Ben's Column

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So I will not offer a view as to whether it was a suitable show for the BBC to screen at 10pm on a Saturday night. <br> <br> But the controversy surrounding it has raised some interesting questions about freedom of expression and religious sensibility. <br> <br> As a democrat, who believes strongly in the importance of freedom of artistic expression and speech, my instincts are against censorship. <br> <br> As a Christian, I have always held the blasphemy law to be faintly ridiculous. Why should my God, if he is everything I believe him to be, need special protection? Aren�t some of the protesting Christians suffering from sense of humour failure? <br> <br> And yet, I can�t help wondering if the BBC would have gone ahead and shown Jerry Springer the Opera if it had mocked the Muslim, Jewish or Hindu religions. <br> <br> Only last month a theatre in Birmingham had to close a play after demonstrations by Sikhs who were offended by its contents. <br> <br> The anger among some Christians over Jerry Springer the Opera had something to do with the feeling that their religion, unlike others, has become fair game. <br> <br> The divisions are not between the religions. Indeed, Sikhs, Muslims and others turned out to support the Christian protests against the BBC. The divide is between the religious and the secular. <br> <br> The BBC was taken aback by the strength of the protests. It shouldn�t have been. While most people no longer go to Church regularly, most still profess some kind of religious belief. Faith is what gives their life meaning and they consider its tenets sacred. So mocking (or worse) their religion is not the same as ribbing them for their dress sense, favourite football team or even their political views! <br> </font></td> </tr><tr> <td height="-7"><a href="#top"><img alt="Back to Top" src="../../graphics/180601_pages/back_top.gif" width="100" height="27" border="0"></a></td> </tr> </table> </body></td></tr></table>