Are Sexual Jokes Immoral?

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scameter18

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If a joke is told with an ambiguously sexual quality, without being overly vulgar or explicit, is it immoral to laugh at it/find it funny?
 
Scrupolous, a joke can be funny and a sin for the comic, but not for the audience of the joke.
 
‘Decorum requires that you have a great horror for anything even remotely suggesting impurity. Far from allowing yourself to laugh and to make jokes about it, you must show that you do not find anything about the topic in any way amusing. Those who laugh about such things give proof that they live more according to the flesh than according to the spirit and that their hearts are thoroughly corrupt.’

St. Jean Baptiste de la Salle
 
scameter18 said:
If a joke is told with an ambiguously sexual quality, without being overly vulgar or explicit, is it immoral to laugh at it/find it funny?
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I’m not sure you could say it was immoral to think it was funny. You might not have control over that. A public reaction, though, could be immoral if it encouraged crudeness.

I think more responsibility falls on the joke teller - is the joke suitable for the audience, does it glorify immoral behavior, etc. Sometimes that kind of humor serves a useful purpose : I remember in pre-cana there were a couple jokes told by the presenters to lighten the mood (that was a tense session) and they weren’t at anyone’s expense or crude.
 
The answer is three letters; starts with a Y and ends with a S with a vowel in the middle
👍
 
IronMIke said:
The answer is three letters; starts with a Y and ends with a S with a vowel in the middle
👍
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😃

As St. Paul would put it:

Col 3:8 But now put you also all away: anger, indignation, malice, blasphemy, filthy speech out of your mouth.

So, while it may be fun (and I’ve struggled with this sin too!) the Catholic thing to do is to tell jokes, but clean ones. Sexual or scatological humour won’t cut it; even if there is no sexual intent on the part of the speaker, it’s still immodest, and can be an occasion of sin to others.
 
What makes sex an “inappropriate” thing to joke about, especially in an ambiguous way as the original poster described?

The fact that sex is sacred?

Well, then you should all talk to every Priest and Deacon I’ve ever known about their homilies.

Oh, and pretty much every successful Pre-Cana counselor around the world.
 
I think humor is very difficult to discern because there are so many different forms of it. For example, if someone does something that is immoral, it is wrong to enjoy it in any way. But if a character in a comedy does something immoral, it can be funny because the character is funny. Laughing at the absurdity of the character’s actions is not the same as approving of the thing itself. This is my take on it currently.
 
i would say yes, we are called to change our minds and act with morality… if someone laughs at a joke that is immoral it shows that they dont view it with morality… we arent to shrink to this world we have a higher calling… we should all change our thouhts to gods plan
 
pwlj_christ87 said:
i would say yes, we are called to change our minds and act with morality… if someone laughs at a joke that is immoral it shows that they dont view it with morality… we arent to shrink to this world we have a higher calling… we should all change our thouhts to gods plan
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Well put :clapping:

Now it just so happens that the one and only joke I can remember my 72 year old mother telling would be considered a sexual joke. Now I was in my 30’s when she told me the joke, but still knowing her as a devout Catholic it did shock me a bit.:eek: The joke concerns the behavior of former President Clinton and I shall not repeat it here. I will say that any time liberal Democrats get out of hand in conversations (as they are wont to do:shrug: I tell this joke and it silences them because it points out how they support an immoral man. So, in these cases the sexual joke is a powerful teaching tool.

God bless
 
scameter18 said:
If a joke is told with an ambiguously sexual quality, without being overly vulgar or explicit, is it immoral to laugh at it/find it funny?
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By the standards of the Catholic Church?

Probably.

I think a better question is, what fun/pleasurable activities does the Church not consider a sin?
 
Shin said:
‘Decorum requires that you have a great horror for anything even remotely suggesting impurity. Far from allowing yourself to laugh and to make jokes about it, you must show that you do not find anything about the topic in any way amusing. Those who laugh about such things give proof that they live more according to the flesh than according to the spirit and that their hearts are thoroughly corrupt.’

St. Jean Baptiste de la Salle
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So the pure are dour and humorless then:shrug:
 
scameter18 said:
If a joke is told with an ambiguously sexual quality, without being overly vulgar or explicit, is it immoral to laugh at it/find it funny?
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I don’t know that it’s possible to give a general answer, because there are so many variables. A lot of ‘sexual’ jokes are fairly misogynistic, or otherwise reduce people to objects, or are designed to titillate: those are almost certainly immoral. And there are certain circumstances where people tell them to make others feel uncomfortable, or to create the impression that certain people are unwelcome: those are almost certainly inmoral as well.

But there are innocent jokes that don’t derive their humour from vulgarity, or misogyny, or anything harmful, told in appropriate cirumstances, and I don’t think you could find anything sinful there.
AngryAtheist8 said:
I think a better question is, what fun/pleasurable activities does the Church not consider a sin?
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Have you met any Catholics?
“Run, jump, shout, play, but do not sin.” - St John Bosco.
 
TypesAndShadows said:
I don’t know that it’s possible to give a general answer, because there are so many variables. A lot of ‘sexual’ jokes are fairly misogynistic, or otherwise reduce people to objects, or are designed to titillate: those are almost certainly immoral. And there are certain circumstances where people tell them to make others feel uncomfortable, or to create the impression that certain people are unwelcome: those are almost certainly inmoral as well.

But there are innocent jokes that don’t derive their humour from vulgarity, or misogyny, or anything harmful, told in appropriate cirumstances, and I don’t think you could find anything sinful there.

Have you met any Catholics?
“Run, jump, shout, play, but do not sin.” - St John Bosco.
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Oh yes.
And only ones I know in RL (real life) who seem to enjoy life are liberal or lapsed.

Moreover, you did not really answer my question.
 
AngryAtheist8 said:
By the standards of the Catholic Church?

Probably.
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these are the standards that should matter to all catholics
AngryAtheist8 said:
I think a better question is, what fun/pleasurable activities does the Church not consider a sin?
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i take great joy from attending mass, enjoying the fellowship of my fellow parishioners, exercising, reading the bible, philosophy, histories.

there are plenty of fun things to do that aren’t sinful. we are called to be in the world but not of the world. i don’t let a secular culture dictate what’s fun/pleasurable.
 
TypesAndShadows said:
I don’t know that it’s possible to give a general answer, because there are so many variables. A lot of ‘sexual’ jokes are fairly misogynistic, or otherwise reduce people to objects, or are designed to titillate: those are almost certainly immoral. And there are certain circumstances where people tell them to make others feel uncomfortable, or to create the impression that certain people are unwelcome: those are almost certainly inmoral as well.

But there are innocent jokes that don’t derive their humour from vulgarity, or misogyny, or anything harmful, told in appropriate cirumstances, and I don’t think you could find anything sinful there.

Have you met any Catholics?
“Run, jump, shout, play, but do not sin.” - St John Bosco.
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Various Catholic saints have labeled all those things as sins at different times and places:shrug:
 
DeMontfort2 said:
these are the standards that should matter to all catholics

i take great joy from attending mass, enjoying the fellowship of my fellow parishioners, exercising, reading the bible, philosophy, histories.

there are plenty of fun things to do that aren’t sinful. we are called to be in the world but not of the world. i don’t let a secular culture dictate what’s fun/pleasurable.
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Not really.
Remember, even if the activity itself isn’t sinful, the way that you (I am using the universal you here) are thinking or feeling about it probably is.
 
so there we were on our wedding night when the kitten oh so curious jumped up on the bed purring loudly and …
sometimes, sex is just funny
grow up
 
AngryAtheist8 said:
Not really.
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Ha, you can’t just shoot down his (her? I already forgot the handle of the person who said it) answer with that! Maybe things that you, as an atheist, find the most fun and not at all problematic, are not considered moral by the Church… But that’s not everything or everyone.

Just to maybe help, I know when I mostly ignored Catholicism, going out and drinking and wandering around being ridiculous and other things that often accompany these situations were what I thought was fun. I still think some parts are, but mostly the ones like having a couple of drinks, just being around others hanging out, enjoying a break from the everyday grind… There’s nothing OBJECTIVELY wrong with those, it’s only when they’re “used” so to speak incorrectly or to excess that problems arise.

If you really think the Church is opposed to all fun, I think you have been underexposed to Catholics. There are, of course, those very very devout people who practice extreme mortification, but I think there’s no other choice but to realize that those called to a lifestyle like that are quite rare. Don’t make the mistake of thinking that, just because a holy person lived an austere life, that all must live such lives IN ORDER TO BE holy…
 
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