FFRF defends ‘blasphemous’ TV show

FFRF is standing up for a popular TV show accused of blasphemy.

Louisiana state Sen. John Milkovich and two Baptist preachers, Larry Pridmore and Edward Roberts, have recently urged “the Louisiana Office of Economic Development to flatly reject [a] request for a $16.2 million tax refund check” for the AMC show “Preacher.” The complainants have stated their case plainly in the last sentence of their letter: “[T]he larger truth is that there is never a good time to reward production companies that trash our Louisiana values, mock our beliefs — and dishonor Christ.”

The trio is complaining about an episode of the show that aired many months ago, on Aug. 21, 2017, claiming it s

houldn’t be eligible for tax credits intended to encourage film production to Louisiana. They attempt to argue that one scene of less than five minutes, in an episode 44 minutes in length, in a season of 13 episodes, in a show with three seasons, constitutes “pornography” and that therefore all the tax incentives for the entire series should be revoked. The scene in question portrays Jesus having sex with a woman the night before he is to be crucified, and it is graphic with graphic dialogue. But graphic is not the same as pornographic and, in any event, the complainants’ true concern is a perceived insult to their religion, not the sexual content.

It’s obvious that the attack on the show as pornography is a pretext, FFRF charges. The complainants are seeking to penalize AMC and “Preacher” for the nonexistent crime of “blasphemy.”