Why no dirty jokes?

DamianWarS said:

anything that degrades as a whole is inappropriate so where do jokes fit into this?

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Oscarr said:

Elijah displayed humour on Mt Carmel when he asked whether Baal was on holiday, or on the toilet because Baal wasn't around to answer the false prophets' pleadings to send fire on the altar.

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Unofficial Reverand Alex said:

I've been thinking about this more, and I suppose it just trivializes something that's already too trivialized. These jokes may not lead to people becoming rapists, but if sex is taken lightly enough, I suppose somebody trying to have sex with someone wouldn't really think about the possibility that anyone takes sex seriously. People not wanting to joke about it restores some of the sanctity; I suppose it would make people think twice before just getting laid for the fun of it, if they see people who take it more seriously.

I'm wondering if I shouldn't joke about drunkenness, now, for the same reason; it's something very trivialized that shouldn't be. Bringing a serious note into people laughing about how drunk they got might make people think a little more before getting hammered again. I don't think it'll do much, but I might as well do what I can.

Another thing that got me thinking about this in terms of trivializing things is my reasoning for all the jokes my friends made about each other's heritage in high school. I'm Polish, a friend of mine is Russian, another is black, another's a mutt, and another's Mexican. We'll joke with each other all the time, things like, "I guess the doorknob's too complicated for a Pollack!", and making these racist jokes at each other because it highlights the stupidity of racism!

Occasionally someone walking by would get really offended when we made jokes about my black friend, and they'd come over wide-eyed, saying, "You shouldn't say that!". Every time, my black friend would look them straight in the eyes, and say, "Begone, Cracker!". Or when my dad was asking a Mexican he works with why Mexicans always drive apehangers (those motorcycles with the handlebars above your head). Carlos responded, "We're used to having our hands up!" Joking about this trivializes something that is inherently stupid; I can't take legitimate racists seriously, because I connect their comments with all the stupid jokes we make, and they lose their power as a result.

But trivializing something that's not stupid, and something that we have control over (unlike death), that's where you can run into issues.

May God bless us all!

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ChicanaRose said:

There are two things to consider here:

The heart of the speaker and the ears of the hearer.

If you consider love and empathy for your neighbor, you would not want to say things that cause offense to her ear. For example, I find jokes that objectify women to be highly-offensive.

And it is "out of the heart" (Matt. 15:19) that such offensive speech arises. The above kind of joke reveals the state of his heart.

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ChicanaRose said:

I see that you have good intentions for asking the question. You don't want to know the answer in order to justify telling dirty jokes, but so that you can be less offensive towards your brothers and sisters in Christ. I appreciate your sincerity. In Romans 14:15-21, Paul speaks of love towards a brother, as not being a stumbling block to him. Although he is speaking of food in this passage, perhaps it could be applied to jokes also. Perhaps some jokes that are harmless among your close- friends, can become a stumbling block to another brother in Christ. I think Holy Spirit gives us prudence. If you have to think twice about saying a joke, it's probably a sign that you shouldn't say it. Also, remember that Jesus is in the room when two or three brothers gather (Matt. 18:20). You can ask yourself, "Do I feel okay saying this in front of Jesus?"

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