Spoof. It's positively, utterly, completely, totally got to be a spoof. Right?

I'm digging around (inbetween the actual professional worky stuff that's keeping me off MSN ) and finding no definitive evidence either way - but the popular opinion I've found so far is that it's a spoof with just a very discreet writer.

(Edited by Samanfur 05/05/2006 18:31)

So hard to tell what's spoof and what isn't with the more ... passionate wing of the Republicans. There's nothing on that site that can't be found in your average Ann Coulter column.

Must be bloody hard for satarists ... or bloody good fun.

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by Byron
So hard to tell what's spoof and what isn't with the more ... passionate wing of the Republicans. There's nothing on that site that can't be found in your average Ann Coulter column.

Must be bloody hard for satarists ... or bloody good fun.

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I'm still in shock that there's a UK network willing to air Pat Robertson's The 700 Club. I stumbled over that whilst channel-hopping in Massachusetts a few years back - having heard of Rev. Robertson, Falwell et al after that whole "9/11 was God's judgment on gays!" fiasco, but not knowing their faces.

The fact that there're people out there in this country who could take it seriously - and I've since found out that some friends' relatives do - rather disturbs me.

Huuuummm, strangely enough this makes me lean towards spoof.

Or so I flipping well hope.

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by Samanfur
(quotes)

I'm still in shock that there's a UK network willing to air Pat Robertson's The 700 Club.

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Who?! Please tell me it's the God channel or whatever its called, could just about stomach that.

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I stumbled over that whilst channel-hopping in Massachusetts a few years back - having heard of Rev. Robertson, Falwell et al after that whole "9/11 was God's judgment on gays!" fiasco, but not knowing their faces.

The fact that there're people out there in this country who could take it seriously - and I've since found out that some friends' relatives do - rather disturbs me.

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Never mind the UK, I'm shocked Mas show it. (Then again they were founded by John Winthrop; old habits die hard I guess.)

Not wanting to add to your shock, but my local church has a thing about all things liberal, gay and Islamic. Currently attending their Alpha course; strictly for research and righteous anger purposes. It's ... revealing.

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by ByronNot wanting to add to your shock, but my local church has a thing about all things liberal, gay and Islamic.

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I should imagine that BBC2's Manchester Passion went down like a lead balloon in that congregation.

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Currently attending their Alpha course; strictly for research and righteous anger purposes. It's ... revealing.

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Yes... I've heard things about those.

I'll double-check which network it is - I tried to blank the memory out ASAP.

(Edited by Samanfur 05/05/2006 18:51)

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by Samanfur
I should imagine that BBC2's Manchester Passion went down like a lead balloon in that congregation.

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Oddly enough, after obligatory comments about a Moslem chap in the march, they loved it, talked about sneaking "the truth" on to BBC2.

Not sure I'd call shutting down Manchester city centre for a night sneaky guys. Or maybe it is if you've never travelled further north than the M25.

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Yes... I've heard things about those.

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You'll probably hear some more if I ever make it to the end.

So far it's free food and booze, then evangelism with extreme prejudice (ho ho) when you're all a bit pissed.

Actually if that's their idea of sneaky I understand the Manchester thing.

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by ByronOddly enough, after obligatory comments about a Moslem chap in the march, they loved it, talked about sneaking "the truth" on to BBC2.

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Cut from a review I posted elsewhere:

I rather liked the use audience participation in the demands for the freedom of Barabas and Jesus' crucifixion. I can't say that I've ever watched a passion play before, so I don't know how normal that is - but it reminded me of a review I saw of the Broadway adaptation of Mel Brooks' The Producers, describing how the play-within-a-play aspect caused the theatre audience to also become the audience of Springtime For Hitler, part of the performance and complicit in the whole scheme. A shift of perspective, if you will.

Although there was something about that confrontation with Pilate and the release of Barabas that painted "subtext" in large fluorescent letters on the nearest heavy object, and then proceeded to beat you across the head with it.

Jesus is dragged onto the stage by a couple of guards - sporting handcuffs and a bright orange boiler suit.

After the audience'd demanded the release of Barabas and called for Christ's crucifixion, Pilate is totally dispassionate.

"Bag him, will you?"

The guards throw a suspiciously familiar looking black hood over Jesus' head, and pull it tight as they haul him offstage backwards.

Pilate then explains smoothly that since public executions aren't really compatible with modern sensibilities and family entertainment these days, the really messy business will happen somewhere out of sight.

(My Dad made a comment about "extraordinary rendition" at this point...)

But - as he pulls out a rather large nail - since he knows that the public also likes its sensationalism, he's now going to explain exactly what they're going to do and how it works.

Which he does in true CSI fashion - right down to "Cause of death: asphyxiation".

In a lot of ways, the power of that graphic description - playing entirely on people's own vivid imaginations - made the finale (Jesus reappearing atop the Manchester Town Hall clock tower to sing the Stone Roses' I Am The Resurrection) something of an anti-climax.

As most people reading this would already know, I'm not religious by nature and not about to undergo any miraculous conversions anytime soon; but there was just something about shifting the focus onto the basic human suffering of the situation rather than the spiritual connotations and divine martyrdom of it all that made the story have more emotional clout than it otherwise would've done.

Apologies if I offend any of my Christian readers from this point on.

There's just something about the saturation of the image of Christ on the cross that cheapens it for me. Sometimes, I think that it's a classic case of familiarity breeding if not contempt then certainly indifference, when you look at the use of the crucifix as a fashion accessory in any amount of sizes and gaudy materials.

Speaking personally: tell me a story about a deity I don't particularly believe in and whose motives and instructions can't be interpretted, and about how I owe him some sort of cosmic debt for something that they allegedly did milliennia ago without me even getting a say in the matter - which was written down a couple of hundred years later in a book that even its own archbishops will accept as allegorical rather than literal - and I won't be convinced.

Tell me that I need to follow this deity for that reason or I can't be living up to my potential as a person, and I won't call it love - I'll call it emotional blackmail.

(I respect other people's right to believe - I don't know what it is that they see that I don't, but I've no right to criticise it for that. That amount of faith, however, isn't there for me.)

But if you just tell me a story about another person going through a painful ordeal... I'm human - I can empathise with that, and I don't need the knowledge of human biology that I already have to do so.

Demystification may be criticised as the enemy of faith at times, but I can't help feeling as though it's healthy for simple understanding.

What it didn't do for me personally was hammer the Christian message home all that hard as a result, precisely because of that very mainstream delivery method.

For me, that method foregrounded how much the "Christian" self-sacrifice story is a basic narrative in all sections of society, rather than something unique to one faith and making that faith especially virtuous or otherwise special.

(Edited by Samanfur 05/05/2006 19:43)

what got me about the manchester passion was not the christian messaage they were trying to put accross, not even the human suffering this alleged person allegedly went through - but the fact that the entire story can be summed up in the lyrics of some of the greatest songs to come out of manchester (notice how "angels" wasw probably the weakest song in the performance - written by a southerner **spit**).
so - its official - jesus was a manc!!

Interesting take on it I must say Samanfur.

Provoking universal empathy with the Christ figure might well have been intentional, but if you were looking for traditional Passion messages, I imagine you could find them in spades. So guess I'm saying different people could take very different things from it; always the sign of good art.

Or maybe it's just that Jesus was a Manchurian.

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by ByronOr maybe it's just that Jesus was a Manchurian.

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*born and bred in Salford*

You might say that, but I couldn't possibly comment.

And did those feet, in ancient times
Walk upon Moss Side's tarmac bloody?

Ahem.

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by head2head
I was pointed to this site on another forum - shelleytherepublican.com/index.html and was wondering if anyone else had seen it?

Its making my laugh on one level, but terrifying me on another. Is this woman for real, or is this a spoof blog? Someone please tell me its a spoof, otherwise this is one seriously mucked up individual!

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I'm thinking it's totally for real--athough I've never seen it before. There are people who think this way. I've seen and heard them. Luckily, they're a minority, but they're out there.

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by Byron
Jesus was a Manchurian.

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Jesus was Chinese?

"Jesus was black, man
No, Jesus was Batman
No - that was Bruce Wayne"

Sorry, couldn't resist.

Back on topic, way to spot a spoof is through its links, especially towards the end. Where we find links to 'Communist Party USA', 'Green Party', Pro-Democrat sites 'Democracy for America' and 'Move On', and finally 'The Party Party' where you can buy a t-shirt with the legend "Dick is a Killer" (with a picture of Dick Chaney). Not exactly the usual Republican fodder, really...

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by Jayjay
(quotes)

Jesus was Chinese?

"Jesus was black, man
No, Jesus was Batman
No - that was Bruce Wayne"

Sorry, couldn't resist.

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just goes to prove my point, really - one mancunian (sean ryder) talking about another (jesus)...

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by Jayjay
Back on topic, way to spot a spoof is through its links ...

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Or failing that, the following will do nicely:-

US Citizenship for Jesus Christ : Sign the Petition

Dear Friends:

As we all know, our Lord and Savior will come down from Heaven to save mankind. Surely he will come to the USA first, since this is God's chosen country. Therefore to give him legal status in America we need to grant him the US-Citizenship!