2025/07/25 by Jonathan W. Johnson
Arts and Humanities · Social Sciences · #Asian Culture and Media Studies #Gender, Feminism, and Media #Music History and Culture
paper · pdf · doi:10.1111/taja.70025
openalex publication_date 2025/07/25 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
Abstract This article examines the expanding field of research on religious memes. Alongside a brief overview of current scholarly directions, it proposes new methodological avenues for studying memes that converge at the intersection of religion and internet humour. Drawing on a range of theoretical perspectives—from Walter Benjamin's reflections on modernity to H. Richard Niebuhr's typologies of religious engagement—it introduces fresh conceptual frameworks for analysis. Historical analogues of visual mass media from other periods of convergence are also explored, including the work of early 20th century Chinese Christian artists and contemporary Hong Kong activist artists, highlighting how visual culture has long served as a site for negotiating religious meaning in times of social transformation.