That’s no Jesus fish…

I saw this emblem on the back of a car I was driving behind the other day. I admit I inched up perhaps dangerously close trying to see what exactly it was. It looked at first like a super fancy, swishy sort of Jesus fish, and then I realized: it was a shark!

What does a shark mean on the back of a car? I know of the Ichthys as a Christian symbol, and I’m familiar with the various sorts of evolution-fishes (with feet, with the word Darwin inside, maybe even about to exert some natural selection on a Jesus fish…). But a shark? I wasn’t sure. Could it be a symbol of a more aggressive brand of Christianity than the fish conveys? Or was it actually a sarcastic criticism of these often-violent fundamentalists?

Turns out that the website I found selling them, EvolveFish.com, isn’t quite sure, either.

If you’ve lost another emblem to the holy war, consider one of these sharks – just for the sturdy tape. Some people like these sharks because they illustrate the hostile nature of some popular American religions. Some members of those very religions like to display shark emblems as a symbol of their “muscular christianity.” Still others just like sharks…

Of course, they’re happy for anyone to purchase their products, whatever the reason. It looks like the only stance that they take is a general politically liberal, anything-but-fundie-Christian one. In addition to the Darwin fish, the Happy Human, and the Flying Spaghetti Monster, they sell Om symbols, Pagan fish, and UU chalices. Actually, that’d probably be the best descriptor — it feels strongly Unitarian Universalist to me. (Who’d have thought “strongly Unitarian Universalist” was a phrase I’d ever use?)

Anyway, if you have a shark on your car or if you have friends who have them, let me know! I’m curious as to the most popular intended meaning.