Cancel culture refers to the popular practice of withdrawing support for public figures and companies after they have done or said something considered objectionable or offensive. Social media amplifies cancel culture by enabling the rapid spread of outrage and calls to boycott or shun the offender.
For Christians, cancel culture raises important biblical considerations about justice, forgiveness, and how to respond to wrongdoing in a Christ-like manner. Here are several principles for Christians to keep in mind when faced with the latest cancel campaign:
1. Consider motives carefully
Jesus warned against judgmentalism when he said “Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye?” (Matthew 7:3). Calls to cancel someone often come from a place of virtue-signaling and mob mentality more than sincere righteousness. Christians should examine their own motives and “take the log out of your own eye” before seeking to remove a speck from someone else’s eye.
2. Focus on reconciliation
A core message of the gospel is redemption – the hope that people can change and be restored. Cancel culture offers no path to restoration, only public shaming and shunning. Christians should aspire to emulate Jesus, who patiently exhorted sinners to repentance and offered forgiveness. The apostle Paul wrote “God reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation” (2 Corinthians 5:18). Christians have a high calling to be ministers of reconciliation in a culture prone to stirred-up division and outrage.
3. Leave room for growth
“Mercy triumphs over judgment” (James 2:13). Cancel culture shows no mercy. It often digs up long-past mistakes and views them in the worst possible light. A decade-old ignorant comment or offensive joke can spell career ruin today. Christians know that we all fall short (Romans 3:23) and should hope that others have room to learn and grow. Jesus changed the hearts of former outcasts like Matthew the tax collector and Mary Magdalene. Modern “canceled” figures likewise deserve opportunities for redemption.
4. Combat evil with good
“Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good” (Romans 12:21). Cancel culture is inherently negative – it tears people down rather than builds up. Christians are called to take the opposite approach. When we encounter ignorance, cruelty and sin, we should overcome it by modeling love, grace and truth. This requires spiritual discipline and Christ-centered wisdom to know when to gently instruct, when to boldly condemn evil, and when to quietly pray. But overcome evil we must.
5. Guard against mob rule
Cancel culture is often driven by mob mentality, not impartial facts. Social media feeds groupthink and accelerates hasty judgments. Christians should avoid the bandwagon impulse and remain judicious. When an offended mob demanded the adulterous woman be stoned, Jesus calmly responded “Let any one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her” (John 8:7). He then showed her grace and urged her to stop sinning.
6. Be slow to anger
The Bible warns “Human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires” (James 1:20). Knee-jerk outrage rarely leads to just outcomes. Christians should be cautious about joining cancel campaigns that seem driven more by incensed emotion than reason and objectivity. It’s fine to be disturbed by wrongdoing, but righteous anger is tempered by humility and alignment with God’s ideals of truth and justice.
7. Hope for redemption
Christians believe human beings haveintrinsic worth as image-bearers of God, despite our fallen nature. Though some acts deserve strong condemnation, Christians should refrain from declaring people irredeemable. The most wicked sinners can experience radical redemption – consider Paul, who persecuted Christians but then became an apostle of Christ. Even for grave injustices, Christians must balance calls for accountability with hope for redemption through Christ.
8. Extend generous charity
When interpreting someone’s words or actions, we should aim for generous charity over uncharitable scrutiny. Scripture says “love is patient and kind” and “always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres” (1 Corinthians 13:4, 7). Cancel culture often does the very opposite: hastily assuming the worst about people’s motives and writing them off over the slightest misstep or ill-chosen words. Christians are called to better than cynical snap judgments.
9. Forgive as you want to be forgiven
We all desperately hope for mercy on our own mistakes and failings. Jesus implored his followers “if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you” (Matthew 6:14). Cancel culture is inherently unforgiving, but Christians should know better. The Bible says “be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you” (Ephesians 4:32). Our example is a God who forgave us unconditionally in Christ.
10. Reject identity politics
Cancel culture often singles people out based on their identity instead of their individual actions. But Christians believe our identity is in Christ alone. The Bible makes clear all people are equal before God, who does not show favoritism (Acts 10:34). Pressuring people to have the “correct” ideological or political views based on their race, class, or gender is foreign to the gospel. Christians should treat people as unique individuals, not as representatives of groups.
11. Stay gracious toward opponents
It is easy to dehumanize and despise those we disagree with. But Jesus taught radical grace for our enemies: “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:44-45). We may firmly oppose ideas without hating the people who hold them. Christians must steer clear of personal attacks and remain gracious. The Bible urges “do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good” (Romans 12:21).
12. Allow free expression
Cancel culture seeks to shut down ideas and voices it opposes. But Christianity flourished historically through persuasion in the public marketplace of ideas. Christians should have enough confidence in biblical truth to abide debate and discussion. Paul declared the gospel to be “the power of God that brings salvation” (Romans 1:16). That power is best seen in open discourse, not silencing voices of dissent. Christians should advocate for free expression for all in civil society.
13. Care more about truth than trends
The philosophies that drive cancel culture come and go. Biblical truth endures forever. Christians must refuse to get swept up in momentary cultural tides that may run counter to timeless scriptural principles. The apostle Paul warned against getting “blown here and there by every wind of teaching” instead of remaining grounded in Christ (Ephesians 4:14). Standing for biblical truth often means going against the grain of contemporary culture. Christians must follow scripture first.
14. Don’t misapply “Do not judge”
One of Jesus’ most quoted sayings is “Do not judge, or you too will be judged” (Matthew 7:1). This often gets invoked as a blanket prohibition on moral discernment. But in context, Jesus was warning against unrighteous and hypocritical judgment of others. Elsewhere, he taught followers to make proper judgments, saying “By their fruit you will recognize them” (Matthew 7:20). Christians are called to assess actions biblically while leaving ultimate judgment to God alone. “Do not judge” does not preclude moral clarity.
15. Be wise about involvement
When a controversy erupts, Christians need not always rush to comment or take sides. The Bible says “Fools find no pleasure in understanding but delight in airing their own opinions” (Proverbs 18:2). Some matters require principled stands, but other disputes may not warrant involvement. Seeking attention by inflaming outrage often makes things worse. Followers of Jesus are blessed as peacemakers who sow harmony (Matthew 5:9). Sometimes the most Christ-like option is refraining from judgment altogether.
16. Major on the majors
Jesus condemned religious leaders for “straining out a gnat but swallowing a camel” through misplaced priorities (Matthew 23:24). Some cancel campaigns fixate on minor issues blown out of proportion while ignoring major injustices. Christians should focus efforts on defending human dignity, standing for justice, and protecting the vulnerable. That means addressing profound challenges like poverty, lack of access to education and health care, discrimination, and threats to free expression and religious liberty that enable human flourishing.
17. Model cultural engagement
Christian values once profoundly shaped Western culture. But Christianity’s influence has waned in recent decades. Yet Jesus urges his followers, “You are the salt of the earth” and “the light of the world” (Matthew 5:13-14). Amid cancel culture, Christians have opportunities to witness to biblical principles of justice, human dignity, free expression, intellectual humility, and grace. But we must do more than criticize culture. We must create and contribute to culture, offering better answers rooted in God’s timeless wisdom.
18. Prepare for backlash
Jesus pronounced blessings on those who suffer for righteousness: “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me” (Matthew 5:11). Standing for biblical truth often brings hostility today. Christians must expect some cancel backlash when respectfully presenting countercultural perspectives. But Jesus says, “Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul” (Matthew 10:28). The rewards for faithfulness far exceed earthly consequences.
19. Keep your eyes on Jesus
Culture is increasingly disconnected from biblical values. But Christians know their true home is in eternity with God. The Bible says “our citizenship is in heaven” (Philippians 3:20). The apostle Peter wrote to persecuted Christians scattered across the Roman Empire, “Keep your eyes on Jesus” (1 Peter 2:5). No cultural outrage or social media mob can dethrone the risen King of Kings. Christians in cancel culture must stay focused on Jesus and his eternal Kingdom that transcends every earthly controversy.
In summary, cancel culture poses challenges for Christians seeking to live out biblical values and spread the gospel in a hostile culture. But Jesus and the apostles also faced intense opposition in their day. By following biblical principles of grace, humility, wisdom and Christ-like redemption, Christians can overcome evil with good and be “salt and light” pointing to the Kingdom of God. Though the tides of culture change, God’s truth remains steady – the sure foundation for Christians facing today’s cancel controversies.