MORMON SEXY CALENDAR
Twelve new calendar boys are baring their bods and declaring their love for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Meet the poster boys for missionary style in their steamy new calendar, “Mormons Exposed.”
Members of the religion are forbidden to drink alcohol, coffee or tea, smoke cigarettes or have premarital sex. Each year, 50,000 young Mormons go on two-year missions to Third World countries around the globe to help feed the poor and teach people about Mormonism.
Each of the 12 men featured in the sexy calendar has recently returned from a mission, and calendar creator Chad Hardy, a sixth-generation member of the Mormon Church, hopes that by baring their beefy physiques the young gents will help dispel the uptight image that many have of the Mormon faith.
“What a great way to show the world that Mormons aren’t these stuffy, puritanical people,” Hardy said.
“It’s a way to showcase the different side of the Mormon male, and a lot of people think it is a great way to create a dialogue between different religions.”
If only more buff young men of faith would take their tops off in the name of religious understanding - the world would be a better place!
Mr. April, 24-year-old student Jonathan Martin, says he thinks the calendar is funny, but says he was kind of nervous at first.
“I had a little bit of apprehension, but then it was actually fun and lighthearted,” Martin said. He agrees with Hardy that the calendar will help take the stuffy edge off Mormonism.
“We are individuals, and we make our own decisions, and we take our religion seriously as well as our individuality.”
Plus, for Martin, who is hoping to break into the entertainment industry and has already written a screenplay, it wasn’t a bad way to get his name out there.
Of course, there’s been some backlash from conservative church members.
“Yeah, some people have told us we deserve to be excommunicated and that we are going to hell and aren’t properly representing Mormons, but a lot of people have been really supportive, too,” Hardy maintains.
The calendar went on sale three weeks ago exclusively at www.mormonsexposed.com and has already sold 1,000 copies. Hardy expects sales to increase as the holiday season approaches.
Each of the young missionaries who “bare testimony” in the calendar will have the opportunity to donate proceeds from sales to the area of the world where he served his mission.
http://www.religionnewsblog.com/19502/mormons-exposed-calendar
2008/07/16
Ancient Tablet Ignites Debate on Messiah and Resurrection
July 6, 2008
Ancient Tablet Ignites Debate on Messiah and Resurrection
By ETHAN BRONNER
JERUSALEM — A three-foot-tall tablet with 87 lines of Hebrew that scholars believe dates from the decades just before the birth of Jesus is causing a quiet stir in biblical and archaeological circles, especially because it may speak of a messiah who will rise from the dead after three days.
If such a messianic description really is there, it will contribute to a developing re-evaluation of both popular and scholarly views of Jesus, since it suggests that the story of his death and resurrection was not unique but part of a recognized Jewish tradition at the time.
The tablet, probably found near the Dead Sea in Jordan according to some scholars who have studied it, is a rare example of a stone with ink writings from that era — in essence, a Dead Sea Scroll on stone.
It is written, not engraved, across two neat columns, similar to columns in a Torah. But the stone is broken, and some of the text is faded, meaning that much of what it says is open to debate.
Still, its authenticity has so far faced no challenge, so its role in helping to understand the roots of Christianity in the devastating political crisis faced by the Jews of the time seems likely to increase.
Daniel Boyarin, a professor of Talmudic culture at the University of California at Berkeley, said that the stone was part of a growing body of evidence suggesting that Jesus could be best understood through a close reading of the Jewish history of his day.
“Some Christians will find it shocking — a challenge to the uniqueness of their theology — while others will be comforted by the idea of it being a traditional part of Judaism,” Mr. Boyarin said.
Given the highly charged atmosphere surrounding all Jesus-era artifacts and writings, both in the general public and in the fractured and fiercely competitive scholarly community, as well as the concern over forgery and charlatanism, it will probably be some time before the tablet’s contribution is fully assessed. It has been around 60 years since the Dead Sea Scrolls were uncovered, and they continue to generate enormous controversy regarding their authors and meaning.
The scrolls, documents found in the Qumran caves of the West Bank, contain some of the only known surviving copies of biblical writings from before the first century A.D. In addition to quoting from key books of the Bible, the scrolls describe a variety of practices and beliefs of a Jewish sect at the time of Jesus.
How representative the descriptions are and what they tell us about the era are still strongly debated. For example, a question that arises is whether the authors of the scrolls were members of a monastic sect or in fact mainstream. A conference marking 60 years since the discovery of the scrolls will begin on Sunday at the Israel Museum in Jerusalem, where the stone, and the debate over whether it speaks of a resurrected messiah, as one iconoclastic scholar believes, also will be discussed.
Oddly, the stone is not really a new discovery. It was found about a decade ago and bought from a Jordanian antiquities dealer by an Israeli-Swiss collector who kept it in his Zurich home. When an Israeli scholar examined it closely a few years ago and wrote a paper on it last year, interest began to rise. There is now a spate of scholarly articles on the stone, with several due to be published in the coming months.
“I couldn’t make much out of it when I got it,” said David Jeselsohn, the owner, who is himself an expert in antiquities. “I didn’t realize how significant it was until I showed it to Ada Yardeni, who specializes in Hebrew writing, a few years ago. She was overwhelmed. ‘You have got a Dead Sea Scroll on stone,’ she told me.”
Much of the text, a vision of the apocalypse transmitted by the angel Gabriel, draws on the Old Testament, especially the prophets Daniel, Zechariah and Haggai.
Ms. Yardeni, who analyzed the stone along with Binyamin Elitzur, is an expert on Hebrew script, especially of the era of King Herod, who died in 4 B.C. The two of them published a long analysis of the stone more than a year ago in Cathedra, a Hebrew-language quarterly devoted to the history and archaeology of Israel, and said that, based on the shape of the script and the language, the text dated from the late first century B.C.
A chemical examination by Yuval Goren, a professor of archaeology at Tel Aviv University who specializes in the verification of ancient artifacts, has been submitted to a peer-review journal. He declined to give details of his analysis until publication, but he said that he knew of no reason to doubt the stone’s authenticity.
It was in Cathedra that Israel Knohl, an iconoclastic professor of Bible studies at Hebrew University in Jerusalem, first heard of the stone, which Ms. Yardeni and Mr. Elitzur dubbed “Gabriel’s Revelation,” also the title of their article. Mr. Knohl posited in a book published in 2000 the idea of a suffering messiah before Jesus, using a variety of rabbinic and early apocalyptic literature as well as the Dead Sea Scrolls. But his theory did not shake the world of Christology as he had hoped, partly because he had no textual evidence from before Jesus.
When he read “Gabriel’s Revelation,” he said, he believed he saw what he needed to solidify his thesis, and he has published his argument in the latest issue of The Journal of Religion.
Mr. Knohl is part of a larger scholarly movement that focuses on the political atmosphere in Jesus’ day as an important explanation of that era’s messianic spirit. As he notes, after the death of Herod, Jewish rebels sought to throw off the yoke of the Rome-supported monarchy, so the rise of a major Jewish independence fighter could take on messianic overtones.
In Mr. Knohl’s interpretation, the specific messianic figure embodied on the stone could be a man named Simon who was slain by a commander in the Herodian army, according to the first-century historian Josephus. The writers of the stone’s passages were probably Simon’s followers, Mr. Knohl contends.
The slaying of Simon, or any case of the suffering messiah, is seen as a necessary step toward national salvation, he says, pointing to lines 19 through 21 of the tablet — “In three days you will know that evil will be defeated by justice” — and other lines that speak of blood and slaughter as pathways to justice.
To make his case about the importance of the stone, Mr. Knohl focuses especially on line 80, which begins clearly with the words “L’shloshet yamin,” meaning “in three days.” The next word of the line was deemed partially illegible by Ms. Yardeni and Mr. Elitzur, but Mr. Knohl, who is an expert on the language of the Bible and Talmud, says the word is “hayeh,” or “live” in the imperative. It has an unusual spelling, but it is one in keeping with the era.
Two more hard-to-read words come later, and Mr. Knohl said he believed that he had deciphered them as well, so that the line reads, “In three days you shall live, I, Gabriel, command you.”
To whom is the archangel speaking? The next line says “Sar hasarin,” or prince of princes. Since the Book of Daniel, one of the primary sources for the Gabriel text, speaks of Gabriel and of “a prince of princes,” Mr. Knohl contends that the stone’s writings are about the death of a leader of the Jews who will be resurrected in three days.
He says further that such a suffering messiah is very different from the traditional Jewish image of the messiah as a triumphal, powerful descendant of King David.
“This should shake our basic view of Christianity,” he said as he sat in his office of the Shalom Hartman Institute in Jerusalem where he is a senior fellow in addition to being the Yehezkel Kaufman Professor of Biblical Studies at Hebrew University. “Resurrection after three days becomes a motif developed before Jesus, which runs contrary to nearly all scholarship. What happens in the New Testament was adopted by Jesus and his followers based on an earlier messiah story.”
Ms. Yardeni said she was impressed with the reading and considered it indeed likely that the key illegible word was “hayeh,” or “live.” Whether that means Simon is the messiah under discussion, she is less sure.
Moshe Bar-Asher, president of the Israeli Academy of Hebrew Language and emeritus professor of Hebrew and Aramaic at the Hebrew University, said he spent a long time studying the text and considered it authentic, dating from no later than the first century B.C. His 25-page paper on the stone will be published in the coming months.
Regarding Mr. Knohl’s thesis, Mr. Bar-Asher is also respectful but cautious. “There is one problem,” he said. “In crucial places of the text there is lack of text. I understand Knohl’s tendency to find there keys to the pre-Christian period, but in two to three crucial lines of text there are a lot of missing words.”
Moshe Idel, a professor of Jewish thought at Hebrew University, said that given the way every tiny fragment from that era yielded scores of articles and books, “Gabriel’s Revelation” and Mr. Knohl’s analysis deserved serious attention. “Here we have a real stone with a real text,” he said. “This is truly significant.”
Mr. Knohl said that it was less important whether Simon was the messiah of the stone than the fact that it strongly suggested that a savior who died and rose after three days was an established concept at the time of Jesus. He notes that in the Gospels, Jesus makes numerous predictions of his suffering and New Testament scholars say such predictions must have been written in by later followers because there was no such idea present in his day.
But there was, he said, and “Gabriel’s Revelation” shows it.
“His mission is that he has to be put to death by the Romans to suffer so his blood will be the sign for redemption to come,” Mr. Knohl said. “This is the sign of the son of Joseph. This is the conscious view of Jesus himself. This gives the Last Supper an absolutely different meaning. To shed blood is not for the sins of people but to bring redemption to Israel.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/06/world/middleeast/06stone.html?_r=2&oref=slogin&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&pagewanted=print
Ancient Tablet Ignites Debate on Messiah and Resurrection
By ETHAN BRONNER
JERUSALEM — A three-foot-tall tablet with 87 lines of Hebrew that scholars believe dates from the decades just before the birth of Jesus is causing a quiet stir in biblical and archaeological circles, especially because it may speak of a messiah who will rise from the dead after three days.
If such a messianic description really is there, it will contribute to a developing re-evaluation of both popular and scholarly views of Jesus, since it suggests that the story of his death and resurrection was not unique but part of a recognized Jewish tradition at the time.
The tablet, probably found near the Dead Sea in Jordan according to some scholars who have studied it, is a rare example of a stone with ink writings from that era — in essence, a Dead Sea Scroll on stone.
It is written, not engraved, across two neat columns, similar to columns in a Torah. But the stone is broken, and some of the text is faded, meaning that much of what it says is open to debate.
Still, its authenticity has so far faced no challenge, so its role in helping to understand the roots of Christianity in the devastating political crisis faced by the Jews of the time seems likely to increase.
Daniel Boyarin, a professor of Talmudic culture at the University of California at Berkeley, said that the stone was part of a growing body of evidence suggesting that Jesus could be best understood through a close reading of the Jewish history of his day.
“Some Christians will find it shocking — a challenge to the uniqueness of their theology — while others will be comforted by the idea of it being a traditional part of Judaism,” Mr. Boyarin said.
Given the highly charged atmosphere surrounding all Jesus-era artifacts and writings, both in the general public and in the fractured and fiercely competitive scholarly community, as well as the concern over forgery and charlatanism, it will probably be some time before the tablet’s contribution is fully assessed. It has been around 60 years since the Dead Sea Scrolls were uncovered, and they continue to generate enormous controversy regarding their authors and meaning.
The scrolls, documents found in the Qumran caves of the West Bank, contain some of the only known surviving copies of biblical writings from before the first century A.D. In addition to quoting from key books of the Bible, the scrolls describe a variety of practices and beliefs of a Jewish sect at the time of Jesus.
How representative the descriptions are and what they tell us about the era are still strongly debated. For example, a question that arises is whether the authors of the scrolls were members of a monastic sect or in fact mainstream. A conference marking 60 years since the discovery of the scrolls will begin on Sunday at the Israel Museum in Jerusalem, where the stone, and the debate over whether it speaks of a resurrected messiah, as one iconoclastic scholar believes, also will be discussed.
Oddly, the stone is not really a new discovery. It was found about a decade ago and bought from a Jordanian antiquities dealer by an Israeli-Swiss collector who kept it in his Zurich home. When an Israeli scholar examined it closely a few years ago and wrote a paper on it last year, interest began to rise. There is now a spate of scholarly articles on the stone, with several due to be published in the coming months.
“I couldn’t make much out of it when I got it,” said David Jeselsohn, the owner, who is himself an expert in antiquities. “I didn’t realize how significant it was until I showed it to Ada Yardeni, who specializes in Hebrew writing, a few years ago. She was overwhelmed. ‘You have got a Dead Sea Scroll on stone,’ she told me.”
Much of the text, a vision of the apocalypse transmitted by the angel Gabriel, draws on the Old Testament, especially the prophets Daniel, Zechariah and Haggai.
Ms. Yardeni, who analyzed the stone along with Binyamin Elitzur, is an expert on Hebrew script, especially of the era of King Herod, who died in 4 B.C. The two of them published a long analysis of the stone more than a year ago in Cathedra, a Hebrew-language quarterly devoted to the history and archaeology of Israel, and said that, based on the shape of the script and the language, the text dated from the late first century B.C.
A chemical examination by Yuval Goren, a professor of archaeology at Tel Aviv University who specializes in the verification of ancient artifacts, has been submitted to a peer-review journal. He declined to give details of his analysis until publication, but he said that he knew of no reason to doubt the stone’s authenticity.
It was in Cathedra that Israel Knohl, an iconoclastic professor of Bible studies at Hebrew University in Jerusalem, first heard of the stone, which Ms. Yardeni and Mr. Elitzur dubbed “Gabriel’s Revelation,” also the title of their article. Mr. Knohl posited in a book published in 2000 the idea of a suffering messiah before Jesus, using a variety of rabbinic and early apocalyptic literature as well as the Dead Sea Scrolls. But his theory did not shake the world of Christology as he had hoped, partly because he had no textual evidence from before Jesus.
When he read “Gabriel’s Revelation,” he said, he believed he saw what he needed to solidify his thesis, and he has published his argument in the latest issue of The Journal of Religion.
Mr. Knohl is part of a larger scholarly movement that focuses on the political atmosphere in Jesus’ day as an important explanation of that era’s messianic spirit. As he notes, after the death of Herod, Jewish rebels sought to throw off the yoke of the Rome-supported monarchy, so the rise of a major Jewish independence fighter could take on messianic overtones.
In Mr. Knohl’s interpretation, the specific messianic figure embodied on the stone could be a man named Simon who was slain by a commander in the Herodian army, according to the first-century historian Josephus. The writers of the stone’s passages were probably Simon’s followers, Mr. Knohl contends.
The slaying of Simon, or any case of the suffering messiah, is seen as a necessary step toward national salvation, he says, pointing to lines 19 through 21 of the tablet — “In three days you will know that evil will be defeated by justice” — and other lines that speak of blood and slaughter as pathways to justice.
To make his case about the importance of the stone, Mr. Knohl focuses especially on line 80, which begins clearly with the words “L’shloshet yamin,” meaning “in three days.” The next word of the line was deemed partially illegible by Ms. Yardeni and Mr. Elitzur, but Mr. Knohl, who is an expert on the language of the Bible and Talmud, says the word is “hayeh,” or “live” in the imperative. It has an unusual spelling, but it is one in keeping with the era.
Two more hard-to-read words come later, and Mr. Knohl said he believed that he had deciphered them as well, so that the line reads, “In three days you shall live, I, Gabriel, command you.”
To whom is the archangel speaking? The next line says “Sar hasarin,” or prince of princes. Since the Book of Daniel, one of the primary sources for the Gabriel text, speaks of Gabriel and of “a prince of princes,” Mr. Knohl contends that the stone’s writings are about the death of a leader of the Jews who will be resurrected in three days.
He says further that such a suffering messiah is very different from the traditional Jewish image of the messiah as a triumphal, powerful descendant of King David.
“This should shake our basic view of Christianity,” he said as he sat in his office of the Shalom Hartman Institute in Jerusalem where he is a senior fellow in addition to being the Yehezkel Kaufman Professor of Biblical Studies at Hebrew University. “Resurrection after three days becomes a motif developed before Jesus, which runs contrary to nearly all scholarship. What happens in the New Testament was adopted by Jesus and his followers based on an earlier messiah story.”
Ms. Yardeni said she was impressed with the reading and considered it indeed likely that the key illegible word was “hayeh,” or “live.” Whether that means Simon is the messiah under discussion, she is less sure.
Moshe Bar-Asher, president of the Israeli Academy of Hebrew Language and emeritus professor of Hebrew and Aramaic at the Hebrew University, said he spent a long time studying the text and considered it authentic, dating from no later than the first century B.C. His 25-page paper on the stone will be published in the coming months.
Regarding Mr. Knohl’s thesis, Mr. Bar-Asher is also respectful but cautious. “There is one problem,” he said. “In crucial places of the text there is lack of text. I understand Knohl’s tendency to find there keys to the pre-Christian period, but in two to three crucial lines of text there are a lot of missing words.”
Moshe Idel, a professor of Jewish thought at Hebrew University, said that given the way every tiny fragment from that era yielded scores of articles and books, “Gabriel’s Revelation” and Mr. Knohl’s analysis deserved serious attention. “Here we have a real stone with a real text,” he said. “This is truly significant.”
Mr. Knohl said that it was less important whether Simon was the messiah of the stone than the fact that it strongly suggested that a savior who died and rose after three days was an established concept at the time of Jesus. He notes that in the Gospels, Jesus makes numerous predictions of his suffering and New Testament scholars say such predictions must have been written in by later followers because there was no such idea present in his day.
But there was, he said, and “Gabriel’s Revelation” shows it.
“His mission is that he has to be put to death by the Romans to suffer so his blood will be the sign for redemption to come,” Mr. Knohl said. “This is the sign of the son of Joseph. This is the conscious view of Jesus himself. This gives the Last Supper an absolutely different meaning. To shed blood is not for the sins of people but to bring redemption to Israel.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/06/world/middleeast/06stone.html?_r=2&oref=slogin&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&pagewanted=print
2008/04/29
BLASPHEMY-JESUS IN GAY ORGY PICTURES
l
Outrage over Alfred Hrdlicka's gay Jesus
By Harry de Quetteville in Berlin
Pictures depicting Jesus being fondled and the Apostles groping each
other have caused outrage after they were displayed in a museum
attached to
Vienna's Roman Catholic Cathedral.
The museum has been forced to remove the most controversial picture,
in which the Apostles engage in what the artist describes as a
"homosexual
orgy".
a.. The exhibition, entitled "Religion, Flesh and Power" featured
works from sculptor and artist Alfred Hrdlicka, who turned 80 this
year and
is widely feted in his native Austria.
It quickly began attracting criticism from Catholic groups after
opening last week, some of which described the pictures as
"blasphemous".
The website Gloria TV, whose catch line is "the more Catholic the
better", produced a graphic video of the exhibition, condemning it for
being
"supported by the Church".
Some local media have likened the controversy to the bitter argument
over the cartoon portrayal of Islam's prophet Mohammed, which led to
protests and violence around the world.
Vienna's archbishop, Cardinal Christoph Schoenborn, has now ordered
the "homosexual orgy" picture, entitled Leonardo's Last Supper, to be
taken
down.
"This has nothing to do with censorship", said the Cardinal, adding
that it was removed with "reverence for the sacred".
But other pictures which have proved also controversial, including
one
showing Christ being fondled while on the cross, are still on
display.
Bernhard Boehler, the museum curator, has insisted that despite the
criticism, the exhibition is serving its purpose by encouraging
debate.
"We think Hrdlicka is entitled to represent people in this carnal,
drastic way," he said. "People can imagine what they want to."
According to notes accompanying the exhibition, Mr Hrdlicka's work
focuses on the carnality of religion, and on the search for "God as a
human
experience".
http://www.groupsrv.com/religion/about289177.html
Vienna Cardinal Regrets Erotic Last Supper ArtThe cardinal told the
museum to take down the picture, ˝a homosexual orgy˝ of the Apostles
as Hrdlicka describes it.
Reuters Vienna's Roman Catholic cardinal said on Wednesday that he
regrets the exhibition of a homoerotic version of Christ's Last Supper
in a museum linked to his diocese.
The controversial work was exhibited in Vienna's Cathedral Museum as
part of a retrospective honouring Austria's renowned artist Alfred
Hrdlicka, who recently turned 80.
Cardinal Christoph Schoenborn, archbishop of Vienna, said he had
backed the exhibition without knowing the detailed contents.
"I obviously would not have agreed to have blasphemous or pornographic
works exhibited. I therefore explicitly regret that a work of this
kind was exhibited without my knowledge," the cardinal said in a
statement.
The cardinal told the museum to take down the picture, "a homosexual
orgy" of the Apostles as Hrdlicka describes it, just over a week after
the display opened, after some visitors complained and it provoked a
fierce uproar on Catholic websites.
Protest has continued over the picture 'Leonardo's Last Supper,
restored by Pier Paolo Pasolini' which showed cavorting Apostles
lounging on the dining table and masturbating each other. It was
supposed to be a highlight of the display.
"In some of (the pictures) he oversteps the essential threshold of
respect for the sacred," the cardinal said, adding that the museum
does not identify with all of the works.
But he also defended Hrdlicka as one of Austria's most notable living
artists who deserved such a retrospective.
"Hrdlicka...probably more than any other living artist, has devoted
himself to the suffering and downtrodden human being and has appealed
for "compassion" with the "Passion," he said.
The museum has said it did not set out to offend people but has
defended Hrdlicka's work and the decision to display the controversial
versions of biblical imagery.
Schoenborn, a former student of Pope Benedict who edited the Catholic
Church's official catechism in the 1990s, maintains that art inspired
by the Bible should be celebrated.
"I still hold the opinion that we must welcome the fact that artists
who do not share our faith, or are still searching for belief, occupy
themselves so intensively with biblical subjects," he said.
http://www.javno.com/en/bestseller/clanak.php?id=139046
Outrage over Alfred Hrdlicka's gay Jesus
By Harry de Quetteville in Berlin
Pictures depicting Jesus being fondled and the Apostles groping each
other have caused outrage after they were displayed in a museum
attached to
Vienna's Roman Catholic Cathedral.
The museum has been forced to remove the most controversial picture,
in which the Apostles engage in what the artist describes as a
"homosexual
orgy".
a.. The exhibition, entitled "Religion, Flesh and Power" featured
works from sculptor and artist Alfred Hrdlicka, who turned 80 this
year and
is widely feted in his native Austria.
It quickly began attracting criticism from Catholic groups after
opening last week, some of which described the pictures as
"blasphemous".
The website Gloria TV, whose catch line is "the more Catholic the
better", produced a graphic video of the exhibition, condemning it for
being
"supported by the Church".
Some local media have likened the controversy to the bitter argument
over the cartoon portrayal of Islam's prophet Mohammed, which led to
protests and violence around the world.
Vienna's archbishop, Cardinal Christoph Schoenborn, has now ordered
the "homosexual orgy" picture, entitled Leonardo's Last Supper, to be
taken
down.
"This has nothing to do with censorship", said the Cardinal, adding
that it was removed with "reverence for the sacred".
But other pictures which have proved also controversial, including
one
showing Christ being fondled while on the cross, are still on
display.
Bernhard Boehler, the museum curator, has insisted that despite the
criticism, the exhibition is serving its purpose by encouraging
debate.
"We think Hrdlicka is entitled to represent people in this carnal,
drastic way," he said. "People can imagine what they want to."
According to notes accompanying the exhibition, Mr Hrdlicka's work
focuses on the carnality of religion, and on the search for "God as a
human
experience".
http://www.groupsrv.com/religion/about289177.html
Vienna Cardinal Regrets Erotic Last Supper ArtThe cardinal told the
museum to take down the picture, ˝a homosexual orgy˝ of the Apostles
as Hrdlicka describes it.
Reuters Vienna's Roman Catholic cardinal said on Wednesday that he
regrets the exhibition of a homoerotic version of Christ's Last Supper
in a museum linked to his diocese.
The controversial work was exhibited in Vienna's Cathedral Museum as
part of a retrospective honouring Austria's renowned artist Alfred
Hrdlicka, who recently turned 80.
Cardinal Christoph Schoenborn, archbishop of Vienna, said he had
backed the exhibition without knowing the detailed contents.
"I obviously would not have agreed to have blasphemous or pornographic
works exhibited. I therefore explicitly regret that a work of this
kind was exhibited without my knowledge," the cardinal said in a
statement.
The cardinal told the museum to take down the picture, "a homosexual
orgy" of the Apostles as Hrdlicka describes it, just over a week after
the display opened, after some visitors complained and it provoked a
fierce uproar on Catholic websites.
Protest has continued over the picture 'Leonardo's Last Supper,
restored by Pier Paolo Pasolini' which showed cavorting Apostles
lounging on the dining table and masturbating each other. It was
supposed to be a highlight of the display.
"In some of (the pictures) he oversteps the essential threshold of
respect for the sacred," the cardinal said, adding that the museum
does not identify with all of the works.
But he also defended Hrdlicka as one of Austria's most notable living
artists who deserved such a retrospective.
"Hrdlicka...probably more than any other living artist, has devoted
himself to the suffering and downtrodden human being and has appealed
for "compassion" with the "Passion," he said.
The museum has said it did not set out to offend people but has
defended Hrdlicka's work and the decision to display the controversial
versions of biblical imagery.
Schoenborn, a former student of Pope Benedict who edited the Catholic
Church's official catechism in the 1990s, maintains that art inspired
by the Bible should be celebrated.
"I still hold the opinion that we must welcome the fact that artists
who do not share our faith, or are still searching for belief, occupy
themselves so intensively with biblical subjects," he said.
http://www.javno.com/en/bestseller/clanak.php?id=139046
THE SUPERPORNO-BLASPHEMOUS FILM " PASSIO "
Dark Alley Media’s first foray into controversial cinema brought us Gaytanamo, a gleeful mockery of the government’s war on terror and the Guantanamo prisons.
Now the mischievous movie makers are dipping their toes into the wild world of religion. And, not surprisingly, they’re going to get some shocks, gasps and, hopefully, moans.
James Withers chats with director Matthias Von Fistenberg to get to the bottom of the newly released video, after the jump…
Matthias Von Fistenberg’s Passio will surely make a few Fox News anchors explode - and not in a good way. In fact, it is safe to say that even those non-acolytes of the “fair and balanced” network will be disturbed by von Fistenberg’s Jesus. This savior could care less about clothing the naked or feeding the hungry, unless the meal’s cock.
“My Jesus is gay, stunningly beautiful and sexy. He gets aroused like all of us,” explains Von Fistenberg, who describes himself as a Catholic. The director also admits his Jesus story can’t be found in hotel room Bible. “The movie is a gospel, passio, version of the Jesus story according to
me.”
If people are shocked and appalled by Von Fistenberg’s re-telling of the Gospels, he gently reminds us that theocratic rules aren’t our lot. “Luckily we don’t live anymore in times when the Church controls the media and courts,” Von Fistenberg says. “Under the protection of our freedom of speech law, all biblical topics are open to any interpretation. Now, maybe the Pope will excommunicate me or Fox News will have a field day, but they wont be able to take away this important step towards exercising fully the right to free speech and artistic freedom.”
Though he expects howls of protest, Von Fistenberg reminds us that today’s revered religious art once counted as yesterday’s scandal. “From Michelangelo to Mantegna, Piero Della Francesca and Paul Gauguin, images of Jesus Christ have offended, delighted, outraged, and inspired the devout. For each controversial image, the sacred and profane was mixed in new ways, challenging viewers to rethink their own religion, spirituality, and sexuality. I will only mention that there are plenty of nude Christs in Renaissance art and nudity, courtesy of Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel, was considered obscene.”
Despite this art history lesson, even for a born again atheist such as myself myself there is something disquieting about these images Von Fistenberg is putting out there. A part of me would rather he just film hot guys having sex and leave all the religion stuff alone. Like a good teacher, Von Fistenberg makes me see the light. “As a porn director I am given the same tools as any other director so why should I not use them and express myself? Why should I pretend I don’t have my opinions, on politics, religion or on what’s sexy? My movies are made in a way that you can skip it all and go straight to sex. They have that utilitarian value, but it you watch them from start to finish they offer a view of the world as relevant as anybody else’s.”
Ultimately Von Fistenberg takes his job seriously and refuses to be restrained by the word pornographer. He’s not asking for the faithful to bow down to his vision of Christ. “You choose which Jesus is yours,” he says.
Regardless of your choice, the director remains convinced that underneath the outrage and disgust will be desire and want. “I’m a modern day Marquis de Sade. I show you what is sexy. First you think its wrong because you are so programmed by society, but later, when no one is watching, you can’t deny it.”
Now the mischievous movie makers are dipping their toes into the wild world of religion. And, not surprisingly, they’re going to get some shocks, gasps and, hopefully, moans.
James Withers chats with director Matthias Von Fistenberg to get to the bottom of the newly released video, after the jump…
Matthias Von Fistenberg’s Passio will surely make a few Fox News anchors explode - and not in a good way. In fact, it is safe to say that even those non-acolytes of the “fair and balanced” network will be disturbed by von Fistenberg’s Jesus. This savior could care less about clothing the naked or feeding the hungry, unless the meal’s cock.
“My Jesus is gay, stunningly beautiful and sexy. He gets aroused like all of us,” explains Von Fistenberg, who describes himself as a Catholic. The director also admits his Jesus story can’t be found in hotel room Bible. “The movie is a gospel, passio, version of the Jesus story according to
me.”
If people are shocked and appalled by Von Fistenberg’s re-telling of the Gospels, he gently reminds us that theocratic rules aren’t our lot. “Luckily we don’t live anymore in times when the Church controls the media and courts,” Von Fistenberg says. “Under the protection of our freedom of speech law, all biblical topics are open to any interpretation. Now, maybe the Pope will excommunicate me or Fox News will have a field day, but they wont be able to take away this important step towards exercising fully the right to free speech and artistic freedom.”
Though he expects howls of protest, Von Fistenberg reminds us that today’s revered religious art once counted as yesterday’s scandal. “From Michelangelo to Mantegna, Piero Della Francesca and Paul Gauguin, images of Jesus Christ have offended, delighted, outraged, and inspired the devout. For each controversial image, the sacred and profane was mixed in new ways, challenging viewers to rethink their own religion, spirituality, and sexuality. I will only mention that there are plenty of nude Christs in Renaissance art and nudity, courtesy of Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel, was considered obscene.”
Despite this art history lesson, even for a born again atheist such as myself myself there is something disquieting about these images Von Fistenberg is putting out there. A part of me would rather he just film hot guys having sex and leave all the religion stuff alone. Like a good teacher, Von Fistenberg makes me see the light. “As a porn director I am given the same tools as any other director so why should I not use them and express myself? Why should I pretend I don’t have my opinions, on politics, religion or on what’s sexy? My movies are made in a way that you can skip it all and go straight to sex. They have that utilitarian value, but it you watch them from start to finish they offer a view of the world as relevant as anybody else’s.”
Ultimately Von Fistenberg takes his job seriously and refuses to be restrained by the word pornographer. He’s not asking for the faithful to bow down to his vision of Christ. “You choose which Jesus is yours,” he says.
Regardless of your choice, the director remains convinced that underneath the outrage and disgust will be desire and want. “I’m a modern day Marquis de Sade. I show you what is sexy. First you think its wrong because you are so programmed by society, but later, when no one is watching, you can’t deny it.”
BLASPHEMY-JUDAS WAS A GAY
Blasphemy-Judas was a gay
About Judas Iscariot-The italian Crimonology Doctor Francesco Bruno declares that
Judas was a neurotic-homosexual.
This blasphemous article is edited by the very catholic Petrus;
http://www.papanews.it/dettaglio_interviste.asp?IdNews=6574#a
about the Pope news web-site.
Catholic christians are going to believe that Jesus and his Apostles were all gay.
ANTI-BLASPHEMY CENTRAL
http://groups.google.com/group/anti-blasphemy-central?hl=it
About Judas Iscariot-The italian Crimonology Doctor Francesco Bruno declares that
Judas was a neurotic-homosexual.
This blasphemous article is edited by the very catholic Petrus;
http://www.papanews.it/dettaglio_interviste.asp?IdNews=6574#a
about the Pope news web-site.
Catholic christians are going to believe that Jesus and his Apostles were all gay.
ANTI-BLASPHEMY CENTRAL
http://groups.google.com/group/anti-blasphemy-central?hl=it
2008/02/26
THE BLASPHEMOUS COMIC : LOADED BIBLE 2
Loaded Bible 2: Blood of Christ
Comic Books: Horror: 0 comments: 05/26/2007
By Rae_rae
Jesus Christ Vampire Slayer
Quick warning: if you do not like vampires, if you do not have a sense of humor when it comes to Christianity, if books like Battle Pope and The Goon offend you then do not even think about picking this up. Everyone else should at least be mildly amused by this. Almost a year or so ago the first Loaded Bible came out. In that we were introduced to a post apocalyptic world where vampires ruled most of the Earth, the Vatican controlled most of society and killed anyone who rebelled, and Jesus came back to kill the vampires. Or so that’s what Jesus and the people thought. A circle of vamp leaders infiltrated the priests that ran society in order to show humans ‘the truth.’ What was this ‘truth’? How about the fact that their faith did not bring the second coming of Jesus to save them but cloning did. Add that with film of Jesus talking to a very sexy, very naked female vampire showing him (and the camera) the reserve of clones makes for a rebellion of the people. Then nothing. I don’t know what took Image so long to put this second book out but I’m glad they did. This issue picks up two days after the people who followed the Vatican learned ‘the truth.’ Jesus, trying to cope with the fact that he is not the messiah, is now MIA in the desert. Things get more confusing for him when he finds a vampire baby and tries to save it but cannot. Meanwhile, an angry mob becomes violent when drones for the Vatican try to kill the vamp that told them the truth about their Jesus. Then the priests let loose they other Jesus clones, but not before letting hell break loose on the mob by releasing some starved test vamps they had captured first. After all, what better way to restore faith then by the farce of saving people from monsters you let loose yourself.
This book was very comical. Ok, so not obviously comical like Battle Pope, but the plot is just so fanatical that I couldn’t stop laughing. This book has a bit of a dark tone, is bloody, has boobies, and is violent. Maybe I just have a sick sense of humor, but if you want something different pick this book up. The only downside to this for me was the $4.99 price tag. Looks like gas isn’t the only thing going up in price.
http://www.popsyndicate.com/site/story/loaded_bible_2_blood_of_christ
Comic Books: Horror: 0 comments: 05/26/2007
By Rae_rae
Jesus Christ Vampire Slayer
Quick warning: if you do not like vampires, if you do not have a sense of humor when it comes to Christianity, if books like Battle Pope and The Goon offend you then do not even think about picking this up. Everyone else should at least be mildly amused by this. Almost a year or so ago the first Loaded Bible came out. In that we were introduced to a post apocalyptic world where vampires ruled most of the Earth, the Vatican controlled most of society and killed anyone who rebelled, and Jesus came back to kill the vampires. Or so that’s what Jesus and the people thought. A circle of vamp leaders infiltrated the priests that ran society in order to show humans ‘the truth.’ What was this ‘truth’? How about the fact that their faith did not bring the second coming of Jesus to save them but cloning did. Add that with film of Jesus talking to a very sexy, very naked female vampire showing him (and the camera) the reserve of clones makes for a rebellion of the people. Then nothing. I don’t know what took Image so long to put this second book out but I’m glad they did. This issue picks up two days after the people who followed the Vatican learned ‘the truth.’ Jesus, trying to cope with the fact that he is not the messiah, is now MIA in the desert. Things get more confusing for him when he finds a vampire baby and tries to save it but cannot. Meanwhile, an angry mob becomes violent when drones for the Vatican try to kill the vamp that told them the truth about their Jesus. Then the priests let loose they other Jesus clones, but not before letting hell break loose on the mob by releasing some starved test vamps they had captured first. After all, what better way to restore faith then by the farce of saving people from monsters you let loose yourself.
This book was very comical. Ok, so not obviously comical like Battle Pope, but the plot is just so fanatical that I couldn’t stop laughing. This book has a bit of a dark tone, is bloody, has boobies, and is violent. Maybe I just have a sick sense of humor, but if you want something different pick this book up. The only downside to this for me was the $4.99 price tag. Looks like gas isn’t the only thing going up in price.
http://www.popsyndicate.com/site/story/loaded_bible_2_blood_of_christ
THE BLASPHEMOUS COMIC :LOADED BIBLE
JESUS SAVES: SEELEY TALKS "LOADED BIBLE" by Dave Richards, Staff Writer Posted: February 1, 2006 — More From This Author
NOTE: The following contains some adult content and language.
Contrary to what the heavy metal band Slayer would have you believe, Jesus saves everyone; not through sermons, but by kicking some undead ass! This is the premise behind "Loaded Bible: Jesus vs. Vampires," a 48 page one shot shipping in April from Image Comics. CBR News spoke with writer Tim Seeley about the book, which is set in a dystopian future world overrun by blood thirsty nosferatu.
The roots of "Loaded Bible" stretch back to Seeley's teenage years. "Waaaay back when I was a teenager I was driving around listening to college radio when they played this crazy song where the lyrics were something to do with 'a rifle in one hand and a bible in the other,'" Seeley told CBR News. "For whatever reason, it gave me this idea to do a western where Jesus fought vampires. I went home and told my brother Steve about it and he started talking about an idea he had involving Jesus. I liked his, so we combined our ideas into 'Loaded Bible.' When I worked for Dead Dog Comics, I actually published a 'Loaded Bible' short story in 'From Heaven to Hell' #1, with art by pre- 'G.I. Joe' Steve Kurth. Eventually, I started working for DDP, and 'Bible' got back-burnered as I worked on 'G.I. Joe,' 'Dark Elf' and 'Hack/Slash.'
"But, one day a year ago, I sat down and wrote a 42 page story, out of nowhere," Seeley continued. "I was surprised it just came out like that. I 'm friends with several of the guys at Image and I sent it to them. They thought it sounded fun, so we began the slow process of getting an artist on it, and scheduling it up. Robert Kirkman, who's an old friend of mine, kicked it in high gear by hooking me up with Nate Bellgrade and Make Englert. And, away we went, hopefully right in time for an Easter release!"
Horror movie fans might incorrectly think that Seeley was influenced by the 2001 independent horror comedy "Jesus Christ, Vampire Hunter." "That movie came out several years after young Steve and I started working on 'Bible.'" Seeley said. "I was so bummed when I saw the ad for that movie. But, I rented it anyway...it's good. Check it out. But, it's pretty different from 'Bible.' 'Bible' is actually this sort of epic science fiction story (believe it or not!), with more in common with stories like 'Blade Runner' and 'I Am Legend.' No seriously. But, being me, I also wrote in a fair amount of silly, bad-ass Jesus one-liners. I mean, I'm just not that strong. I had to."
"Loaded Bible" is set in the near future in a dark, dystopian world. "After 9/11, Americans become more insular, more routed in Christian faith, to the point where church and state become inseparable. Then, one day, we find out that vampires exist. And from there, everything goes to hell," Seeley explained. "Bible takes place in the aftermath of a nuclear war with the Vampire Nation. The last outpost of humanity is a giant theocratic church-state called New Vatican City. Vampires are everywhere, most of them starving due to a lack of human prey. They're getting desperate. And then, our boy Jesus comes along."
Seeley is keeping mum on the details of Christ's return, but Jesus finds himself thrust into a world where living up to the role of Savior of mankind won't be an easy task. "Our Jesus is as much based on what I could find out about the real Christ as possible, combined with a sort of Snake Plissken bad ass hero. He's a good person - a thinker, a progressive. But, he's responsible for all these people, who all look to him to save them. It makes him sort of tortured hero - a guy with the weight of the world on his shoulders who covers it up with brash confidence."
Some people might wonder what kind of special skills the Jewish carpenter possesses to aid him in his crusade against the vile, blood sucking hordes. "Well, he's Jesus. I mean, just the image of a cross fucks with vampires," Seeley stated. "Imagine what the actual guy who hung from it can do. Three words....holy water spit."
Jesus will need all the weapons and skills at his disposal to take on the horde of adversaries he faces in "Loaded Bible." "In this first story, it's mostly vampires that Jesus will be tussling with, but by the end of the tale, we set him up for a whole new set of adversaries," Seeley explained. "Also, there are different kinds of vampires, so you get to see the difference between Jesus chopping up lesser vampires, which are more like zombies, and Greater Vampires, which can do all kinds of Dracula-shit."
In "Loaded Bible: Jesus vs. Vampires," readers will also meet some of the major players in the Vampire Nation, including their ruling body the Vampire Council. "The head of the council is Lilith, the first vampire," Seeley said. "But, our Lilith ain't no sexy, Vampirella looking dame. She's the first vampire. She's a goddamn monkey. An Australopithecus to be exact. And, Sistine Centura, the vampire assassin plays a major role."
The plot of "Loaded Bible: Jesus vs. Vampires" will reveal the answer to a mystery and introduce readers to the book's unique setting. "'Loaded Bible' deals with Christ coming to find the truth of his existence, while setting up the world and the colorful characters that inhabit it. Also, there's shitloads of crazy fight scenes."
Seeley hopes "Jesus vs. Vampires" is just the first installment in the "Loaded Bible" series and notes that if it does well, there'll definitely be more stories to come. "I have [the next story] all plotted out and ready to go," said Seeley. "And the sequel will involve a familiar character. After all, what kind of Bible story would I be telling if I didn't include the devil?"
Some people might mistakenly dismiss "Loaded Bible" as just a humor book, but Seeley says it's a tad more serious than the solicitation text had people believing. "It's an epic, so it's got a heavy tone," Seeley explained. "But, on the other hand, at it's heart, it's still a sacrilegious romp, with plenty of big summer blockbuster moments"
Seeley feels that anyone who appreciates fun, sweeping cinematic adventure epics should appreciate "Loaded Bible." "If you're a close-minded type who can't stand any criticism or exploration of Christianity, you should probably avoid it," warned Seeley. "But, if you're up for a wild, action/horror comic, you should definitely get it. The art is great, the characters are cool, and it's not just another corporate superhero book."
Discuss this story here on CBR's Image Comics Forum.
http://www.comicbookresources.com/news/newsitem.cgi?id=6560
NOTE: The following contains some adult content and language.
Contrary to what the heavy metal band Slayer would have you believe, Jesus saves everyone; not through sermons, but by kicking some undead ass! This is the premise behind "Loaded Bible: Jesus vs. Vampires," a 48 page one shot shipping in April from Image Comics. CBR News spoke with writer Tim Seeley about the book, which is set in a dystopian future world overrun by blood thirsty nosferatu.
The roots of "Loaded Bible" stretch back to Seeley's teenage years. "Waaaay back when I was a teenager I was driving around listening to college radio when they played this crazy song where the lyrics were something to do with 'a rifle in one hand and a bible in the other,'" Seeley told CBR News. "For whatever reason, it gave me this idea to do a western where Jesus fought vampires. I went home and told my brother Steve about it and he started talking about an idea he had involving Jesus. I liked his, so we combined our ideas into 'Loaded Bible.' When I worked for Dead Dog Comics, I actually published a 'Loaded Bible' short story in 'From Heaven to Hell' #1, with art by pre- 'G.I. Joe' Steve Kurth. Eventually, I started working for DDP, and 'Bible' got back-burnered as I worked on 'G.I. Joe,' 'Dark Elf' and 'Hack/Slash.'
"But, one day a year ago, I sat down and wrote a 42 page story, out of nowhere," Seeley continued. "I was surprised it just came out like that. I 'm friends with several of the guys at Image and I sent it to them. They thought it sounded fun, so we began the slow process of getting an artist on it, and scheduling it up. Robert Kirkman, who's an old friend of mine, kicked it in high gear by hooking me up with Nate Bellgrade and Make Englert. And, away we went, hopefully right in time for an Easter release!"
Horror movie fans might incorrectly think that Seeley was influenced by the 2001 independent horror comedy "Jesus Christ, Vampire Hunter." "That movie came out several years after young Steve and I started working on 'Bible.'" Seeley said. "I was so bummed when I saw the ad for that movie. But, I rented it anyway...it's good. Check it out. But, it's pretty different from 'Bible.' 'Bible' is actually this sort of epic science fiction story (believe it or not!), with more in common with stories like 'Blade Runner' and 'I Am Legend.' No seriously. But, being me, I also wrote in a fair amount of silly, bad-ass Jesus one-liners. I mean, I'm just not that strong. I had to."
"Loaded Bible" is set in the near future in a dark, dystopian world. "After 9/11, Americans become more insular, more routed in Christian faith, to the point where church and state become inseparable. Then, one day, we find out that vampires exist. And from there, everything goes to hell," Seeley explained. "Bible takes place in the aftermath of a nuclear war with the Vampire Nation. The last outpost of humanity is a giant theocratic church-state called New Vatican City. Vampires are everywhere, most of them starving due to a lack of human prey. They're getting desperate. And then, our boy Jesus comes along."
Seeley is keeping mum on the details of Christ's return, but Jesus finds himself thrust into a world where living up to the role of Savior of mankind won't be an easy task. "Our Jesus is as much based on what I could find out about the real Christ as possible, combined with a sort of Snake Plissken bad ass hero. He's a good person - a thinker, a progressive. But, he's responsible for all these people, who all look to him to save them. It makes him sort of tortured hero - a guy with the weight of the world on his shoulders who covers it up with brash confidence."
Some people might wonder what kind of special skills the Jewish carpenter possesses to aid him in his crusade against the vile, blood sucking hordes. "Well, he's Jesus. I mean, just the image of a cross fucks with vampires," Seeley stated. "Imagine what the actual guy who hung from it can do. Three words....holy water spit."
Jesus will need all the weapons and skills at his disposal to take on the horde of adversaries he faces in "Loaded Bible." "In this first story, it's mostly vampires that Jesus will be tussling with, but by the end of the tale, we set him up for a whole new set of adversaries," Seeley explained. "Also, there are different kinds of vampires, so you get to see the difference between Jesus chopping up lesser vampires, which are more like zombies, and Greater Vampires, which can do all kinds of Dracula-shit."
In "Loaded Bible: Jesus vs. Vampires," readers will also meet some of the major players in the Vampire Nation, including their ruling body the Vampire Council. "The head of the council is Lilith, the first vampire," Seeley said. "But, our Lilith ain't no sexy, Vampirella looking dame. She's the first vampire. She's a goddamn monkey. An Australopithecus to be exact. And, Sistine Centura, the vampire assassin plays a major role."
The plot of "Loaded Bible: Jesus vs. Vampires" will reveal the answer to a mystery and introduce readers to the book's unique setting. "'Loaded Bible' deals with Christ coming to find the truth of his existence, while setting up the world and the colorful characters that inhabit it. Also, there's shitloads of crazy fight scenes."
Seeley hopes "Jesus vs. Vampires" is just the first installment in the "Loaded Bible" series and notes that if it does well, there'll definitely be more stories to come. "I have [the next story] all plotted out and ready to go," said Seeley. "And the sequel will involve a familiar character. After all, what kind of Bible story would I be telling if I didn't include the devil?"
Some people might mistakenly dismiss "Loaded Bible" as just a humor book, but Seeley says it's a tad more serious than the solicitation text had people believing. "It's an epic, so it's got a heavy tone," Seeley explained. "But, on the other hand, at it's heart, it's still a sacrilegious romp, with plenty of big summer blockbuster moments"
Seeley feels that anyone who appreciates fun, sweeping cinematic adventure epics should appreciate "Loaded Bible." "If you're a close-minded type who can't stand any criticism or exploration of Christianity, you should probably avoid it," warned Seeley. "But, if you're up for a wild, action/horror comic, you should definitely get it. The art is great, the characters are cool, and it's not just another corporate superhero book."
Discuss this story here on CBR's Image Comics Forum.
http://www.comicbookresources.com/news/newsitem.cgi?id=6560
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