If the LORD tarries, the 2022 Oscars will be replayed again and again for “The Slap” heard around the world.

Will Smith slapped (hard) the face of Chris Rock for a joke the comedian made about Will’s wife, Jada Smith, and the very short haircut she carries (Jada is completely bald). Chris, the comedian, made a joke about Jade starring in G.I. Joes II – a reference to the movie G.I. Joe where the female movie star shaved her head bald.

Jade Smith has a medical condition that causes her to lose her hair. Will Smith did not like the comedian using his wife as the center of a joke, so Will Smith walked to the Oscar Platform and “slapped the &$%* out of Chris Rock (the comedian’s description of the act, not mine).

The Internet seems divided over the appropriateness of Will Smith’s slap of Chris Rock.

Some people say, “Will was defending his wife!” and justify the slap. Others say, “That was a physical assault on a comedian whose job it is to make fun of people!”

QUESTION: Jesus said, “I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also.” (Matthew 5:39). What should be Chris’ response? 

It would seem to me that Christians would “turn the other cheek.”

But the bigger QUESTION is: “Can a follower of Jesus Christ be a comedian and make fun of people?”

There may be no safe or sure answer. But the 2022 Oscars ensured we will be discussing turning the other cheek for decades to come.