Putting all this research and analysis together

Over the past few weeks, I have been examining the Catholic faith through memes from an insider source. At first, I didn't have a lot of focus and was unsure which aspect of Catholicism I wanted to look into and critique. My sample of memes come from an insider perspective of a Catholic meme facebook page. I took memes that were mostly understandable from an outside perspective with a few that would only be understood by those within the faith. Honestly, I picked memes I thought were funny and at least semi-relatable. I didn't want anything too obscure or specific. I focused on general topics and easy to understand concepts. As the weeks progressed, my focus turned to Catholic authority, really the stereotype that Catholics view themselves as the superior faith even within the Christian sphere. 

Stereotypes: Catholics are arrogant, know-it-alls that out rituals over actual faith. Looking specifically at confession, they have many steps they say are necessary to live a genuine Christian life. It's their way or its the wrong way.

How it relates: Many of their insider memes outsiders down and view them as "holier", better then them for either living a better life or performing the rituals they believe you are supposed to. By presenting these ideas through an online source of memes, it makes a serious discussion, laughable. It takes an important point and dilutes it.   

Because Catholicism is a fairly rigid belief system, it has a plethora of offline standards and basis for actions. They have many acts and rituals that they apply to their daily lives and should permeate into everything. 

There are many sources that research and contemplate Catholic authority, I will be analyzing and using them to decide how accurate this stereotype is, especially for the difference between online and offline religion portrayals. 

The online religion definitely can challenge that by its tendency to joke about the serious. 

Online-Offline connection:

Breaking-away- holiness vs joking about the confess ritual. As I stated above, offline this is a serious issue of belittling and frustrating others while online, its all a joke for no one to take personally. Online they can joke about aspects of Catholicism, like confession; they make jokes about before, during, and after confession.

This meme a good portrayal of the joking side of the Catholic stereotype. This obviously isn't supposed to be taken seriously. Because there are so many holidays around Christmas, it can be difficult to be completely P.C. with those who have different beliefs. This plays on not being

 P.C. at all and trying to be funny instead and hopefully not offensive. 

I feel like this meme falls into the Catholic authority stereotype because it is literally pointing fingers at past mistakes. The top picture of this meme is referring to the Israelites roaming through the desert for 40 years before they came to the Promise Land. Here, they wanted something physical to worship so while Moses was on the mountain talking to God, Aaron created a golden calf that they worshipped. This blatantly goes against what the Lord told them about idolatry.
This meme pokes fun at this mistake, like they tend to do in their memes for those they feel are less then them.

Authority and how the world wide web influences its potency

This meme is a parody of people's' attempt to navigate a secular world while adhering to religious beliefs. Within in the Catholic faith, they believe that their worldview of Catholicism should affect every area of their lives. With the introduction of the internet and social media, they pose problems by compromising believers. If you really believe, you cannot just stop acting like it the second you leave mass even if it's just so easy to do. This image can be viewed as both a seriousness for the necessity to avoid areas that could cause you to sin and fall away and a silly representation of a rigid idea. This meme would be more impactful if the creator cold find a way to put potential pitfalls on the lasers to give examples especially because those outside the faith have no idea what they may be. 

 For those who do not watch Parks and Rec, this is a character, Ron Swanson. He knows a lot about a lot, especially in terms of fixing and creating useful things. Here, he is fixing his friend's house, while a Halloween party is going on, and when he shops for parts, when someone tries to help him. He responds with the above quote: "I know more than you".
Practising Catholics should find this meme amusing while those outside the faith especially in similar religions on the Protestant side might find it slightly annoying.  Not that Catholics necessarily know more or less, but because they have more practices and rituals that go allowing with their faith, they might view that as "knowing more". This comes out through their view as an authority of belief and how that plays out in a daily sense. People (Jehovah's Witness, Mormons, etc) don't come door-to-door like they used to. They email, comment, or post about wanting to invite others into their faith. Catholics have to fight within the same realm which is turning ever more from reality to virtual reality.

In light of Aguilar et.al’s work describe in detail which Internet meme GENRES AND religion FRAMES are evidenced in your sample?
Religious Spoof Memes; Memes utilizing the playful frame - Top meme (lasers)
Implicit Religious Memes; Memes utilizing the Religious Trope frame - Bottom meme (Ron)
(Aguilar, p. 8-20)

What specific religious issues/actors/community are being undermined or affirmed? What does this tell us about how the authority of this religious group is being interpreted? (Provide concrete evidence to support these claims)
The top meme is affirming their authority because it is showing how hard they work to hold themselves to a higher standard. Upon further investigation, this belief is backed up by their sacred text, the Bible. An understanding that they are sinful creatures, but striving to be better is always the goal.
The bottom meme is undermining their authority. Initially, you'd say it affirms is because it shows that they "know more than you". But it is arrogant and rude to others both inside and outside the faith, since Protestantism has many similarities in beliefs. In a Huffington Post article, they mention how the Catholic church views itself above others and is therefore unquestionable in authority and leadership.

How might aspects of religious authority discussed in this week’s readings and in the class lecture, inform the way someone would read your collection religious internet memes or understand the influence their messages may have within digital culture?
I feel Catholicism is a religion best practiced in "real life". That is doesn't necessarily translate well into the digital media, including memes. The Catholic church has been around for 2000+ years. It has survived through many, many ages, but memes and the digital age are proving to be a very difficult hurdle. Even those more lax and social media-savvy Catholics, are showing how hard it is to know what you believe, articulate it well, and be relatable. Catholic memes should be viewed with a grain of salt, knowing that the Catholic faith and church are so much bigger.

From broad claims to more specific ideas

As my blog has taken more of a form, and I've researched and chosen memes. I realized that my study has been become about a more specific section of Catholicism: sin, confession, and how this affects the practicers faith. Because many religions believe in sin, or something like it, I'm interested in how Catholicism specifically deals with it, how it comes across in memes, and what that means about the religions views. What is the difference between devout believers and the causal mass-goer.

This week, I'll be diving deeper into the Catholic community, their beliefs, how it is represented in memes.

This meme is a take on Spongebob Squarepants. The idea within the Catholic community is that in response to the difficulties of life, there is one source of strength: the Lord. Its the belief that you can only do so much and the Lord has to do the rest because they are not capable. This is just a funny and recognizable way to express such belief.

I'm a pretty big nerd, and when I found a Lord of the Rings meme, I got so excited!
This meme is a spin on the many, many meals hobbits eat and comparing it to the many, many traditions within the Catholic church. They have many steps that other branches of Christianity do not and many do not understand. These acts bond the community with common beliefs, experiences, and ideas. Other groups, organizations, and religions have similar bonding ideas, but the ones featured are specific to the Catholic faith.

In what ways do these message and representations match or conflict with the official beliefs/rituals/understanding of the religious community you are studying?
These match closely with the beliefs of the Catholic church. They may be presented in an amusing, and relatable way for those outside the faith, but they remain true nonetheless. This half of Christianity (vs. Protestantism) is more ritual based, making the second meme an accurate representation of just a few of the many acts they believe and partake in. The first meme being a more overarching view of the church.

How does the scholarly article you read this week substantiate your claims above?
Martín-Barbero makes many great points about the need for faith and this turn back to faith in a media based world. "In the midst of rapid cultural change, people look for foundations beyond human construction where they can anchor their personal and social identities" (Martín-Barbero, p. 104). The Catholic church is proving a refuge to those who feel lost and don't understand their need for something more than emptiness that the internet provides. By having a traditional, act heavy based faith, the Catholic church is attractive to bonding a community and providing a shared experience to those within.

What seems to be the popular assumptions or stereotypes about this religious group that are being promoted through your memes?  In what ways do you find this interesting and/or problematic?
This stereo-type portrayed is the fact that the Catholics have an act for everything, that outsiders just don't understand. Especially those on the Protestant side of the Christian faith, these traditions don't make sense and have the appearance of taking away from what the first meme suggests is most important, the Lord. I'd think those within the church would proud of their traditions and frustrated with others ignorance and mockery of them. Devout Catholics are going to view each act with the importance it is assigned, and when others can't see that value, it is frustrating.

Martín-Barbero, J. (1997). Mass media as a site of resacralization of contemporary cultures. Rethinking media, religion, and culture, 23, 102.

Catholic Identity

Are there certain ideas that are accentuated in these memes that speak to the perceived beliefs of this community?
The memes used and created within the Catholic religion are fairly surface level. Most of them are easy to understand to insiders and outsiders. With that, there seems to be a discrepancy within this culture because while many memes are easy to understand and laugh with, the rest are complex, intricate, and very confusing to any outsider. There is no middle ground of understanding. There is a distinct line to keep those outside the religion out and those who are dedicated, in.
For example, this first meme is easy to understand and funny even to those outside the religion. It is a religious take on a meme with Kanye West (below).

Source

As for this meme, it does not make sense unless you are familiar with the Bible story about Sodom and Gomorrah. Even some Catholic, Jewish, or Protestant believers won't get it because it is a more obscure reference. 

Additionally, 

Why do you think these are highlighted in these memes? What messages are being communicated by the ways these are presented?

Catholicism is a religion that has many practices, rituals, and traditions. In some memes, you can see how this comes through. This is a religion that takes itself very seriously and expects others to do the same. While the people creating memes are more likely to view it more lightly and maybe less seriously, I feel that they do not necessarily represent the religion well. That is why there is this huge discrepancy between who can and cannot understand the more "religious" memes representing the Catholic faith. The difficult to understand memes are for those who know the religion and take it seriously, because these memes are typiclly not as well executed and are not as funny. 

Finally,

How do your observations relate to claims about how religious identity is presented and negotiated in digital culture as express in the class lecture and readings this week?

There is no such thing as a "half-ass" Catholic. When someone truly identifies with being Catholic, it is their whole life and worldview. If you really believe, there is no room for wavering and doubt. Bellar says it best when he states, "Lived religion is an approach that sees religion as dynamic, experiential and rooted in the daily life of its practitioners" (Bellar et al, pg. 7). Memes can be a form of expressing this lived religion. Because Catholicism and lived religion go together quite perfectly. 

Let the "memes" being!

Last week, I posted the following memes as a part of my proposal.

This meme is funny because it takes a commonly known song: "Jesus take the wheel" by Carrie Underwood, and applies it to "real life". In the Catholic faith, there is confession, where you admit your sins and in turn, change their lifestyle to reflect their beliefs. Sinning can seem like a lot of fun, and it can be difficult to turn away from, hence, the determined face of the "sinner" in the meme. 

Recently, there has been a meme circulating about a barber cutting images or dying hair to reflect an interest or like. This is simply a Catholic versions of that meme. It is particularly interesting because it has three people as opposed to the usual one and the image cut is very precise and intricate.

This semester, I am looking into memes about the Catholic faith. All of my memes have been taken from a Catholic Meme Facebook page that gathers and posts catholic memes, as its name suggests. I am selected memes posted over the past few years that are understandable even if the reader is not Catholic, or at least that's the hope. A few include pop culture references, including television shows, movies, and social media phenomenon. By picking the less specific memes, I can better determine how the Catholic believers view themselves and their faith by portraying it in a way others can understand. 

Catholicism dates back around 2000 years to the first pope, Pope St. Peter, one of Jesus' disciples. Today, their universal church still looks to one pope in Rome. Catholicism is a fraction of Christianity, it is the side that leans towards traditions, rituals and practices passed down for years. Their meaning comes from their sacred text, the Holy Bible. 

The memes I have chosen, range from their passion about their faith to their different practices and rituals, like Ash Wednesday. A lot of the memes I've selected actually look at sin, confession, and communion. These appear as serious topics, but the memes view them in a sarcastic, silly, and relatable way. 

The following meme, it takes phrases "heavens no" and "hell yes", but adds a Catholic twist. By taking two commonly used phrases, okay, maybe just in the south or by sassy individuals, it is making primarily Catholic topic, purgatory, and making it socially relevant, which is the aim of most memes. 

This is an example of a generic meme that can be applied to so many things. Really, "religious" can be  switched with moral, academic, nerdy, etc. It is showing how quickly anyone can become particularly passionate about the important areas of their live. 

Meme paper proposal

This semester, I will be exploring memes within the Catholic faith. I am interested in how many are created and accepted in the church. Are more of them created by outsiders, criticizing the church or is it people within the faith, just amusing themselves about the things they find ridiculous or just funny in their everyday lives? Memes have become a part of everyday life. If you don't keep up with all the memes being posted, your friends are typically quick to catch you up. I'm interested to know if the memes created around or within the catholic are any different.