It wasn’t such a rockin’ New Years Eve for Catholics in Ireland, who were shocked to see their holy deity depicted as a rapist in a comedy sketch show that aired on state television.
The channel, RTÉ, has already apologized for the offensive broadcast, which #MeToo’d God and likened Him to film producer Harvey Weinstein (who is currently serving a 23 year sentence for rape).
In just a matter of days, the station has received over a thousand complaints, prompting an apology to “those who were offended by the segment.” But some Catholic leaders in Ireland aren’t accepting the apology, instead suggesting that Ireland bring back blasphemy laws they just outlawed.
A Blasphemous New Year
In the skit, a man depicting God is led to court in handcuffs, as a newscaster explains the situation unfolding. “The five-billion-year-old stood accused of forcing himself on a young Middle Eastern migrant and allegedly impregnating her against her will, before being sentenced to two years in prison, with the last 24 months suspended. Following the news, movie producer Harvey Weinstein requested a retrial in Ireland,” the character says.
This portrayal of God as a rapist drew widespread condemnation almost immediately, with particularly strong words coming from Eamon Martin, the Archbishop of Armagh and the Primate of All Ireland.
New Archbishop of Dublin, Dermot Farrell, joined in the chorus of those calling for the program’s removal, saying that it “[mocks] the divine” and “[trivializes] rape victims”.
Ciarán Ó Coigligh, an Irish academic and poet, went a little further, seemingly lamenting the lack of blasphemy laws that might have prevented this skit from ever being created, tweeting that “Sadly, the removal of reference to blasphemy from the Constitution was not contested by the Catholic Church. I believe it could have been defeated.”
Blasphemy Laws Widespread
Ireland only outlawed blasphemy three years ago, with a 2018 referendum that saw nearly two-thirds of voters vote to repeal the blasphemy laws in the Irish constitution. The laws were rarely invoked – the last prosecution for blasphemy in Ireland was in 1855 – but as recently as 2015 comedian Stephen Fry was investigated by police for negative comments he made about God on television.
In 2017, the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom identified 71 countries that have blasphemy laws, finding that severe punishments for blaspheming were “astonishingly widespread”.
The countries were ranked by how extreme the punishment for blaspheming is, with the upper tier being primarily Muslim-majority countries. Many of the countries in the bottom tier are only listed due to technicality, having blasphemy laws on the books but never enforcing them.
The website “End Blasphemy Laws” goes in-depth on the punishment for blasphemy in each country, detailing the often harsh consequences for blaspheming - including potentially being sentenced to death in eight countries, and imprisonment in 47 more.
What do you think? Should you be able to call God a rapist on television? Or should there be limits on such speech out of respect for others' religious beliefs?
30 comments
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Douglas Robert Spindler
Odd what Catholics get upset over. Priests rapping nuns, young boys and young girls they accept. But God in a comedy sketch admitted to raping a Middle Eastern young women is not acceptable? Those are crazy Catholic values.
Anyone remember minister who admitted rapping a underaged girl to his congregation? Instead of calling the police and getting him arrested they stood up and applauded. The women he rapped has still not recovered from being rapped and will be scared for the rest of her life.
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Gail Dobson
If a god doesn't like what I say or do, it can tell me. The skit sounds hilarious to me.
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Eugene Evans
There are moreand more people who are refusing to believe in God. God is real and he has answered my prayers. These people are the ones who will be left behind after the tribulation.
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Douglas Robert Spindler
Glad to see God answered your prayers. For billions of other Christians God just ignores their prayers. Hard to believe in a mythical man that doesn’t doesn’t do what you ask. And what makes it worse is God accepts their offerings and gives nothing in return.
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Larry Mager
My Brothers and Sisters of All faiths and beliefs, While folks are offended by the skit, just remember. God, whoever and however You conceive God to be, is so far above us, that God isn't bothered by this sort of thing. Should the sketch have been done? Probably not, due to being in HIGHLY bad taste! I MUST agree with our Sister Catherine Colvin. in all that She has written above. I am sick and tired of the Male dominated belief systems. Look where it got the U.S. yesterday.....the U.S. Capitol invaded by a male dominated mob of home grown terrorists. I also agree with Brother Paul J. Fumero, "just ignore this crap".!!!!!! Peace and the blessings of the Mother be with You!
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Brien
Didn't God destroy the planet? What about being charged with genocide? Seems to me there have been plenty of crimes committed by the fictional being that people believe in....they worship a criminal. Hmmmm, food for thought. How can you trust anyone that holds such strong beliefs for what seems to be the world's greatest warlord in history?
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Lionheart
Ohhhh! So that's what God looks like. I don't know about rapist, but if he ever existed at all, and if we are talking about the Christian god, he's definitely a murderer, and an infanticidal maniac.
🦁♥️
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Daniel Gray
I DARE you to do the same thing for Mohammud when its actually known he married a child of the age of 6 and then he raped her, calling it their wedding night; when she was 9. This is historical fact and cannot be refuted nor disputed. So go ahead and try this kind of stuff on the Prophet of Islam and see what happens.
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Carl Bernard Elfstrom
Please Daniel, one rapist at a time.
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Paul J. Fumero
@ issues here. Jesus is Not GOD! Jesus told me that himself and God does not need to "rape" anyone to have his way with women. That is so stoopid... get a life. Catholics, just ignore this crap made up by fools.
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Carl Bernard Elfstrom
What woman would not want to be the mother of the son of God. That's a great line God can use to get any woman he wants, and have them begging for more! And I bet he's convinced a lot more than Mary of that. Maybe we ought to convince women that we're God, too. That sure would make it a lot easier.
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Sarah Covert
Me! I am a nonbreeder, and I am never under any circumstances giving birth! If God impregnated me A) it would 1000% be a rape and B) I’m having an abortion. Facts. The only reason you think any woman would jump at the chance to have your imaginary friend’s baby is because it couldn’t happen to you. Maybe you need to have yourself a good think about bodily integrity and freedom of choice before you go making assumptions about other people’s lives.
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flugo
'pale fumes': WRONG! Jesus said, in the Bible, that He and God are as 'one'. John 14:9 & 10:30.:33. You'd best do your homework before embarrassing yourself.
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Walter Eugene Curtis
Interesting the varying perspectives. Another is that the Father married Mary and then they conceived Jehoshua. Blasphemy to some, doctrine for others. Although not helpful for many, a related New Testament scripture regarding Mary's willingness: "And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word. And the angel departed from her." (Luke 1:38)
Of course, each of us chooses what to believe ... and disbelieve ... in the long run.
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Minister Mike
Where is the rage against the rape of children by the priesthood, against a god that permits starvation, wars, homelessness, and all the other sins god, by any name, could solve in less than the shake of a lamb's tail?
Or are "they" (actually, "we") so self centered and childish that any target is a good target? Where would we be if we didn't find things to be offended by?
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T Kosse`
If god is truly offended let him be the judge as for everyone else, you really have no say in the matter since you're not the one being offended, even if you're delusional and think you're god, you still have no say in the matter.
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Yanel Jay Laroche Jr.
I was always a Catholic minister Archbishop Yanel Jay Laroche Jr.. Christians should be applying the Holy Bible.
Thursday, January 7, 2021 1 Thessalonians 5:4-8. But you aren’t in the dark about these things, dear brothers and sisters, and you won’t be surprised when the day of the Lord comes like a thief.b 5For you are all children of the light and of the day; we don’t belong to darkness and night. 6So be on your guard, not asleep like the others. Stay alert and be clearheaded. 7Night is the time when people sleep and drinkers get drunk. 8But let us who live in the light be clearheaded, protected by the armor of faith and love, and wearing as our helmet the confidence of our salvation.
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Robert Harold Yount III
At the end of the day, it is just a joke, simple as that. There is nothing wrong with being offended, but with that being said opinions and feelings go both ways. If you didn't like the skit that's fine and dandy, but why do we have to throw hurtful statements toward each other? I'm a Luciferianist, and I for one wouldn't be as hateful toward God. I poke my jokes now and then, but I still respect both sides, (Heaven and Hell) because they are both necessary. I don't see why we can't have a civil, decent conversation/debate without trying to hurt feelings. This isn't Facebook, this is where we can all gather to be a collective without judgment or people slandering, bullying, or pushing us around, i just hate seeing people fight over silly things like this and ruin possible good friendships. Anyone here play Magic the Gathering?
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Ealdormon Piparskeggr Robinson
If this particular god IS omniscient, would they have not stopped this skit before it aired, if it actually offended them?
I have long thought that, like mythologies being manmade, blasphemy is a crime of one's man's ideas and words offending the sensibilities of another man's.
Really, how can one contend with an omnipowerful, eternal entity?
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Shannon Long
Read the Bible and you would know that Mary was not raped. In fact she was a willing participant. Before she became pregnant an angel was sent to let her know she had been chosen from among all the Jewish virgins of the land at that time. The Jewish community knew about the prophecy of the Messiah being born of a virgin and many virgins desired to be chosen as the one from whom the Messiah would be born. Mary was honored to be chosen and that is why she said "be it done unto me, the handmaid of the Lord" Of course she could have refused and the honor would have gone to another, possibly to a friend of hers. Would she have been punished for refusing? Of course not, after all there was no Jewish law saying one had to accept being chosen by God. Though I am sure if she would have refused, she would always be wondering "what if"
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Rev Hannah Grace
If you are going to believe the myth, then you need to carry it further. Mary was 'chosen' before she was born because she was born without original sin so that she would be a fitting vessel for the lord incarnate in her womb. So she couldn't really have refused unless God had gone around preparing lots of virgins in advance so that they too were without sin and ready to become a 'host' for god himseflf too So consent was really a moot point, depsite everyone making a big deal about how she agreed to it. She had been brainwashed since childhood into believing that she was 'blessed' among all women to do this, that's why she also (according to the myth) consecrated herself a virgin at the temple when she was a child. Either tell the whole story or don't tell any of it. She really had no free will at all, so in that sense, yes, she was raped. First her mind and spirit, then her body. She may have been a willing participant, but only in the sense that any cult member agrees to do the bidding of the leader or god.
But I don't care if she was a virgin or not, or was the mother of God or not. Belief and faith aren't about fairytales and myths, they are about one's own spiritual journey and finding the things that comfort them and help them get through this life. Some people don't need anything but fact and science but others need some kind of belief system to help them deal with pain and suffering and death. I respect all of these, except when they hurt others. And this whole comedy skit was just that, a comedy skit. Religious people of all faiths need to lighten up. The only reason people don't do more skits about the Prophet Mohammed is because there are fanatical Muslim who will kill them for doing so. Christians are less violent in that regard, but still don't have much humour about their faith. Remember the scandal over Monty Python and the Holy Grail? Storm in a teacup.
Laugh and let it pass over you. Making a big deal out of it only draws attention to it. I would never have seen this if it hadn't become a controversy. So now they have just made a bigger audience. Sigh. Silly humans.
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Lionheart
If you honestly believe what you have read in that book as truth, please don’t read any of the Harry Potter books. They aren’t as scary as the stories written in the Bible but it seems obvious you’ll believe anything that is written, so if you do end up reading Harry Potter, please know that it’s fiction, and the author will confirm it if you end up being unsure.
🦁❤️
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Richard Lee Cornell
There is a book put out by the Catholic Church that said that Eve was created for the reason that sometime in the future Mary mother of Jesus would be that God would be the father of Jesus. Yes it was put out a couple of decades ago.
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Richard Lee Cornell
I will find that book.
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Carl A. Hankins
You believe in God or you don't. If your presentation isn't up to snuff then your a basic human. Jesus was born and saved also but his was after death. We're supposed to want salvation instead of death but people keep provoking others to live in the sins instead of the true good of living. If your a critic about movies oh well. Your supposed to inform your children of the wrongs in such movies or just not watch them. Why do adults constantly need supervision ?
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Robert Duff
God did not get Mary's consent before impregnating her with Jesus. Also, God is not a human being, so it was "The Bestial Rape of Mary"
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Angel
That's not God, that's Jesus, even Jesus said not to call him God....
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Robert Duff
Being one third god does not mean that he was one third rapist.
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Irene Nicolai
Regarding "virginity:" 1. Until the sixteenth century, a "virgin" was a woman who had not given birth. In some areas, a virgin was a woman who hadn't given birth to a MALE yet. 2. The Bible says a "young woman," not "virgin." If there is a version out there that says "virgin," it is a mis-translation (as are many others in the old, as well the new, Testaments). The Bible underwent many changes and variations until the fourth century. In the fourth century, Emperor Constantine sequestered quarreling Christians in Nicea. They were to stay there until they duked out on which of the many versions was going to represent the official Christian belief. Ergo, the Nicean Creed. To this day it is chanted in many Christian church sround the world. By the way, the main issue was about whether Christ was, or wasn't, divine. Food for thought?
Karma manifested?
Being that religious doctrines are man-made constructs, isn't it a fair commentary about a woman involuntarily chosen to be impregnated?
Isn't the concept of individuals living side-by-side more appealing than adhering to traditions that cause and maintain imbalances?
I don't have a problem with God/god-oriented entities feeling threatened. Those have ruled with fear and grotesque manipulations far too long.