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April 25, 2010 - South Park Death Threat?

by Father Edward L. Beck, C.P.

It's with some fear and trepidation that I weigh in on the current SOUTH PARK controversy. Because God knows, I don't want a negative Fatwa issued against me. However once again, religion is being linked to threat and violence. The antithesis of what it's meant to me. If you haven't heard, the creators of South Park, those iconoclasts Matt and Trey are in hot water again. This time for daring to depict Mohammed as a character wearing a bear suit in a recent episode of SOUTH PARK. In the episode every celebrity ever insulted by the show joins in a class-action lawsuit. And Tom Cruise, Mr. Mission Impossible himself, says that he can end the lawsuit if the town can introduce him to the Prophet Muhammad. Who finally appears wearing a bear suit. You, of course, remember that in Islam it's forbidden to show an image of Muhammad because it's considered idolatry. And you also remember the controversy and violent protests when cartoons were published in Europe depicting the Prophet's image. Well, that didn't stop our friends Matt and Trey. And as a result, a radical Islamic website posted a warning that they will probably wind up like Theo Van Gogh. He was of course the Dutch filmmaker who was shot to death while biking to work in Amsterdam because he'd made a short film critical of the treatment of women in Islamic society. Many have interpreted the websites remarks as a not too veiled death threat against the creators of SOUTH PARK. Even though a spokesman for the group said it wasn't that, but that if they were killed, they deserve it and it would be justified by Islamic law. Now, yes, Matt and Trey are irreverent. I don't like the way they portray Jesus, Moses or Buddha for that matter either. But, you know what, we have freedom of speech in this country. And people are also free to speak against what Matt and Trey have done. However we are not free to threaten people with violence and death. Never mind to carry it out. Civil discourse and disagreement with regards religion should be welcomed. It forces believers to defend their faiths in constructive ways, which may in fact help to educate others. What's not welcomed is the perpetuation of scare tactics and violence in the name of God, Allah, or some religious principle. That goes against everything religion stands for. Radical fundamentalists of all faiths do nothing to help the faiths they purport to revere. They rather make people shake their heads in disgust and embarrassment. And they make religion a real bear.

To watch Father Beck give the above Reflection, click here.