Private Eye, a UK satire magazine are offering a selection of humourous christmas cards. One of them, I just don’t get though. In the background we see the standard nativity stable. In the foreground are 3 men. 2 are carrying boxes, (presumably containing gold and frankincence) the other is carrying a big blue egg wrapped with a ribbon. The othe 2 guys are looking at him and the caption is “Too soon?”
It’s an Easter egg.
Though I suspect that a theologian might well say that, of course, fir Christians the nativity only makes sense because of the crucifixion and resurrection.
I’m assuming the joke is about the fact that, just as Christmas merchandise gets put out in September now, Easter merchandise gets put out immediately after Christmas.
The man has brought an (big chocolate) Easter egg, even though it’s only December. Hence “Too soon”?
Easter.
Jesus is only just born and it’s a gift celebrating His Resurrection.
I thought of the joke as “way to tell an infant and his parents you’re already anticipating (celebrating) his death.”
Which is exactly what people say about myrrh, saying it was often used in burial rituals. I heard it so often as a kid that I to this day can’t shake the feeling that the similar sounding “mirth” shouldn’t refer to something happy.
According to Wikipedia, “Myrrh resin is a natural gum. It has been used throughout history as a perfume, incense and medicine.”
Myrrh? It is a valuable balm.
See, that’s what makes it a good joke. We have two distinct interpretations here: Too soon to be bringing Easter gifts when the Christmas holiday season is only just beginning; and too soon to be celebrating the crucifixion and resurrection when the baby is only just born. No need to argue which is the right interpretation. Packing both of them into the one simple cartoon gives it a clever double-whammy.
This is an interesting anecdote in many ways.
I still have trouble with “camp,” because I used to hear the word around the table as a kid only to mean “concentration camp”–but I can’t think of something like yours based on a (near) homophone.
I liked Dave Allen’s take on that:
Nun: “He was born on Christmas Day and died on Easter.”
Young Dave Allen: “Well, he didn’t hang around, did he?”
A theory about Christmas jokes is that they should be really lame. This is because jokes divide people - either everyone against the but of the joke or those that ‘get’ it and those that don’t, Christmas jokes are normally so bad that it becomes all of us against the joke. This refers to the jokes in the bonbons not cartoons like the one this thread is about, but hopefully interesting.
Why does Santa drive a Sleigh with bells on it?
Because he’s a cunt.
Seem’s lame enough to me.
My thought also. I don’t see why an Easter egg would be less appropriate than myrrh, which is why I think the joke is fairly lame even after it was explained.
The Magi brought three gifts, gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Gold because Jesus is King, frankincense because He is a priest, and myrrh because He would die. So an Easter egg would be less inappropriate than myrrh, because eggs are a resurrection symbol and myrrh is associated only with death.
A joke is rarely funny after it is explained. Maybe that’s the problem too.
Regards,
Shodan
A bomb! What are you giving him a bomb for?!
No, myrrh symbolises healing.
I interpreted it in a third way. Eggs and chocolate didn’t come along for many centuries later, when spring fertility festivities got absorbed into Christianity.
Is there no bomb in Gilead?
(The Jordanian government wants to know.)
Money is tight
and times are hard
So here’s your fucking
Christmas card.
I’ve sent this one a few times to people I knew would appreciate the sentiment.