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SOUTH HADLEY, Mass. — The head of a western Massachusetts charter school says a student production of a play that retells the biblical story of Genesis with gay characters will go on as planned despite objections from some who say it’s offensive to Christians.
Scott Goldman of the Pioneer Valley Performing Arts Public Charter School said in a letter to parents Wednesday that the school has received email petitions and phone calls describing Paul Rudnick’s 1998 comedy “The Most Fabulous Story Ever Told” as “blasphemous and hateful.”
The Daily Hampshire Gazette reports that the South Hadley school has been urged to cancel the shows scheduled to be performed later this month, and some of the messages say they will try to organize protests through local churches.
“In allowing this attack on the Mother of God through the play ‘The Most Fabulous Story Ever Told,’ you offend the religious faith of tens of millions of Catholic and other Christian Americans,” the petition language reads. “There is no excuse or reason for this blasphemy.”
Goldman said most of the criticism appears to be from out of state.
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“Is it the role of public school to facilitate an exchange of ideas on the themes explored in this particular play?” Goldman wrote. “This is an excellent question, with answers that I imagine will be debated in what I hope will be climate of civility, and a desire to understand others’ viewpoints.”
The play has met with objections many times.
The Pioneer Valley Performing Arts Public Charter School serves 400 students in grades 7 to 12 from more than 60 towns.
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Filed under: Massachusetts
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OFFENSIVE TO CHRISTIANS? HA HA HA HA so they can portray us as demons, and make it look like we engage in bestiality and we are the scum of the earth but we are not allowed to portray biblical characters as the fruits that some of them were? ha they can all bite me
Considering this is a charter school, objections are just too bad; the fundamentalist Christians need to suck it up and shut up. What I want to know is where scripts of this play exist and if they can be transported across stateliness?
This is awesome. Though I think all religion is a poisonous and destructive vice, it’s awesome when Christians are offended.
The bible never mentions homosexuality, don’t be ignorant.
gay people have existed longer than the written word. they have precedence.
If it is as great as The Book of Mormon, I hope they video it and sell it on their website!
Hooray for blasphemy.
I wonder if these so called “Christians” realize that gays have been around as long as man first started to walk. This school which is near where I am will carry on and have standing room only while the righteous bigots parade around outside like WBC.
The bible is as much a book of myth as any other book regarding gods and monsters.
I honest to goodness don’t think Christians “get” that not everyone is either Christian or anti-Christian, because they believe so strongly in the existence of Jesus, that to them it’s just a given that he’s real. They can’t fathom that someone might not believe he ever even lived.
That being said, they need to wake the fuck up. Not everyone who isn’t Christian is attacking Christianity. It isn’t blasphemy if you aren’t blaspheming against something you believe to be real. This group didn’t sit down and say, “Let’s offend the Christians!”. They probably thought, “Hey! This would be a good show to do!”. For a group of people who worship a higher deity, they sure are self-absorbed to believe that everyone’s decisions and actions hinge on whether or not they, as Christians, will approve.
“— I imagine will be debated in what I hope will be climate of civility, and a desire to understand others’ viewpoints.” That is a very Christian thing to say.
The ones who use Jesus as an excuse for their anti-gay statements and activities are SOME Christians, not all. A whole lot of us have the firm belief that actually we are mandated by Jesus to love and respect all human beings, without regard of any particular difference. It is sad that becuse of some, the faith of Jesus has become synonymous of bigotry, which is not true: it is about inclusion, love and service.
Jesus was a progressive, aka liberal – get with it and deal with it!
Edgar, I wish there were more xtians like you.
the brand of christianity that thinks gays are offensive is offensive to everyone else!
Good for school. Does anyone else see similarities between these Christians & fundamental Islamist?