---

BBC, UK
mar. 28, 2005
news.bbc.co.uk

---

ReligionNewsBlog.com • Item 10701 • Posted: Monday March 28, 2005  

---

A Moscow court has found the organisers of an art exhibition guilty of inciting religious hatred and fined them 100,000 roubles (?2,000; $3,600) each.

The January 2003 exhibition called “Caution! Religion” was staged by the Sakharov Museum, named after the Soviet-era dissident Andrei Sakharov.

The Russian Orthodox Church had condemned director Yuri Samodurov and his colleague Lyudmila Vasilovskaya.

The court ruling said the show was “openly insulting and blasphemous”.

‘Insulting’ exhibits

It featured an icon with a hole instead of a head, where visitors could show their faces.

There was also a Coca-Cola logo with Jesus’ face shown next to it, with the words: “This is my blood”.

There was also a sculpture of a church made from vodka bottles.

Vandals defaced the exhibits just days after they went on display, but charges against them were later dropped.

Mr Samodurov, a leading human rights activist, insisted he had no intention of insulting believers. He said the case against him was absurd and a direct challenge to freedom of conscience and expression.

His supporters said it also highlighted the growing power and influence of the Orthodox Church in Russia – constitutionally a secular state.

A third defendant, an artist who contributed to the show, was acquitted.

Lawyers for the other defendants vowed to appeal against the verdicts – if necessary to the European Court of Human Rights.

---

What You Can Do From Here

---

Read More Articles On These Topics Categories: Russia Share, Blog About, Bookmark, or Email This Article Subscribe Religion News Blog RSS feed [What is this?] RSS by topic: Russia Read Another Article Previous entry: Official says Ugandan LRA rebels abduct villagers Next entry: Mega-Churches Offer Prayer, Play, Shopping RNB Homepage with latest headlines Find Related Information Use our custom search engines to find additional research resources on religions and cults Find Related Books Russia Most Popular Today Church of Scientology told to drop Churchill images I know the dark side of Scientology…I almost lost my friend when she became obsessed with it

---

Share This Article

---

To share this page simply copy and paste one of these URL's:

• Post a link on your blog or website:
  
• Send in an email or IM:
  
• Post on a forum:
  

Search for information about (religious) cults, cult-like organizations, -- as well as paranormal-, New Age, and pseudoscientific claims -- across 260+ websites, blogs and forums dedicated to cult research, spiritual abuse, ex-cult counseling & support.

Note: results are listed on another domain -- CounterCultSearch.com -- from which you can easily return here.

Search for apologetics articles, books, videos, and other research resources across 135 Christian apologetics websites and blogs.

Note: results are listed on another domain -- ApologeticsSearch.com -- from which you can easily return here.