BELFAST, Northern Ireland — A blasphemous play depicting Jesus Christ as a transgendered woman is set to be performed at a homosexual festival in Northern Ireland.
“The Gospel According to Jesus Queen of Heaven” is scheduled for showing on Nov. 15 at the Outburst Queer Arts Festival in Belfast. It was created by Jo Clifford, a man who identifies as a woman.
“The play imagines a transgender Jesus coming back to the world today,” Clifford told BBC News. “She pitches a sermon and tells a few very familiar gospel stories.”
“Our mother who art on Earth, blessed is your name. … Give us this day our daily kisses,” a promo video for the production states, showing homosexuals kissing each other. “For yours is the queendom, and the beauty, and the Church forever and ever, amen.”
This year is not the first that the play has been presented. In 2009, the production, which was performed as a part of the Glasgay! arts festival, was met with protest outside of the Glasgow theater as some found the play to be blasphemous. Nearly 300 people gathered to sing hymns and hold signs such as “Jesus, King of Kings, Not Queen of Heaven” and “God: My Son Is Not A Pervert.”
“True biblical Christianity is becoming marginalized through political correctness,” Jack Bell, pastor of Zion Baptist Church, told reporters that year. “If this play had treated the prophet Mohammed in the same way, there would have been a strong reaction from the Islamic community, but that just wouldn’t happen.”
Clifford denies that the play is blasphemous.
“As a practicing Christian myself, I have no interest in attacking the church or mocking the church or making fun of the church or in any way, being blasphemous or offensive,” he said.
As previously reported, a United Church of Christ congregation in Massachusetts recently hosted what it called a “Drag Gospel Festival” in support of the homosexual and transgender members in its assembly.
“What do drag queens or drag kings have to do with Jesus or the gospel?” the First Church of Somerville wrote on its website. “We at FCS believe ‘God don’t make no junk.’ So whether you are straight, gay, lesbian, bi-sexual, transgendered or still playing hard to get, Jesus loves you and so do we! Amen baby! So come and get yours at this here church!”
Over 250 people attended the service, including one man who walked to the front of the room upset about the event flyer, which featured a graphic of Jesus wearing makeup and earrings.
“You paint up Jesus Christ like a prostitute,” he declared.