BY ASHZEL HACHERO and GERARD NAVAL
SENATE President Juan Miguel Zubiri yesterday led senators in condemning drag queen Pura Luka Vega’s use of an image of Jesus Christ and her rock rendition of the Filipino version of the “Lord’s Prayer” (Ama Namin) for a bar party performance and said she could be held criminally liable for violation of the Revised Penal Code provision on religious offense.
Zubiri described Vega’s performance as “blasphemous,” which was echoed by Sen. JV Ejercito and the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines.
Vega was among the cast of the first season of “Drag Den Philippines,” where she placed 8th.
The controversial video showed Vega jamming with a partying crowd to the popular Catholic liturgical song “Ama Namin.” In her post on social media (@ama_survivah) accompanying the video, Vega stated: “Thank you for coming to church!”
Zubiri said Vega’s Black Nazarene costume and her dancing and singing to the upbeat rendition of the liturgical song before an entertained crowd was the height of misuse and abuse of the freedom of expression.
“I condemn in the strongest possible terms the extremely blasphemous and offensive video that has gone viral showing people in a club making a mockery of the Christian faith and disrespecting The Lord’s Prayer,” Zubiri said.
“In my opinion, this is the height of the misuse and abuse of our freedom of expression that borders on criminal activity. It offends the sensibilities of our Christian brothers and sisters, deeply demeans the faith of millions of Filipinos, and dangerously scales the boundaries of protected speech and expression,” he also said.
He added that “if they (performers) did that (blasphemy) with a song or verse in the Kuran, I’m sure the whole Muslim world would react and made their life a living hell.”
Zubiri said a criminal complaint can be filed against Vega for violation of Article 201 of the Revised Penal Code, which punishes those who “offend any race or religion in the performance of obscene or indecent plays, scenes, acts or shows in theaters, fairs, or any other place.”
He said his office is likewise tracing the venue where the performance was held for “possible violations of law that was committed” in the establishment.
However, Zubiri said he has no plans of filing a criminal complaint against Vega or the establishment.
“That’s up to religious groups as well as the authorities to decide. As a Christian, I can’t let this get away without my condemnation,” he said.
Ejercito said in a Twitter post: “This (performance) disrespects my faith. This went overboard.”
‘GOD HAVE MERCY ON HIM’
In a radio interview, CBCP – Episcopal Commission on Liturgy Chairman Archbishop Victor Bendico also condemned Vega’s actions. “The liturgical celebrations of the Church should glorify God and not to mock the Lord. They are meant to sanctify people and not to disrespect them,” said Bendico.
“May God have mercy on him,” added the Capiz prelate, reiterating that using elements of liturgical celebrations must be dedicated to the Lord and not about particular individuals wanting to be popular.
“They are celebrations of the Church and not of individual persons, who make fun of them to attract attention,” said the archbishop.
Sen. Riza Hontiveros said that while she finds the drag performance “regrettable,” she said the public should not use the incident against the entire LGBRQIA+ community.
“As a woman of faith, I admit I personally find this regrettable. Alam ko madami ding miyembro ng LGBTQIA+ community, persons of faith among them, who find this regrettable. However, I also caution against the use of this incident to deny rights and protections to a community that has long been marginalized and excluded,” Hontiveros said in a statement.
At the same time, she called for self-reflection, compassion, and healing for both the religious and LGBTQIA+ communities.
“Our platforms should build bridges,” Hontiveros added.
‘PRAISING GOD’
On Twitter, Vega said she will not apologize for her performance and insisted that it was her “way of actually praising God.”
In an interview with GMA News Online, Vega said the “intent” of her performance was “to embody a version of Christ that is one with the queer audience.”
She added that the Ama Namin remix wasn’t meant to be disrespectful. She said was actually “a Filipino translation of the Lord’s Prayer.” “Although lifted from the Gospel of Matthew and Luke, there had been various translations (of the song),” she also said.
“People have weaponized the Bible to go against the LGBTQIA+ community, referencing scriptures to deny us basic human rights. I just want to create a narrative that despite all of these, Jesus, as the embodiment of God’s love for all, does not forget about the oppressed, including the LGBTQIA+ community,” Vega said, adding: “How people would interpret and perceive my performance is beyond my control, especially when social media comes into play.”
Vega said she is “open to listening to constructive criticisms as any artist would when they create their art. These will also improve their craft. After all, the artist’s role in society is to create and express ideas and emotions that wouldn’t otherwise be communicated.”
On Twitter, Pura said she understood “that (while) people call my performance blasphemous, offensive or regrettable… however, they shouldn’t tell me how I practice my faith or how I do my drag. That performance was not for you to begin with. It is my experience and my expression, of having been denied my rights.”
As of Thursday afternoon, Vega’s remix performance already had over 17.4 million views.
