Slog - Comments on First They Came For Jesus Christ, and I Did Not Speak Out Because I Actually Thought that Joke Was Kind of Funny http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d That was a close call! The omniscient creator of the Universe, the Ruler of Heaven and Earth, our Lord and Savior—He was under assault, being attacked, on the ropes! I really thought this was it for Jesus, that He was going down. And then a Christian theater bravely took a stand: The Miracle Theater of Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, paid $90,440 to run a full-page ad in USA Today attacking Kathy "Suck it, Jesus" Griffin. Says the ad... "We at The Miracle Theater consider it an honor to stand for Jesus today. We may never win a national award. We may... Copyright 2008 Fri, 21 Sep 2007 08:41:50 -0800 Tue, 25 Sep 2007 09:31:33 -0800 http://www.movabletype.org/?v=3.34 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss Comment by Cato the Younger Younger When I heard the clip of Kathy Griffin telling Jesus to suck it I became an even BIGGER fan of Kathy Griffin.

Jesus had nothing to do with my life either! He can SUCK ME and he damn well better swallow too!!!

GO KATHY!!!!

]]> Cato the Younger Younger http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d#c808515 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d#c808515 Religion Fri, 21 Sep 2007 08:57:27 -0800 Comment by Mr. Poe I hate Christians. I really do.

]]> Mr. Poe http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d#c808517 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d#c808517 Religion Fri, 21 Sep 2007 08:59:31 -0800 Comment by exelizabeth I am indifferent about Kathy Griffin, but I saw her on Larry King when I was at the gym and it was hilarious. She basically said that of course she did it for the publicity and it's going even better than she possibly could have hoped for.

]]> exelizabeth http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d#c808518 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d#c808518 Religion Fri, 21 Sep 2007 08:59:33 -0800 Comment by Not to state the obvious, but... Well, at least they're just wasting a bunch of money. If she'd said "Suck it Allah", somebody'd probably be dead by now.

]]> Not to state the obvious, but... http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d#c808521 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d#c808521 Religion Fri, 21 Sep 2007 09:04:20 -0800 Comment by frantic I really think someone should frame that and send it to Miss Kathy.

Maybe throw it in something understated like this:
http://www.planeticthus.com/detail.aspx?ID=2100

]]> frantic http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d#c808525 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d#c808525 Religion Fri, 21 Sep 2007 09:09:10 -0800 Comment by ellarosa touche. towleroad. christians would get a lot more respect from the rest of us if they actually practiced what they preached re: love, undertanding, compassion, patience, etc. oh, wait, many have given up on that and are just roaring on about how wrong it is to not be christian. gee, i guess they aren't hypocrites, after all.

]]> ellarosa http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d#c808551 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d#c808551 Religion Fri, 21 Sep 2007 09:31:49 -0800 Comment by giffy If god were really all powerful he would make his followers less annoying.

]]> giffy http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d#c808560 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d#c808560 Religion Fri, 21 Sep 2007 09:40:35 -0800 Comment by Greg Meh. Their money.

]]> Greg http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d#c808571 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d#c808571 Religion Fri, 21 Sep 2007 09:53:04 -0800 Comment by Ivan Cockrum You're all missing the sublime humor of Miracle Theater's ad: the very first line of the ad is Griffin's quote. They put her message above their own. Stupid Christians.

]]> Ivan Cockrum http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d#c808574 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d#c808574 Religion Fri, 21 Sep 2007 09:56:04 -0800 Comment by A in NC Seems to me that, in fact, Miracle Theater is using Griffin's remark to do their own advertising. I bet the $90K will turn out to be a very good investment indeed for that organization. Smart Xians, IMO.

]]> A in NC http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d#c808602 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d#c808602 Religion Fri, 21 Sep 2007 10:23:34 -0800 Comment by COMTE Holy Crap! Aside from the fact they live in Pigeon Forge (Like what? The town was named in honor of an ornithophobic blacksmith?), and their theatre looks like a converted Applebees, it appears they have a disgustingly large budget, so dropping $90K on an ad, while definitely questionable in a "what would Jesus do with all that money?" way, doesn't appear to be much of a hardship for them.

They're still pretentious, moralistic asshats (and I hate saying that about ANY kind of "theatre people"), but on the other hand, I know an awful lot of techies who would cream their jeans for a chance to play around in that facility.

]]> COMTE http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d#c808604 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d#c808604 Religion Fri, 21 Sep 2007 10:25:14 -0800 Comment by The Bailiff Where does a theater get that kind of money? A theater! In Tennessee! Hm, maybe Intiman and ACT need to get Jesus on their side and ditch those pesky boards of directors.

]]> The Bailiff http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d#c808614 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d#c808614 Religion Fri, 21 Sep 2007 10:31:36 -0800 Comment by Mark M Note that Griffin's recent appearances on "Larry King Live" and "Ellen" are posted on YouTube, and are great fun as usual.

]]> Mark M http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d#c808626 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d#c808626 Religion Fri, 21 Sep 2007 10:36:05 -0800 Comment by Original Andrew People, please. We have a confirmed, videotaped, sighting of the Flying Spaghetti Monster!!

The End is near - suck His Noodles, Jesus!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NGTKsMW0UQU

Praise Him!!

]]> Original Andrew http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d#c808669 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d#c808669 Religion Fri, 21 Sep 2007 10:46:54 -0800 Comment by ugh Unfortunately, I've been through Pigeon Forge. It's a huge tourist trap. In the middle of fucking nowhere.

]]> ugh http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d#c808685 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d#c808685 Religion Fri, 21 Sep 2007 10:51:13 -0800 Comment by Original Andrew “We at The Miracle Theater consider it an honor to stand for the Devil today. We may never win a national award. We may never be household names. We may never be seen in Hollywood. Although others may choose to use their national platform to slander our sorcery, we are honored as professional entertainers to stand for witchcraft.”

]]> Original Andrew http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d#c808700 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d#c808700 Religion Fri, 21 Sep 2007 10:54:22 -0800 Comment by inkweary Pigeon forge is fast becoming an entertainment destination like Branson, MO.. It is the closest town to Dollywood. 10 is right, 94K is not much money for that type of publicity. It will draw a slew of Kristian Kustomers.

]]> inkweary http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d#c808763 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d#c808763 Religion Fri, 21 Sep 2007 11:17:24 -0800 Comment by bont I'm very curious to see a Passion Play where every cast remember's accent sounds like Boss Hogg from The Dukes of Hazzard.

]]> bont http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d#c808802 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d#c808802 Religion Fri, 21 Sep 2007 11:35:06 -0800 Comment by Gitai @4 Don't buy that bullshit that if she'd said, "Suck it, Allah," someone would have blown some shit up. Right wing nutbags are constantly talking shit about Islam, and curiously, they've never had to pull a Salman Rushdie. The South Park guys have portrayed Muhammed (pre-Jyllands-Posten) and they have a lot more to worry about from Christians than Muslims.

As for these guys, the line, "We may never win a national award. We may never be household names. We may never be seen in Hollywood," makes it all clear to me. They're hoping for enough notoriety that they will win national awards and be seen in Hollywood, no doubt for a remake of Godspell.

]]> Gitai http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d#c808817 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d#c808817 Religion Fri, 21 Sep 2007 11:41:24 -0800 Comment by Issur Ridiculing Christians is Tikkum Olam. It warms my heart to hear anyone making fun of toxic Christianity, or Islam. These religions are for perverts and idiots, and The Stranger is the only publication in Seattle with the balls to call out Christianity and Islam as being dangerous lies.

Judaism is the only true belief system. Does anyone know of an "alternative" spiritual Preparation for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur on Capital Hill? I want to celebrate our most sacred holidays with cool people. I checked on J-connect but need advice on which event will be the most spiritual.

]]> Issur http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d#c809043 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d#c809043 Religion Fri, 21 Sep 2007 13:36:10 -0800 Comment by Gitai @20 Sigh. I'm pretty sure you're a troll, but it's ha-Yamim ha-Nora'im, so number one, you're forgiven, and number two, I'll point you to some resources. Jconnect is Hillel run, so you'll meet a lot of sincere college kids, but it's in the U-District, and not Jewish hipsters.

Bet-Alef is a meditative shul, and Ted Falcon is a brilliant and wise rabbi. It might be a bit hippy-dippy for you. Temple de Church, I mean de Hirsch, is on Capitol Hill, but they're old school Reform, meaning they embrace far too many Christian traditions of worship, so definitely not your scene. If you're up for atoning for your sins with a gay congregation, Tikva Chadashah is having services. Cool is probably not the right description for congregants, though they are very nice people.

]]> Gitai http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d#c809164 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d#c809164 Religion Fri, 21 Sep 2007 14:56:02 -0800 Comment by Darcy Just think of all the Bibles for starving children that $90K could've paid for.

]]> Darcy http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d#c809263 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d#c809263 Religion Fri, 21 Sep 2007 15:59:58 -0800 Comment by Issur Thanks for all the suggestions. The Stranger really should do a feature about the alternative Jewish scene in Seattle. I think many readers would appreciate The Stranger's advice on which are the coolest shuls for young Jewish professionals.

]]> Issur http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d#c809281 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d#c809281 Religion Fri, 21 Sep 2007 16:15:08 -0800 Comment by bo gr. i have to go through pigeon forge to get to gatlinburg. gatlinburg is a great little mountain resort town. pigeon forge is a bunch of go-kart tracks, sandwiched between christian dinner theatres and all-you-can-eat buffets.. this is not surprising. props to towleroad and miss griffin

]]> bo http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d#c810540 http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/first_they_came_for_jesus_christ_and_i_d#c810540 Religion Tue, 25 Sep 2007 09:31:33 -0800