News round-up: March 10

Fuller House accused of being too racy

One of this year’s most unexpected releases on the small screen is a Netflix program that revived a 1980s sitcom. Fuller House stars many of the original line-up from Full House, and loosely repeats the original show’s format of several generations of family members and friends living in the one San Francisco house. Candace Cameron Bure reprises her role as DJ, who has grown-up to be a widower raising three sons. The lead actress is a prominent Christian in the American entertainment industry. This has sparked some Fuller House viewers to critique the program’s content, from its wardrobe choices to sexual innuendo.

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Christian “genocide” in the Middle East?

Various charity groups and Christian organisations are lobbying international governments to officially label the killing of Christians (and other religious minorities) by Isis. Recently, politicians in Europe and the UK — as well as Hillary Clinton — have begun to call the murderous campaigns of Islamic terrorists “genocide”. A significant report was released this week that also pushes for the “genocide” label to be applied. This is supported by groups such as Aid To The Church In Need and Open Doors, who claim the “deliberate” killings (mainly in Iraq and Syria) intend to wipe out Christians in the region.

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TV comedians are the new televangelists

An interesting opinion piece was published this week on ABC’s “The Drum” site. Christian leader and writer Michael Jensen has accused Australian comedians such as Tim Minchin, Charlie Pickering and Adam Hills of being a new form of televangelist. According to Jensen, while these professional laugh-getters tend to argue against Christian beliefs and teachings, their behaviour and messages suggest they are “would-be messiahs”.

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…. But can Christians have a laugh at themselves?

A new satirical website has been launched that makes fun of Christianity. But it’s being fuelled by Christians. That’s right: Christians are laughing at themselves. Babylon Bee seems to be trying to match popular news satire sites, such as The Onion. However, its particular focus is to take aim at stuff to do with Christianity.

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