A form of greeting promoted by some Christian groups in which
two parties hug by wrapping one arm around the shoulder of the other person, as if posing for a photo, rather than the traditional "
front hug," or wrapping both arms around the shoulders or waist from the
front. The motivation behind the side hug is that frontal hugs allow the
two parties' crotches to touch, apparently emulating sexual activity.
While the Christian side hug has been promoted for a few decades, it came to the attention of the Internet with a much-ridiculed
Youtube video posted in November
2009, in which a Christian rap group attending the
2009 Encounter Generation Conference, a Christian youth conference, performed a rap song explaining the merits of the side hug. The video's unintentionally humorous message, lyrics, and the behavior of the performers (including mock gunfire and
police sirens contradicting the Christian message of the song) made it an Internet sensation, much to the embarrassment of Christians.
Debate ensued over how serious the song was intended to be. The writer and lead singer explained that the song was meant to parody overly protective Christian ideas. However, both the lyrics and the EG Conference's website clearly state that anyone caught "front hugging" will be removed from the event, calling this claim into question. Regardless, the video has already become extremely
popular on
Youtube and has spawned several spoofs.
