Gay Jesus film hoax
"Modern People News has revealed plans for the filming of a movie based on the SEX LIFE OF JESUS in which Jesus is portrayed as a swinging HOMOSEXUAL. ..."
— An early version of the chain letter[1]
Since around 1979, a chain letter has falsely claimed that a film is in the works in which Jesus will be depicted as gay and involved in a promiscuous swinger lifestyle.[a] Born of half-truths regarding The Many Faces of Jesus, Jens Jørgen Thorsen's abandoned pornographic film about Jesus, the hoax initially implied that the film's would-be producer was a magazine that had run a poll about Thorsen's plans. The narrative has morphed over time to claim that the supposed film is an adaptation of the 1997 play Corpus Christi, which does depict Jesus as gay, although not in a sexualized manner.
Many letters have directed recipients to contact the
Background
The
The 1970s saw a massive letter-writing campaign seeking Christians' assistance in preventing a fictitious attempt by atheist activist Madalyn Murray O'Hair to ban religious content on television. In reality, O'Hair was involved in no such effort and the Federal Communications Commission terminated an investigation into religious programming on educational networks.[2]
Around the same time, Danish director Jens Jørgen Thorsen's plans to produce The Many Faces of Jesus, a pornographic movie about Jesus, caused outcry in Denmark, the United Kingdom, and several other countries.[3] After being denied entry to the United Kingdom, Thorsen tried to produce the film in the United States or to publish the screenplay as a book.[4] Outrage grew among Baptists, partly due to an incorrect statement by a prominent pastor that the film was under production in the United States. This prompted letters to Grove Press, to which Thorsen had submitted the book, and to Senator Mark Hatfield, requesting legislation to censor the book. Hatfield, also a Baptist, responded that neither Congress nor president Jimmy Carter had the power to prevent the film's production.[5] He instead directed letter-writers toward Grove, which later said that the book had already been rejected and was never seriously considered. Publisher Barney Rosset cited "aesthetic grounds" for the rejection.[6]
Modern People News
In 1977, Modern People Productions of Franklin, Illinois, reported on Thorsen's plans in its weekly magazine Modern People News.[7] (Modern People Productions would later say that the article was reprinted from an unnamed other publication.[8]) Four months later, Modern People News reported that the tentative plans had been dropped, and gave the results of a poll that had been included with the first article: 99% of respondents opposed a production.[7] According to a manager of Modern People News, they forwarded the negative responses to the potential film's producers, which she speculated may have played a role in the decision to not go forward.[8] Two years later, however, Modern People Productions—which had never itself expressed any intention to make the film—began to receive new messages of protest, often assuming that it was the would-be producer.[7]
In 1980, Modern People News has revealed plans for the filming of a movie based on the SEX LIFE OF JESUS in which Jesus is portrayed as a swinging HOMOSEXUAL. This film will be shot in the U.S.A. this year unless the public outcry is great. Already a French Prostitute has been named to play the part of Mary Magdalene
"We're getting hundreds of calls, thousands of letters. Oh, God, I'm all tired out."
— An employee of Modern People Productions[3]
An early version included a form to be sent to the "Jesus Sex Film Poll" at Modern People News—by then out of print. The small publication received thousands of letters and created a form letter with which to reply, but was overwhelmed by the volume. The letter closed with a plea to explain the confusion to others.[3]
Not all devout Christians were credulous.
Letters to attorneys general
The chain letter evolved to call for writing to state attorneys general. Recipients were encouraged to tear out a form letter, make copies for their friends, and send it to the
In 1980, Illinois attorney general William J. Scott began to receive letters demanding that he ban the non-existent film. Scott was removed from office that year upon conviction for tax fraud, but his successors, Tyrone C. Fahner and Neil Hartigan, continued to receive the same letters, mostly addressed to Scott, even after Modern People Productions folded in around 1982. Most letters came from the Bible Belt and Western United States. Mail came at a rate of around 1,000 per week in 1980, reaching 2,000 by late 1983, consuming about 3 person-hours a day to process.[12]
In January 1985, Hartigan wrote to the Chicago-based syndicated advice columnist
Subsequent spread and Corpus Christi
The county council of Pictou County in Nova Scotia, Canada, which had banned Thorsen's never-produced film in the 1980s, voted unanimously in 1996 to condemn the never-planned Modern People News–produced film.[16] Jim Ryan, the fifth Illinois attorney general of the gay Jesus film hoax era, rebutted the film's existence, and a local group called the Homosexualist Agenda invited the council to a workshop on homophobia. A councillor argued in response that the resolution was not homophobic.[17]
Terrence McNally's 1997 play Corpus Christi (lit. 'body of Christ'), first staged in 1998, depicts Jesus as gay, although not in a sexualized manner.[18] Protests by Christians led multiple theaters to cancel performances of the play.[1] The hoax chain letter, by then distributed by e-mail as well as the post, came to reference Corpus Christi, sometimes as a "play that went on for a while",[1] sometimes by name.[19] A version of the e-mail quoted in 2012 begins (grammatical and typographical errors sic):[20]
The movie Corpus Christi is due to be released this June to August. Let's stand for what we believe in and stop the mockery of Jesus Christ our Saviour. If the Muslims do what they believe to be right when films or mockery appears against their religion , where do we stand as Christians?
This disgusting film set to appear in America later this year and it depicts Jesus and his disciples as homosexuals! As a play, this has already been in theatres for a while. It's called Corpus Christi ' which means 'The Christ Body.' It's a revolting mockery of our Lord. But, we can make a difference. That's why I am sending this e-mail to you. If you do send this around, we may be able to prevent this film from showing in America and South Africa .
(While the film
Complaints about a supposed Corpus Christi adaptation have continued worldwide. In 2002, South Africa's
See also
- The First Temptation of Christ, a 2019 comedy depicting Jesus as gay, which led to a large petition in protest and the firebombing of its creators' office
- Immersion (Piss Christ), a 1987 photograph that led to complaints by Christians
- Innocence of Muslims, an anti-Muslim film that drew worldwide protests in 2012
Notes and references
Notes
- Corpus Christi: Playing with Redemption is a documentary about the play Corpus Christi, not an adaptation, and in either case the play is not a sexualized depiction.
- ^ As Landers would correctly state in a later column about a different chain letter,[13] chain letters are only illegal in the United States if they involve a promise of remuneration, in which case they are considered illegal lotteries.[14]
Citations
- ^ a b c d e Mikkelson 2017.
- ^ Arends 1980; Simbro 1984.
- ^ a b c d e Simbro 1980.
- ^ BP 1978.
- ^ Hastey 1978; Gallagher 1978.
- ^ Gallagher 1978.
- ^ a b c Simbro 1980; Simbro 1984.
- ^ a b Wilson 1980.
- ^ This wording comes from Mikkelson 2017, which dates it to around 1984, but it is similar to the wording quoted piecemeal in Simbro 1980.
- ^ Maust 1980.
- ^ Arends 1980.
- ^ Simbro 1984.
- ^ Landers 1996.
- ^ USPIS n.d., citing 18 U.S.C. § 1302.
- ^ Landers 1985; Mikkelson 2017. Hartigan's letter incorrectly refers to Modern People News as Modern Film News.
- ^ CP 1996.
- ^ CP 1997.
- ^ McNatt 1998. "There are also a few scenes of men kissing each other, hugging one another and otherwise openly displaying physical affection. But contrary to advance reports, the play contains no nudity or graphic sexual scenes, and even the occasional foul language is nothing one wouldn't expect to hear at the local multiplex."
- ^ PA 2012; McConnell 2018.
- ^ a b PA 2012.
- ^ Mikkelson 2017; McConnell 2018.
- ^ News24 2002.
- ^ Nelson 2014.
- ^ McConnell 2018.
Sources
- "Chain Letters". United States Postal Inspection Service. n.d. Archived from the original on May 8, 2012.
- Hastey, Stan (February 17, 1978). "No U.S. Producer Found For Blasphemous Movie". Newspapers.com.
- Gallagher, Kathleen (March 1, 1978). "Letter Flood Causes Stir Over Jesus Book". Newspapers.com.
- "Grove Press Will Not Publish Book on Sex Life of Jesus". Word and Way. Missouri. Baptist Press. March 9, 1978. p. 9.
- Simbro, William (May 18, 1980). "That Jesus sex movie never existed". Newspapers.com.
- Wilson, Jackman (June 3, 1980). "A gay Jesus? There'll be no movie". Newspapers.com.
- Maust, John (June 27, 1980). "'Conscientious Objectors' See No Relief in Women Elders Conflict". Christianity Today. p. 56. Archived from the original on November 24, 2023. Retrieved November 25, 2023.
- Arends, Lewis H. Jr. (August 2, 1980). "Churchman chases rumors, labels 'gay Jesus' film hoax". Newspapers.com.
- Simbro, William (June 18, 1984). "Crusade revives war on non-existent sex film". Newspapers.com.
- Newspapers.com.
- Landers, Ann (August 26, 1996). "A Chain of Men?". Ask Ann Landers. Sun Sentinel. Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. Retrieved November 25, 2023.
- "County trying to protect Jesus from slander on film". Newspapers.com.
- "Council urged to get counselling". Newspapers.com.
- McNatt, Glenn (October 21, 1998). "Protests hotter than play's reviews: Controversy: Demonstrators say Terrence McNally's Corpus Christi is blasphemous; theater critics call it bland". Baltimore Sun. Retrieved November 26, 2023.
- "Gay Jesus film non-existent". News24. July 24, 2002. Retrieved December 19, 2023.
- "'Gay Jesus' Film Corpus Christi Sparks Complaints—Even Though It Doesn't Exist". Press Association. December 26, 2012. Retrieved November 26, 2023.
- Nelson, Paul (May 15, 2014). "Schenectady County eyes worker's anti-gay email about hoax Jesus film". Times Union. Albany, N.Y. Retrieved November 26, 2023.
- Mikkelson, Barbara (January 17, 2017) [April 21, 2000]. "Will Jesus Be Portrayed as Homosexual in an Upcoming Film?". Snopes. Retrieved November 25, 2023.
- McConnell, Glenn (January 12, 2018). "Censor receives complaints about non-existent film depicting Christ as gay". Stuff. Retrieved November 26, 2023.