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Zilos

"It is not permissible to mock holy and sacred things."

Austrian artist Gerhard Haderer the illustrator behind a comic that depicts Jesus as a laid-back, binge-drinking surfer who hangs out with Jimi Hendrix has been convicted of blasphemy in Greece and given a six month sentence in abstentia. Greek police have raided bookshops to seize copies of the comic book. While Greek Church spokesman Monsignor Epiphanios said, "It is not permissible to mock holy and sacred things," adding, "Humour is out of place when it comes to such subjects."

The slim, 40-page volume on Jesus' life begins with the baby Jesus becoming addicted to the three wise men's frankincense. After the first of many sniffs, a light forms around the baby's head, which accompanies him for all his life. Throughout the book Jesus' miracles happen by sheer luck rather than divine intervention. The illustrations show Jesus surfing, instead of walking on water, and have him appearing at the last supper with a bong.

A group of artists gathered in Vienna in March to draw attention to the ban of Haderer's book. It's the first book Greece has banned in more than 20 years. Haderer said he didn't even know his book had been published in Greece until he received the court summons. He'll be appearing in a Greek court in April to appeal.

When first published in his native Austria in spring 2002, Haderer's book drew some controversy and protests from religious figures but wasn't banned. Austria's highest-ranking Roman Catholic bishop dubbed the comic, "a threat to democracy." Catholic schools in Austria have announced a boycott against the book's publishing house and even the Austrian Chancellor Wolfgang Schassel has publicly blasted the cartoons as "irreverent caricatures."

The German newspaper "Die Welts" says, that "the question whether the New Testament can actually have a comic edition only stirs very orthodox Catholics, who'd like to issue a sort of Christian Fatwah on the artist."

Commenting on the decision by the Greek authorities, Haderer said: "Now we have really gone back to the Middle Ages. It didn't even get that far in Catholic Austria." Haderer stressed: "My book is not an attack on religion or on believers. It is meant for believers to take a more light-hearted look at their faith and through humour become closer to God."

The Life of Jesus has also been published in several countries including France, South Korea, Portugal, the Czech Republic and Germany, where Haderer is well known for his weekly illustrations in the news magazine Stern. The book, has sold more than 100,000 copies across Europe.

"It is unbelievable that a person can write a book in his home country and be condemned and threatened with imprisonment by another," said Nikki Conrad, a human rights expert. "But he is not going to just sit back and accept this injustice"

He is prepared to take this to the European court of human rights. Meanwhile, the Writers in Prison Committee of International PEN, the International Publishers' Association and the International Booksellers Federation have sent an open letter to Greek Prime Minister Kostas Karamanlis expressing their dismay at Haderer's sentence and at the banning of The Life of Jesus.

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Higher Logic

That's ridiculous! I would like to get the book now, simply because it's prohibited. Gotta love the Law of Prohibition, no? It works for books too!

PS - I fixed the link for the Source of the article.

Nice

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Zilos

Thanks, you beat me too it.


That's sure a nice bong he's got there!


Not only is it stupid that the book was banned, but the guy is being threatened with jail time!

Cassius

Is it just me, or do these little snippets alert anyone else to which people in the world are morons when they open their mouths? lol

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Higher Logic

I can think of another high-ranking official that always sounds like a moron when he opens his mouth too

 

Cassius

Only one? =P

Buzzby

It's sad that the birthplace of democracy has a law on the books against blasphemy. You can't have a real democracy without freedom of speech.

We can look forward to laws against blasphemy if the Religious Right continues to consolidate its stranglehold on our political institutions, not to mention the death penalty for adultery. Theocracy sucks!

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WNB

Man, that is a brutal blast Maybe something was lost in translation, but "irreverent caricatures" doesn't sound very insulting to me. I mean, just yesterday someone complimented me for having a witty and irreverent demeanor. Should have kicked her for that insult, apparently

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RL in IL

This is obviously a parody of the story of Jesus. I have read theories that Jesus actually used hemp or cannabis oil in some fashion.

Anyway, whenever the English version comes around, I'd like to at least check it out!

cschaef13

I myself am not a devout christian but I believe this is wrong, I do not think you should put someone in jail for something like this, but thenagain he lives in a part of the world where they take the bible very seriously.