Buddy Christ is a parody

Parody

A parody , in current usage, is an imitative work created to mock, comment on, or trivialise an original work, its subject, author, style, or some other target, by means of humorous, satiric or ironic imitation...

 religious icon

Icon

An icon is a religious work of art, most commonly a painting, from Eastern Christianity and in certain Eastern Catholic churches...

 in the film Dogma

Dogma (film)

Dogma is a 1999 American adventure fantasy comedy film written and directed by Kevin Smith, who also stars in the film along with an ensemble cast that includes Ben Affleck, Matt Damon, Linda Fiorentino, Alan Rickman, Bud Cort, Salma Hayek, Chris Rock, Jason Lee, George Carlin, Janeane Garofalo,...

. In the film, he is part of a campaign ("Catholicism

Catholicism

Catholicism is a broad term for the body of the Catholic faith, its theologies and doctrines, its liturgical, ethical, spiritual, and behavioral characteristics, as well as a religious people as a whole....

 Wow!") to renew the image of (and interest in) the Catholic Church. Viewing the crucifix

Crucifix

A crucifix is an independent image of Jesus on the cross with a representation of Jesus' body, referred to in English as the corpus , as distinct from a cross with no body....

 image as "wholly depressing," the Church, led by Cardinal

Cardinal (Catholicism)

A cardinal is a senior ecclesiastical official, usually an ordained bishop, and ecclesiastical prince of the Catholic Church. They are collectively known as the College of Cardinals, which as a body elects a new pope. The duties of the cardinals include attending the meetings of the College and...

 Glick (George Carlin

George Carlin

George Denis Patrick Carlin was an American stand-up comedian, social critic, actor and author, who won five Grammy Awards for his comedy albums....

) decides to retire it, and creates Buddy Christ as a more uplifting image of Jesus Christ. The icon consists of a statue of Jesus, smiling and winking while pointing at onlookers with one hand and giving the thumbs-up sign with the other hand. The Buddy Christ was later produced as an action figure and a bobblehead.

Appearances

In addition to its unveiling in the film Dogma, Buddy Christ appears several other times in the View Askewniverse

View Askewniverse

The View Askewniverse is a fictional universe created by writer/director Kevin Smith, featured in several films, comics and a television series; it is named for Smith's production company, View Askew Productions. The characters Jay and Silent Bob appear in almost all the View Askewniverse media,...

.

• A nun (Carrie Fisher
  Carrie Fisher
  Carrie Frances Fisher is an American actress, novelist, screenwriter, and lecturer. She is most famous for her portrayal of Princess Leia in the original Star Wars trilogy, her bestselling novel Postcards from the Edge, for which she wrote the screenplay to the film of the same name, and her...
  
  ) who picks up a hitchhiking Jay and Silent Bob
  Jay and Silent Bob
  Jay and Silent Bob are fictional characters portrayed by Jason Mewes and Kevin Smith, respectively, in Kevin Smith's View Askewniverse, a fictional universe created and used in most films, comics and television by Smith, which began in Clerks....
  
   in Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back
  Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back
  Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back is a 2001 American action adventure comedy film written, directed by, and starring Kevin Smith as Silent Bob, the fifth to be set in his View Askewniverse, a growing collection of characters and settings that developed out of his cult favorite Clerks...
  
  has a Buddy Christ statue on her car dashboard.

• In the animated short Clerks: The Lost Scene, the "death cards" that Randal flicks through have numerous images that resemble Buddy Christ, as well as the angels from Dogma, Bartleby and Loki.

• In the film Clerks II
  Clerks II
  Clerks II is a 2006 American comedy film written and directed by Kevin Smith, sequel to his 1994 film Clerks, and his sixth and latest feature film to be set in the View Askewniverse...
  
  , Jay
  Jay and Silent Bob
  Jay and Silent Bob are fictional characters portrayed by Jason Mewes and Kevin Smith, respectively, in Kevin Smith's View Askewniverse, a fictional universe created and used in most films, comics and television by Smith, which began in Clerks....
  
   wears a "Got Christ?" tank top with Buddy Christ's image.

• Mooby the Golden Calf, a supposed "false god" or idol in Dogma, is often seen in the same pose as Buddy Christ. It is most notably featured at Mooby fast food
  Fast food
  Fast food is the term given to food that can be prepared and served very quickly. While any meal with low preparation time can be considered to be fast food, typically the term refers to food sold in a restaurant or store with preheated or precooked ingredients, and served to the customer in a...
  
   restaurants (in Dogma, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back
  Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back
  Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back is a 2001 American action adventure comedy film written, directed by, and starring Kevin Smith as Silent Bob, the fifth to be set in his View Askewniverse, a growing collection of characters and settings that developed out of his cult favorite Clerks...
  
  , and Clerks II
  Clerks II
  Clerks II is a 2006 American comedy film written and directed by Kevin Smith, sequel to his 1994 film Clerks, and his sixth and latest feature film to be set in the View Askewniverse...
  
  ).

Real life appearances

Buddy Christ was also featured in a Phones4U advert, where a cartoon graphic depicting him was featured alongside a range of Android phones with the message "Miraculous deals on Samsung Galaxy Android phones". The Advertising Standards Authority

Advertising Standards Authority

Advertising Standards Authority may refer to:*Advertising Standards Bureau *Advertising Standards Authority *Advertising Standards Authority *Advertising Standards Authority...

later issued a rebuke regarding the advert, saying 'We considered that, although the ads were intended to be light-hearted and humorous, their depiction of Jesus winking and holding a thumbs-up sign, with the text "miraculous" deals during Easter, the Christian Holy Week which celebrated Christ's resurrection, gave the impression that they were mocking and belittling core Christian beliefs,'.