc. I don’t know if we can collectively drag these people into the “KNOW”. As a matter of fact I think that is what the Author has created in us. (Bowing, Genuflecting, Praising, respectively…)
Nice to be referred back to some of those first strips. I had almost forgotten ‘tinks’ from 2005. Funny.
@author – pedantic correction time -> “She pointed to MY all-too-human facility …”
hm … that phrase sounds a bit suggestive out of context now that I think of it …
@spoing.
If I’m not mistaken, muslims seem to believe that Mo is not a god himself, just a devinely speaking, infallible messenger sainty profet (lol) sorta like the catholics worship the pope for same reason. Not quite god, yet important enough to be a godly megaphone..
The utterly crazy trinity thing got invented by the roman branch of christianity around the 4th century, when certain babble writings were cannonised as the only true ones (in Rome of course, by the church and Ceze himself, what a coincidence..). Various other christian groups who were believing Jesus was just a prophet, not god himself, were then shut up, murdered or burned by the empire christianity (as so happened with the gnostics and arianists and many other *untrue* christians). Lots of blood was spilled over this insanity of belief that some dead prophet was in fact the same deity he was marketing for.
Watching a priest tying his brain in knots trying to explain the Trinity to a little heathen was one of the funniest things I’ve seen.
“God is the Father, God is the Son, God is the Holy Spirit”
“So there’s three gods”?
“No, there’s only one”.
“So it’s just three names for the one god”?
“No, they are seperate, but the same”.
“Eh! How does that work then”?
“They are seperate but inseperable”.
“Oh, like conjoined triplets”?
“No, they’re not joined at all”.
“So they ARE seperate”?
No, they are the one God”.
“So not three seperate entities then”?
“Yes, three seperate entities, but at the same time just the one”.
“Eh! How does that work then”?
And so on for ages, until said priest until the inevitable “You’re too young to understand something so complex, now stop pestering me with your silly questions. You’re supposed to be learning about God”!
The funny thing is, a lifetime later I still don’t get it, and have never yet met the priest that did either”.