Apparently there is a movie set for release sometime soon called Corpus Christi, based off a play. Christians all around the world are protesting its release. Why? Because apparently this play and this film portray Jesus and his disciples as homosexuals. Not in a humorous sense, but in a bona fide historical light.
I don't necessarily agree with this. I don't pretend to understand why someone would think this in the first place. But that's not the point. The point is that, while whiling away time browsing Facebook, I stumbled upon a rather interesting group.
The group, titled MOVIE COMING OUT SAYING JESUS WAS GAY! reject the movie: The Corpus Christi
of course has all due right to assemble as it sees fit. There have been plenty of protests in the country over the past year, ranging anywhere from the battle against California's Proposition 8 to the petition against The Rocky Horror Picture Show movie remake. But what I find interesting about this protest (confined to the group) is the amount of derogatory and unfounded statements and accusations it makes. You'd think a Christian-based group would be a little softer.
But several of the statements included in the group's description are targeted at Christians themselves, and I would personally find some of these claims pushy and offensive, such as Please do not delete this! Deleting it will show your lack of faith and a lack of respect for our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ who died for us! Assuming I'm a Christian, I'd be pretty offended at this statement. I'm pretty sure I can be OK with other people expressing their views if they want to.
And therein lies the problem: these assertions are a sneaky way to tell people that some groups can't express their thoughts, whether they are adverse to a particular religion or not. We have the First Amendment to protect ourselves from such blatant attacks. There is a right to protest, but when people start saying those who don't join their protest are a disgrace, there's a definite problem.
Speaking of the First Amendment, this is my favorite line on the page: SEND TO THE MEDIA ... THE PLACE WHERE MOST OF THWE WORLDS PROBLEMS START! Note how the writer misspelled the word the.
I have to admit, I laughed out loud when I saw this. Right before I got blazingly angry. So let me get this straight: the creators of this group think that most of the world's problems come from journalists, writers, speakers, and reporters? Sure. That makes perfect sense. Who knows? Maybe the media are responsible for the war in Iraq, the problems in Africa and the economic crisis all at once.
We all know that is absurd. But whoever made this page seems to think he or she can make sensational claims with no background whatsoever, in addition to degrading Christians everywhere in an effort to force them to join his or her cause. That seems pretty hypocritical, if you ask me.
It seems to me that when you start attacking people in your protest when it has nothing to do with your protest, then you've swerved a bit off course. Just an observation. I could be wrong, but personally, I don't think even the right to protest allows someone to so blatantly make unsubstantiated attacks on unrelated groups.
Who knows? I can't decide. But neither can anyone else.
Alex Menrisky is a freshman studying journalism. Send him an e-mail at am532707@ohiou.edu. 4
Opinion
Alex Menrisky
