Do you guys remember that time the 2024 Summer Olympics opening ceremony had a scene where a group of drag queens supposedly reenacted Da Vinci’s The Last Supper painting?
As I write this, that was just a few weeks ago. If you’re reading this later and have forgotten, I’ll remind you that the Christian outrage was fiery and fierce.
Every prominent Christian voice commented on it. It was the subject of endless blogs, reels, and sermons. Our newsfeeds and Christian websites were packed with anger and complaints about the blasphemous scene, and the outrage went on for weeks.
On a personal level, I was somewhat troubled by the scene. It felt like mockery. Although organizers claim it had nothing to do with The Last Supper, it’s hard to imagine that no one in the planning saw at least its potential likeness and problems.
I understood the offense, to be sure.
As for the outrage, I found it all a little…boring? Is that the right word?
In the same two-week period, we saw more online Christian outrage about whether a female boxer was a real female and whether the closing ceremonies contained “satanic” imagery.
We’ve just seen this rage so much that it all kind of blurs together after a while. I had a friend who constantly complained about everything—the weather, the latest music, the food we were eating, the temperature of the store we were in.
After a while, you just sort of tuned it out.
We live in a world of heightened emotion and division, fueled by our online lives, in what has been called “outrage culture.” This culture tends to manifest itself significantly in politics, justice, and religion.
Although Scripture exhorts us to be reflective and respond slowly and wisely (James 1:19-20), our Internet-driven existence pushes us to read and react quickly and emotionally.
The most provocative and fiery online responses are rewarded with the most likes, shares, and comments. For more prominent influencers, there is significant financial reward for these clicks and shares, and therefore, much motivation to be as provocative as possible.
Our Internet-driven existence pushes us to read and react quickly and emotionally.
I’m no conspiracy theorist, but make no mistake—the system is playing us. And it’s working.
The Christian outrage machine is just as fired up as any secular one. The latest moral offense causes an online posting storm of anger, furiously attacking others on the other side of the issue.
Standing for what is right is crucial, but there is a built-in hypocrisy to much of this, and as men of God, we need to do better.
Here are some things to think about:
We only get outraged at other people’s sins.
Most of us aren’t mocking religious icons on an international stage. It was an easy thing to point your finger at.
But what about your own lust?
No one is rage-tweeting about that.
I’ve never seen a man get just as publicly fiery about his own sin as he does about other peoples’. Can you imagine if a guy posted, “I’ve been inappropriately fantasizing about a woman at work, dishonoring my wife and sinning against her! How disgusting am I?!”
No, we only express disgust for other people’s sins, never our own.
A teaching from Jesus about first paying attention to the plank in your own eye comes to mind (Matthew 7:1-5). If everyone posted as furiously about their own personal sins, I would be most impressed and more motivated to listen to other concerns they may have.
Without that, it easily becomes a whole lot of self-righteous finger-pointing while letting ourselves off the hook. This lacks consistency and integrity in our stand for holiness, and men of God should seek both.
We are often outraged at an un-Christian world for acting like an un-Christian world.
As I said, I was somewhat bothered by the Olympics scene and surprised that no one had stopped it from happening.
But no one who knows the Lord would have mocked in that way. We can and should speak up when we see sin and injustice in the world, but our attitude toward those without Christ should be like that of Christ Himself, who saw the lost crowds and “had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd” (Matthew 9:36).
We, too, were once deceived and lost in darkness (Titus 3:3-7). When we forget that, we lose our sense of shared humanity and compassion for other image-bearers, even if we dislike their actions.
Getting angry at people without Christ for acting like people without Christ doesn’t make a lot of sense, any more than a vegan getting angry at me for that bacon, bacon, & bacon sandwich I just ate. I’m not vegan, so why would I act vegan? We’re holding others to standards that they simply don’t have yet.
When we’re outraged at everything, we’re really outraged at nothing.
During the Last Supper fiasco, a well-known Christian influencer posted something along the lines of, “If you’re upset about that scene, I hope you’re equally as upset about dead children in Israel and Gaza.”
Ouch!
Are we equally upset and passionately active about domestic violence? Civilians killed in Ukraine/Russia? Children worldwide dying of starvation while the West faces an obesity epidemic? Women and minors being trafficked and abused in the porn industry for the sexual pleasure of men watching on their screens?
Seriously—how do we pick and choose what gets our loud outrage? I saw far more Christians calling for an Olympics boycott than I have seen Christians calling for peace in Gaza, just as every Christmas, I see far more Christians calling for a boycott of stores that say “Happy Holidays!” as opposed to Christians getting outraged about far more significant injustices in our culture.
Outrage culture quickly narrows in on trending matters while completely ignoring much larger matters (Matthew 23:23). If our angry energy is constantly at 100% concerning whatever the latest cultural moment is, who will listen to us on the most important things? As with my complaining friend, these voices just get tuned out.
Engaging in this behavior causes us to ignore an awful lot of Scripture.
Christian outrage culture rewards speed, division, harshness, and provoking anger. But how can a Christian engage in this without laying aside biblical verses like these:
“Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires.” (James 1:19-20)
“A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.” (Proverbs 15:1)
Christian outrage culture rewards speed, division, harshness, and provoking anger.
“Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.” (Ephesians 4:2-3)
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other.” (Galatians 5:22-26)
“Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.” (Colossians 4:6)
“Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” (Matthew 11:29)
There are many more verses, and obviously, there is much here to ponder. If our online behavior, however righteous we may feel, is contrary to the Word of God, then we need to revisit our approach.
Christians should expect to be insulted and offended—and bear it well.
Our Savior was mocked, beaten, and humiliated unjustly—and did not retaliate (Matthew 27:27-44; 1 Peter 2:23). The apostles had a similar experience and even rejoiced in their suffering for the sake of Jesus (Acts 5:40-41; 2 Corinthians 12:10).
This is far cry from the constant complaining and finger-pointing of outrage culture.
Indeed, we are expressly told, “Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult. On the contrary, repay evil with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing” (1 Peter 3:9).
If we’re attacked, we do not respond in kind. If we are insulted, we respond in the opposite spirit. The Christian way is different than the world’s way. Jesus and our spiritual forefathers were offensively insulted and mocked and responded with mercy, not outrage.
We should not be surprised when we are insulted and offended, and we should not be surprised that we are called to respond like Christ (1 John 2:6). Christian outrage culture ignores this completely.
We bear insults like grown-up men and do not sink to the level of the angry mockers. We are just like Jesus when we do.
We are supposed to be different.
Standing up against wrong is never wrong, but how we do it certainly can be.
If our online Christian outrage looks exactly the same as the world’s online outrage (and it does), then we are, by definition, no longer holy and set apart as God’s sacred people—we are just like the rest of the world.
Standing up against wrong is never wrong, but how we do it certainly can be.
Men of God, we must do better. We must not get caught up in the ways and tools of this world. Our mindset must be different (1 Corinthians 2:16), our weapons must be different (2 Corinthians 10:4), and our goals must be different (Matthew 18:15).
Rather than insulting and slandering and sowing shame and seeking rapid cancelation, as the world does, we ultimately seek redemption—hope and love in our confrontations, prayerfully leading to transformation by the power of the Holy Spirit and the peace and reconciliation that follows.
This is more challenging than simply copying the world’s outrage path—but it is challenging in the way of Christ, and it is the good way.
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