Student Production of “Corpus Christi” Canceled after Protests




Playwright Terrence McNally, 70, the author behind the controversial "Corpus Christi." Photo credit: San Jose State University.

Tarleton State University directing student John Otte’s  production of playwright Terrence McNally’s controversial “Corpus Christi,” has been called off by school officials in Stephenville, Texas, citing “safety and security concerns for the students as well as the need to maintain an orderly academic environment,” according to The Austin Chronicle.

The play was scheduled for performance last Saturday, but was canceled after it was met with heated and violent protests from Stephenville residents, as well as phone calls and e-mails sent to the office of university president F. Dominic Dottavio. Dottavio later released a statement saying that the play was not sponsored or funded by the university and Otte was solely responsible for any costs associated with the production.

Otte’s play was not open to the public and the University therefore initially defended his right to present the performance as a class project that was “not intended for the public anymore than a student’s math assignment.” The production was rescheduled for an 8 a.m. show time and then later canceled by Dottavio amidst threatening calls and e-mails.

Set in 1960’s Texas, McNally’s passion play depicts a gay Jesus (referred to as Joshua) who shares a homosexual relationship with the apostle Judas and even performs a same-sex wedding ceremony for two of his other apostles. In Otte’s version, Jesus and Judas share a kiss at the Pontius Pilate High School senior prom.

FOX News reported that Otte’s play even contained a few “controversial updates,” including Joseph (Jesus’ father) as an alcoholic wife-beater and Mary (Jesus’ mother) “giving birth alongside a chorus of moaning men.”

David Harris, pastor of Stephenville’s Hillcrest Church of Christ and host of a local radio show, said, “It infuriates me that somebody would be given a platform to be able to demean and degrade the Son of God. I’m angry about it and every Christian should be.”

Otte, 26, has openly declared himself both gay and a Christian. In a written statement, he defended his production, arguing that he hoped it would serve to “bring people together” and to promote the acceptance of gay Christians.

He also added that, “It is being said often that this play is a direct attack on Christians – their faith and their deity. It is simply not true. I’m not attacking anyone in choosing this play. I want people to see and understand another side to faith. I want us all to know that unconditional love means just that – unconditional – and I believe tolerance is a key message in this play. None of us, not one of us, should ever feel alone or separated from God or whomever we believe in.”

While several Tarleton students were among the protestors, many stood in support of the production and the university’s right to see it performed free of criticism.

“This is academia, and one of the attributes of academia is cultural diversity,” student Christopher Hepburn told WFAA News. “Having this shown is something we should embrace as college students.”

The content of the performance, however, drew strong remarks from Lt. Governor David Dewhurst. Last Friday in an open press release, Dewhurst stated:

“Every citizen is entitled to the freedom of speech, but no one should have the right to use government funds or institutions to portray acts that are morally reprehensible to the vast majority of Americans.

Texans don’t deserve to see their hard-earned tax money used to debase their religion. This lewd display runs completely contrary to the standards of scholastic excellence and common decency that we demand in our publicly-funded institutions for higher learning.”

The play ends in Jesus’ crucifixion, with a moniker above his head reading “King of the Queers.”

“And they call this art,” says Pastor Harris.

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What every Christian needs to know about Passover

Originally here: http://theundergroundsite.com/index.php/2010/03/what-every-christian-needs-to-know-about-passover-11292

The Jewish holiday of Passover for 2010 begins at sundown on Monday and lasts the next seven days. It is the celebration of the Israelites coming out of slavery in Egypt.

The biblical event takes place in Exodus 10 through 13 in the Old Testament.

God instructed the Jewish people to mark their doorposts with lamb’s blood so He would “pass over” them when slaying the first born of Egypt (the last of the “10 Plagues” causing Pharoah to release them from bondage).

Many Christian churches have begun incorporating a Passover “Seder” (say-der, meaning service) into their activities around Easter.

Passover is what Jesus and the apostles were celebrating at the Last Supper, because they were Jewish men with Jewish observances:

“This is a day you are to commemorate; for the generations to come you shall celebrate it as a festival to the Lord – a lasting ordinance.” (Exodus 12:14)

“Then came the day of Unleavened Bread on which the Passover lamb had to be sacrificed.  Jesus sent Peter and John, saying ‘go and make preparations for us to eat the Passover.’” (Luke 22:7-8)

Passover is also celebrated by “Jewish believers” – Jews who believe that Jesus is the Messiah of both the Jews and Christians. Psalm 22; Isaiah 11:1, 7:14; Zechariah 9:9, Matthew 1:1-16, 21:7; Mark 15; John 3:16 are a few parallel passages in the Old and New Testament supporting this belief.

Jesus’ Hebrew name is “Yeshua” – the Lord saves. Jewish believers attend Messianic Synagogues or Christian churches.

How is Passover celebrated?
The opening night Passover Service (“seder”) is usually held in family homes or in unison as entire congregations. A large meal is served, with some items representing the hardships faced in Egypt and in the desert.

Prior to the meal, attendees read from the Haggadah, which is the re-telling of the Exodus story. The Haggadah has existed for about 300 years and includes songs about the sacrificial lamb and the escape via the Red Sea.

How does the perspective differ for Christians and Messianic Jewish believers?
The story of the Exodus remains the same. But countless parallels exist for Christians and Jewish believers between the lambs sacrificed in the Old Testament, and Jesus as the “Ultimate Sacrifice.”

There are also striking prophetic similarities between the first Passover dinner in the book of Exodus, present-day Jewish Passover activities, and what Jesus did at the Last Supper:

  • The Jews were told to take only unleavened bread on their journey.-Jesus broke unleavened bread with the disciples.
  • The ceremony contains glasses of wine as an honor to the lamb’s blood and sweat of the Jews.-Jesus offered the disciples wine as a symbol of his blood, yet to be shed.
  • The “matzo” crackers (today’s symbol of the Israelites’ unleavened bread) are dipped in bitter herbs and eaten to represent sorrow and hard labor.-The disciples dipped and ate unleavened bread to represent Jesus’ body.
  • Lamb’s blood was shed at the first Passover to save the Jews from the plagues and free them from a seemingly never-ending bondage.-Jesus was “sacrificed” (crucified) soon after he celebrated Passover at the Last Supper.  His blood was shed to save us from our sins and free us from eternal death.
  • The ceremonial matzo (“Afikomen”) is hidden under a cushion, not to be seen until the end, when the children uncover it and bring it out.-Jesus was entombed and wasn’t seen again for three days. At the end of three days he is seen alive outside by  the women, having shed his wrappings.
  • There are 3 matzohs separated in different folds of a napkin, used in the ceremony at various intervals.-Jesus was born, died, and rose again. (3 stages).

About the author: Sheryl Young is a Jewish believer in Jesus and author of “What Every Christian Should Know about the Jewish People: Improving the Church’s Relationship with God’s Original Chosen Nation.” The book contains more information on Jewish Holidays.)

Scripture taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 Biblica. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved.

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Equipping Christians to Reach Muslims: An Interview with Usama Dakdok of the Straight Way of Grace Ministry, Pt. 1

Originally here: http://theundergroundsite.com/index.php/2010/03/equipping-christians-to-reach-muslims-an-interview-with-usama-dakdok-pt-1-11161




Posted: 15 Mar 2010 09:00 AM PDT


Usama Dakdok of The Straight Way of Grace Ministry

 Usama Dakdok longs to tell Christians and the Muslim world community that only the love of Christ can overcome the dangers of true radical Islam. 

Dakdok, a Coptic Christian (Christian native of Egypt), runs the Straight Way of Grace Ministry. The organization’s motto is  “Equipping Christians, Reaching Muslims.” 

He has been in America for 18 years. 

I became aware of Dakdok’s ministry after publishing an article on Jewish-Muslim tensions at UC Berkeley

This is the first of my two-part interview with Dakdok. 

Q: How did you and your family become Christians in Egypt?
A: My family was always Coptic Christian. Coptic means Egyptian. This was the main faith in Egypt before Islam, since biblical days when the disciple Mark brought the Gospel to Egypt. He was a bishop of Alexandria. I gave my life to Jesus as Lord and Savior at age 11, after a revival at the church, and was baptized at age 12. 

Q: Is the Christian community still accepted well in Egypt?
A: Christianity has not been well accepted since Islam came to Egypt in the Dark Ages (circa 641 A.D.). Four million Christian men were killed in the first 100 years. Their women and daughters were raped and taken. 

The government is Islamic; all children of Muslim men are automatically considered Muslims by Islamic law even if the mothers are American, Christian, etc. Last Christmas, some Christians were shot in an Egyptian church by an Islamic terrorist group. 

Q: Did your Christian faith help you filter through what Egyptian schools taught about Islam?
A: Yes. There is much indoctrination of the children in schools to believe in the Muslim faith. Western culture is ostracized in the school system, to make the children think that Christianity is silly. For example 1+1+1=3, not one Godhead of three persons. 

Q: Why don’t Muslims believe in Christ as the Messiah, since the Quran contains many same stories as the Bible?
A: Muslims believe that Jesus couldn’t be a deity; as Allah is only one, God can only be one. Jesus to Muslims was a good teacher, good man and good prophet, but not God’s Son. Muslims actually think they are honoring Jesus by not calling him a god. But [I believe] He cannot be a good teacher if he lied about being God’s Son or the way He died. 

Q: Is Allah the same being as the Jewish and Christian God?
A: I believe Allah is not the same God. I believe he is Satan because he leads people astray. Quran 1:1 says “Praise be to Allah, God of this world” – and 1 Corinthians 4:4 says Satan is the god of this world. Quran 3:54 says “Allah is the best of deceivers,” but Revelation 12:9 calls Satan the Deceiver. 

Q: So, are most Muslims lacking knowledge of what the Quran really says?
A: Many Muslims, “good” Muslims as Westerners call them, are not following the teachings of the Quran. They are Muslim without true Islam. Much of the text they read has been what we call “abrogated” – changed to have a different meaning for presentation to the world community. There are 124 verses to quote to Americans with abrogated interpretations. 

Q: But some people say the Bible is “abrogated,” too – people give it their own interpretations.
A: The Old Testament is not abrogated by the New Testament; it is fulfilled. 

Q: Why do you think people are converting to Islam in such large numbers today, even in America?
A: The number is not large. Many new converts leave Islam within a year, because they are taught a false Islamic faith and abrogated Quran. The Quran of love and respect for women does not exist. Plus, names are added as “converts” upon a first visit to a Mosque. 

Check back for part 2 of my interview with Dakdok. In part 2, he will discuss the dangers of extreme Islamic terrorism.

The views expressed in this interview do not necessarily reflect the views of The Underground.

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CBN Defends Robertson after Alleged Chile Quake Remarks

Originally here: http://theundergroundsite.com/index.php/2010/03/cbn-defends-robertson-after-alleged-chile-quake-remarks-11153




Map showing Chile's location in South America. Source: Wikimedia Commons.

Last Friday, the Christian Broadcasting Network released an official statement defending founder Pat Robertson’s supposedly controversial comments concerning the recent 8.8 magnitude Chilean earthquake that left over 1.5 million people homeless.

Robertson, who drew fire in early January from several conservative Christians for his remarks on the Haitian quake, was quoted on Feb. 27 by a blogger at Open Salon as saying, “God is even angrier with them [the people of Chile] than he is with the people of Haiti.”

In its statement, CBN said, “The story currently circulating on the Internet is completely false and was posted by someone as a joke. However, some very ill-informed bloggers are now reporting it as if it were true.”

The blogger also quoted Robertson as saying, “If I had to guess, I’d say it [the earthquake] must have to do with Chile’s persecution and attempted prosecution of their great former leader, and a personal hero of mine, Augusto Pinochet—who, it should be noted, had never been convicted of a crime when the Lord called him home three years ago.”

Despite the alleged falsity of the aforementioned statement, Robertson does have a long history of making controversial comments following large-scale natural disasters, as was the case with Haiti’s devastating 7.0 magnitude quake, which left over 230,000 dead. Citing Haiti’s ancient history with the French and Napoleon III, Robertson blamed the disaster on the country’s “pact [with] the devil.”

CBN was careful to note that “Pat Robertson made no such comments about the Chilean people making a pact with demons. Dr. Robertson is very concerned about the people of Chile and his humanitarian organization is currently responding to the disaster by sending a disaster relief team leader and raising money for the relief efforts.”

They also added that, “Anyone wishing to see CBN’s reporting of the earthquake, as well as Dr. Robertson’s actual comments, which included a heartfelt call to prayer for the people of Chile, can watch complete, archived episodes of the 700 Club at cbn.com.”

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Sunday, Bloody Sunday: More than 500 Nigerian Christians dead after weekend slaughter

Originally here:

http://theundergroundsite.com/index.php/2010/03/sunday-bloody-sunday-more-than-500-nigerian-christians-dead-after-weekend-slaughter-11138

Posted: 08 Mar 2010 12:35 PM PST


Nigerian Christians and Muslims clash yet again near Jos. This time leaving 500 dead.

Nigerian Christians and Muslims clash yet again near Jos. This time leaving 500 dead. Vanguard Image.

Nigerian officials say more than 500 Nigerian Christians are dead after attacks by neighboring Muslims in Dogo Nahauwa, Nigeria, a town just south of Jos on Sunday.

According to CNN, the marauders, stormed the settlement at 3 a.m. Sunday (9 p.m. Saturday EST) and remained there for more than two hours, setting edifices such as churches on fire and executing people with machetes.

The attacks on the people of Dogo Nahauwa, who are primarily from the Berom tribe, are thought to be retaliation for attacks on the Fulani, a predominantly Muslim tribe, that took place in January nearby.

Though, according to AFP, the archbishop Abuja, John Onaiyekan, told Vatican Radio that the “violence was rooted not in religion but in social, economic and tribal differences,” others are not so sure.

Nigerian publication, This Day published a statement from the Christian Elders Forum, in which the group called this a religiously-motivated attack and blamed the government for not adequately protecting its citizens.

“Their dead bodies are still lying in their own pool of blood as we speak. The attack, yet another jihad and provocation of the Christians, started at about 1.30 a.m. last night. We are in touch with the survivors though many of them are still in trauma,” the statement said.

In response to the massacre, Nigerian Vice President Goodluck Jonathan put the area and nearby states on red alert and began operations to capture those responsible.

In a news release, Jonathan asked Nigerians to remain calm and not to try to retaliate.

“He calls on all Nigerians to remain peaceful and law abiding, since violence only begets further violence,” the release said.

“He also sympathizes with those who have lost relatives and friends in these attacks, asking the Almighty to grant them the fortitude to bear the loss.”

So far, according to AFP, nearly 100 of the culprits have been captured.

“We have been able to make 95 arrests but at the same time over 500 people have been killed in this heinous act,” Dan Manjang, an advisor to the Plateau state government, told AFP.

The BBC reported that Jos has been under a military curfew since the January attacks.

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Sinead O’Connor says she’d help Jesus destroy the Vatican

Originally here: http://theundergroundsite.com/index.php/2010/03/sinead-oconnor-says-shed-help-jesus-destroy-the-vatican-11108

Irish singer Sinead O’Connor says she’d help Jesus destroy the Vatican if she could.

“If Christ was here, he would be burning down the Vatican. And I for one would be helping him,” she said.

O’Connor made the statement via a letter to the Irish Independent in response to Roman Catholic Bishop, Denis Brennan’s recent plea to his congregation for funds.

Brennan oversees the Ferns Diocese in County Wexford, Ireland.

His  plea for funds came in the midst of a recently exposed decades-old sex abuse scandal that has seen the Roman Catholic Church in Ireland receive a publicized rebuke from Pope Benedict XVI and paying out millions to victims of sexual abuse at the hand of priests.

Sinéad_O’Connor says she would help Jesus "burn down the Vatican."

So far, Brennan’s diocese has paid €8 million ($10 million/£7.5 million) to settle 48 civil lawsuits.

According to the London Times, “Dr Brennan is the first bishop to give details on how much compensation has been paid to victims. He said that his official residence had been remortgaged to cover nearly €2 million in legal fees. A request for financial help from parishioners was not about sharing blame, he said, but about ‘asking for help to fulfill a God-given responsibility.’”

O’Connor said, “[Brennan's] statement attempts to dictate to us — in the same way the Inquisition did — how Christians should behave. It says directly that it would be anti-Christian of us to feel that the church should pay its own bills for its own abuse with its own billions that it throttled from our grandparents, whom it also abused, physically, emotionally, psychologically and sexually.”

“How an organisation which has acted, decade after decade, only to protect its business interests above the interests of children can feel it has the right to dictate to us what Christians should do is beyond belief.”

“From the Pope on down, through the Vatican and therefore through the lower echelons, the whole organisation, in my belief, is utterly anti-Christian and evil, as proven by centuries of torture, bloodshed, burnings, terrorism, and coverings-up of “the worst crime” known to man.”

O’Connor is no stranger to criticizing the Roman Catholic Church about sexual abuse.

On the Oct. 3, 1992 airing of Saturday Night Live, during which she appeared as a musical guest,  O’Connor sang  an a cappella version of Bob Marley’s “War,” during which she protested the sexual abuse in the Roman Catholic Church by changing Marley’s  lyric “racism” to “child abuse.” At the end of her song, she tore up a picture of former pontiff, John Paul II after the song.

O’Connor was heavily criticized for doing so. NBC, which owns Saturday Night Live, has refused to rebroadcast the musical performance.

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Pop Culture Moments by Mo: (Canadian) Girls Gone Wild

Originally here: http://theundergroundsite.com/index.php/2010/03/pop-culture-moments-by-mo-canadian-girls-gone-wild-11066


Pop Culture Moments by Mo: (Canadian) Girls Gone Wild

From the Associated Press-- VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) — In a sport Canada invented, nothing less than gold would do. And when the women's hockey team had it in hand, the joy and champagne overflowed. The players stormed back onto the ice half an hour after beating the United States 2-0 on Thursday and staged a raucous celebration — smoking cigars and swigging beer and bubbly.

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Apple Reveals Latest Controversial iPhone App, TigerText


iPhone--Photo credit Wikipedia/Wikimedia, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 license.

Apple recently green-lighted the release of  yet another controversial app for the iPhone.

This time the app in question  could potentially be used by cheating spouses.

Called TigerText, the app “allows users to set a time limit on how long a text that they send will hang around after it has been read,”according to Time magazine.

Thirty-four year-old Pro-golfer Tiger Woods is still making headlines as news of his scandalous extra-marital affairs and racy text messages continues to circulate through national media.

Time’s report notes that TigerText, named “coincidentally” after Woods, is capable of deleting a sent text message from the recipient’s phone, the sender’s phone and any severs and databases in-between.

Apple fans and iPhone users know this is not the first time the company has green lighted a less-than-decent or morally questionable software option.

In July 2009, the “Hottest Girls” app hit Apple’s online store and, much to the dismay of countless parents, featured scantily clad lingerie models and even nude pornography stars.

Although Apple executives acted quickly to remove “Hottest Girls,” it seems they are content to approve TigerText, an app which Time suggested could potentially be used between a “prominent politician” and “his mistress.”

TigerText developer X Sigma Partners LLC will even allow potential customers to try the app for free.

At its Web site www.tigertext.com, Sigma Partners also promises the app will soon be available for the Blackberry and Android smartphones.

In response to TigerText’s release, dozens of sites have posted their thoughts on and even concerns with this ethically questionable application and its future ramifications on society as a whole.

Technology news magazine web site Wired noted that TigerText is being “billed as a tool for adulterers” with the slogan “Cover your Tracks.”

In a Technology & Science piece featured on MSNBC.com, PC World’s Sarah Jacobsson admitted that TigerText is “perfect for cheating spouses, shady politicians, sexting teens, and people who send a lot of stupid texts while drunk.”

With countless TigerText purchases ringing in every day, it is becoming increasingly apparent to technology gurus and culture and society researches nationwide just how much value Americans place on privacy and how much they are willing to pay for it.

Although  Sigma Partners founder Jeffery Evans denies marketing TigerText to “people trying to cheat,” the potential ramifications of such technology and subsequent damages to relationships may prove otherwise.

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Pop Culture Moments by Mo: Free at Last

Originally here:http://theundergroundsite.com/index.php/2010/03/pop-culture-moments-by-mo-free-at-last-11062


Posted: 01 Mar 2010 05:58 PM PST


"Eight American missionaries were freed from a Haitian jail month, weeks after being charged with kidnapping for trying to take a group of children out of the country following the devastating earthquakes in January."--From theguardian.co.uk

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Jewish-Muslim tensions rise at U.S. colleges

Originally here: http://theundergroundsite.com/index.php/2010/02/jewish-muslim-tensions-rise-at-u-s-colleges-11041



 

Posted: 28 Feb 2010 10:13 AM PST


University of California at Irvine Library, Public Domain, Wikimedia Commons

Tensions are growing on college campuses between Jewish and Muslim student groups.

An incident in early February at the  University of California- Irvine in Southern California was apparently just the latest in a string at that university.

Muslim students began heckling Israeli Ambassador Michael Orin when he came to speak at the University.

The disturbance continued for close to 20 minutes, until Orin could no longer wait for the group to subside, and left the pulpit.

Eleven of the protesting students were arrested as a result; however it has raised several questions at universities and across the Internet:

  1. Why was it allowed to go on for so long?
  2. How far should freedom of religious speech be allowed before a situation can turn threatening or violent?
  3. Why, by contrast, did Iranian President Ahmadinejad successfully complete his speech at UC Berkeley, in an atmosphere where order and respect were demanded?

According to a Web site report by the Jewish Federation of Reading, Pennsylvania, an event defending a two-state split of Israel into a Jewish-Palestinian state also caused tensions between Jewish and Muslim students at the University of Pennsylvania earlier this year.

The organization Students for Academic Freedom (SAF, not religiously affiliated)  reported in 2007 that Pace University in New York has repeatedly ignored anti-Semitic activity toward the Jewish student group Hillel since they attempted to get approval to show a film warning of extreme Islamic terrorism.

Pace University representatives claimed they didn’t want the movie to stir up violence or hatred, but SAF found that, although there have been incidents against both Jewish and Muslim students at Pace, only the ones against Muslims have brought about police investigations.

For me, that is a heavy statement.

It does appear to me that since the tragic events of Sept. 11, 2001,Americans have taken significant steps to make those who follow Islam feel respected and comfortable, and not at all blamed for the works of a few extreme terrorists who claim Islam as their faith.

But, I believe,  this has come at the cost of a rise in anti-Semitism  and an increase in anti-Christianity, as evidenced by claims that 9/11 was prompted by Israel (see evidence of theories at the Daily Star of Lebanon Web site), and that Christian support for Israel is unwarranted.

While America strives for diversity and tolerance, it seems that there is still an escalation toward the opposite, even among our young people.

Does trying to ignore our differences make them more evident instead of less?

How should Christian students react?

As Christians, we learn that our main enemies aren’t people of flesh and blood, but that we struggle “against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms” (Ephesians 6:12 NIV).

Perhaps Christian students can display the love of Christ on campus, while also helping Jewish and Muslim students to see that their fight is not against each other, but against those explained in this verse – and that we can fight against the dark power of terrorism together.

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