Strelnikoff Mary of Help of Brezje controversy

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Bitchcraft album cover
Bitchcraft album cover

The Strelnikoff Mary of Help of Brezje controversy began after a depiction of Mary of Help of Brezje holding a rat instead of Jesus was published by a Slovenian music group Strelnikoff as the cover of their album Bitchcraft.

The album was made in protest of the official views of the Roman Catholic Church in Slovenia and the statements of some of its highest representatives on the subject of abortion.

The first to condemn this depiction was Dr. Franc Cardinal Rode, who was Bishop of Ljubljana at that time. This was followed by general public outcry and expressions of the inappropriateness of the misuse of one of the most known symbols of Slovenian Catholicism. The State Attorney's Office in Ljubljana received 3,867 public protests and 1,208 requests for indictment. These were united in one that was at first rebuffed before the District Court in Celje; however the state prosecutor Elizabeta Gyorkos filled a complaint.[1]

The group members also received many phone and mail threats[citation needed]. In August of 2003, the indictment was refused by Ljubljana Higher Court as well. In accordance with the Constitution of Slovenia and the Law of Slovenia the court concluded that the authors were "tasteless in their artistic project, however they did not surpass the boundary of allowed at all."[2]

The comment of one of the group members:

“ With the exception of the anonymous phone calls and threats, crucifixion in some media, hysteria and moral panics and other forms of pressure, among which the place of honour goes to the indictment triggered by the political part of Slovenian Right and followed thankfully by the state, the most surprising were the reactions of a limited part of Slovenian underground scene and Slovenian subculture in general. This was a difficult to understand type of jealousy, namely you're going to be crucified but we won't. If you ask me this is a fairly perverted view of this affair. The same for the comment heard so many times that we have made a good advertisement for ourselves, that we have earned fabulous money and similar nebulousnesses. What money, I ask you kindly?[1] ”

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b (Slovene) Mladina.si - provokatorji množic. Vanja Pirc. Published on 21st July 2003. Last accessed on 18 October 2006.
  2. ^ (Slovene) Mladina: Blasfemija po slovensko. Sebastijan Ozmec. Published on 29 September 2003. Last accessed 18 October 2006.

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