Staying on religion for a moment.

Hey, it's a holy week for Jews, Christians and I think at least one Muslim sect.

Anyway, I'd like to thank PETA for its usual amazing ability to find the exact thing that will resonate most deeply with its target audience - then do the exact opposite. So you want to target Christians, try to convince them to stop eating meat; fine. Taking a statue of a cow and dressing it up as the Pope? Daring, but you could very well get away with it. But it's the little things that trip these guys up. To wit, replacing the human with a cow on the crucifix.

(holding head in hands) Yeah, that'll go over wonderfully. Perfect choice, that. For an encore, they could do a Last Supper where all the Apostles except Judas Iscariot were replaced with plucked chickens. Or maybe an all-pork Passion of Christ, or indeed any other tableau that demonstrated that the creators were more interested in pushing buttons in a ironic, post-modern sort of way than in actually changing people's minds, or even avoiding insult. They do want to change people's minds, right?

(Via Quibbles and Bits, when he's not busy making ninja assassin-worthy puns.)

Moe

Comments

[kenB]

I don't know -- the sort of people who'd find it offensive aren't the sort who'd ever be likely to be converted anyway. I think the bigger problem is that the "artwork" itself is more aptly described as "bizarre" than "thought-provoking", unless you count the thought that arises as to what nut put this thing together. Without the explanatory text, I doubt more than one person in twenty (outside of the artist's immediate family) would figure out what the message was supposed to be.

[geoduck]

"Bossie died for our sins."

[psetzer]

Hey, it sounds like they toned it down. I was at least expecting a kitten being nailed to a cross from those nuts. (The one political universal, making fun of PETArds)

[Stentor]

I think the point is less that the Cow Pope itself contains some message about veganism, than that it draws attention to its creators and their agenda. Sort of a be-mitred version of the old "SEX!! Now that I've got your attention, let's talk about health insurance" gambit.

[rilkefan]

My favorite Easter news report so far:

What was supposed to be an Easter celebration for children reportedly turned into a demonstration of how Jesus Christ was crucified.
Several area residents were outraged by a performance sponsored by Glassport Assembly of God church Saturday at Memorial Stadium.
"It was absolutely horrendous," Melissa Salzmann said. "We left after about 45 minutes, it was so bad."
Residents quote performers as saying, "There is no Easter Bunny" and breaking eggs meant for an Easter egg hunt.
A portrayal of the Easter Bunny being whipped and tortured as the 12 stations of the cross reportedly was part of the show.

[sidereal]

"I think the point is less that the Cow Pope itself contains some message about veganism, than that it draws attention to its creators and their agenda."

That was probably was the intention, but it's ridiculous because people are not unfamiliar with veganism or the arguments for it. They're just unsympathetic.