Gay Jesus Sparks Violence

LOS ANGELES, CA -- Violence broke out over a gay Jesus art show in Sweden when a group of young people tried to set fire to a poster at a cultural center that was showing photos of Jesus in contemporary queer context.

Staff intervened and as many as 30 people joined the fight, according to news reports. The conflict occurred in the Swedish city of Jonkoping, known as a center of evangelical Christianity.

Swedish photographer Elisabeth Ohlson Wallin created her "Ecce Homo" series by putting Jesus into a contemporary lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender context.

An online gallery of selected gay Jesus images, including Ohlson Wallin's work, was recently added to the website JesusInLove.org.

"The violence in Sweden is the latest example of why the queer Christ is needed," said lesbian Christian author Kittredge Cherry. "People try to censor the gay Jesus, but I compiled queer Christ images a book to show that Christ belongs to everybody, even the sexual outcasts. Jesus taught love, but now Christian rhetoric is being used to justify hate and discrimination against women and lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people."

"Art That Dares" is packed with color images by 11 contemporary artists from the United States and Europe. They work both inside and outside the church, but all of their art respects the teachings of Jesus. In the book, the artists tell the stories behind their images, including censorship, hate mail, violence, death threats, and vandalism that destroyed their work. A lively introduction puts the art into political and historical context, exploring issues of blasphemy and artistic freedom.

In addition to the Swedish photos, the explicitly queer Christian imagery in "Art That Dares" includes a 24-panel gay vision of the Passion by New York painter F. Douglas Blanchard and the notorious "faggot crucifixion" painting by Atlanta's Becki Jayne Harrelson. Gary Speziale sculpts a sensuous moment between a nude Adam and the new Adam, while Alex Donis shows Jesus kissing a Hindu god.

Rev. Cherry was at the forefront of the sexuality debate at the National Council of Churches (USA) and the World Council of Churches as National Ecumenical Officer for Metropolitan Community Churches. She holds degrees in journalism, art history and religion.

Cherry's website, JesusInLove.org, offers spiritual resources for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people and their allies. Her other books include "Jesus in Love," a novel about a queer Christ.