IDEA 38
Dealing with Blasphemy (A)
In order to derive the punishment of simple sacrileges from the nature of the thing, it should consist in depriving people of the advantages conferred by religion in expelling them out of the temples, in a temporary or perpetual exclusion from the society of the faithful, in shunning their presence, in execrations, comminations, and conjurations. [Baron de Montesquieu. The Spirit of Laws, Book XII]
At wikipedia.org/wiki/Blasphemy_law, blasphemy is defined as the act of insulting or showing contempt or lack of reverence to a deity, or sacred objects, or toward something considered sacred or inviolable.
The issue is so complex, and the attitudes and measures taken by governments and societies in handling blasphemy so diverse that I have decided, for this post and the next, simply to provide examples from Wikipedia illustrating how some countries deal with it. This week, I will confine my examples to ostensibly Christian countries.
In 2017, a man was charged with blasphemy for posting a video of himself burning the Qur’an on social media under the slogan Yes to freedom – no to Islam. In 2012, a survey indicated that 66% of Denmark’s population still supported the blasphemy law, which made it illegal to “mock legal religions and faiths in Denmark”. The law was repealed on 2 June 2017 several days before the 2017 charge was due to come to trial. Denmark reinstated blasphemy laws in 2023. It bans improper treatment of a significant religious writing in public or with intent to spread such act publicly.
In Germany, religious defamation is covered by Article 166 of … the German criminal law. If a deed is capable of disturbing the public peace, defamation is actionable. The article reads as follows: § 166 Defamation of religious denominations, religious societies and World View associations(1) Whoever publicly or by dissemination of writings (§ 11 par. 3) defames, in a manner suitable to disturb the public peace, the substance of the religious or world view conviction of others, shall be fined or imprisoned for up to three years.(2) Whoever publicly or by dissemination of writings (§ 11 par. 3) defames, in a manner suitable to disturb the public peace, a church existing in Germany or other religious society or world view association, or their institutions or customs, shall be punished likewise. In 2006, the application of this article received much media attention when a Manfred van H. … was prosecuted for defamation for distributing rolls of toilet paper with the words “Koran, the Holy Koran” stamped on them.
In Ireland, a controversial law was passed on 9 July 2009 and went into effect on 1 January 2010. The law prohibited publishing or uttering “matter that is grossly abusive or insulting in relation to matters held sacred by any religion, thereby causing outrage among a substantial number of the adherents of that religion”. The law had not been invoked until in February 2015 English comedian Stephen Fry, when asked during an RTE programme what he might say to God at the gates of heaven, responded, without specifying any religion, ‘I’d say: “Bone cancer in children, what’s that about? How dare you? How dare you create a world in which there is such misery that is not our fault? It’s not right. It’s utterly, utterly evil. Why should I respect a capricious, mean-minded, stupid god who creates a world which is so full of injustice and pain?” That’s what I’d say … the god who created this universe, if it was created by a god, is quite clearly a maniac, an utter maniac, totally selfish …’ An allegation of blasphemy was made to police at the time, and in 2017 police contacted Fry to inform him that the incident was being investigated. News of the investigation caused a big stir, but a few days later it was reported that the police … had dropped the case as there was no injured party.
According to Article 148 of Russian Criminal Code it is declared a crime to conduct “public actions expressing explicit disrespect for society and committed for the purpose of offending the religious feelings of believers”.
In Sweden, a new Act was introduced on “agitation against a specific group of people”. The new Act protects minority groups who share “race, skin colour, national or ethnic origin, faith or sexual orientation”. Thus, the Act does not protect any religion as such, but instead can protect the religion’s practitioners. The new Act has most often been enforced when Jews and homosexuals have been attacked. The lack of prohibition and therefore legality to blaspheme the Qur’an, has been in the spotlight since 2020 as some people burnt the Qur’an in public. Some Muslim countries have demanded this be stopped by law in Sweden. In 2023, a man was given a suspended sentence for “agitation against a specific group of people”, after having burnt a Qur’an and published a video of the event. More people have been sentenced since this, including far-right politician Rasmus Paludan, who was given a prison sentence.
In Switzerland, “Any person who publicly and maliciously insults or mocks the religious convictions of others, and in particularly their belief in God, or maliciously desecrates objects of religious veneration, any person who maliciously prevents, disrupts or publicly mocks an act of worship, the conduct of which is guaranteed by the Constitution, or any person who maliciously desecrates a place or object that is intended for a religious ceremony or an act of worship the conduct of which is guaranteed by the Constitution, shall be liable to a monetary penalty.”
In Joseph Burstyn, Inc. v. Wilson, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 1952 that New York could not enforce a censorship law against filmmakers whose films contained “sacrilegious” content. The opinion of the Court, by Justice Clark, stated that: “From the standpoint of freedom of speech and the press, it is enough to point out that the state has no legitimate interest in protecting any or all religions from views distasteful to them which is sufficient to justify prior restraints upon the expression of those views. It is not the business of government in our nation to suppress real or imagined attacks upon a particular religious doctrine, whether they appear in publications, speeches, or motion pictures”.
Download the PDF version for free at Ideas Inspired by the Qur’ān – Mont Redmond complete version, or purchase a hard copy at Ideas Inspired by the Qur’an: Redmond, Mont: 9781738842506: Books – Amazo
