David Nash

Tracing the subject from the Middle Ages to the present, David Nash outlines the history of blasphemy as a concept - from a species of heresy to modern understandings of it as a crime against the sacred and individual religious identity. Investigating its appearance in speech, literature, popular publishing and the cinema, he disinters the likely motives and agendas of blasphemers themselves, as well as offering a glimpse of blasphemy's victims. In particular, he seeks to understand why this seemingly medieval offence has reappeared to become a distinctly modern presence in the West.

A History

Blasphemy in the Christian World

Yusuf Ziya Karabicak

"Since the law is now defending the individual within the community, we should also now consider that such individuals are starting to live in a post-tolerant society, as sensitivity and hurt are becoming more highly prized than pragmatism."

This is a very good survey of blasphemy and laws around it in the Christian World. It covers a vaste geographic scope from Australia to Canada where different forms of Christianity were prevalent. The time frame of 1500 to 2000 is also grand. Despite this, the author manages to weave the material into a coherent account. Blasphemy was taken to be an affront to society that might draw the wrath of God before 18th century. Now it is being discussed as personal hurt as the above quote from Nash's conclusion suggests.

Despite this, the book is no way an easy read. The expanse of the material can be overwhelming. Moreover, the way chapters are organized, starting with a long chapter on the then-current debates about blasphemy before going back to the 16th century can be confusing. The high-point of the book seems to be the last chapter where the author discusses blasphemy in cinema and attitudes by various Christian organizations to it. However, since this is a historical account, one might have expected a longer discussion of the history of blasphemy in visual culture such as painting and theater. 

One other expectation the reader could have, since the book opens with a chapter that talks about the Salman Rushdie affair, is a discussion of celebrated cases of blasphemy against a foreign religion such as Marquis de Bornier's Muhammad which was banned by the French government due to Ottoman pressure. Is it possible for such pressure to exist any more? What difference does the existence of significant amounts Muslim citizens in these countries now make for law-makers?

Over all, even after more than a decade, the book is a good discussion of the history of blasphemy and its predictions about the immediate future of the question seem to hold.

Blasphemy in the Christian World A History

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