Controversial 'Last Supper'

Figure 1 : Tempo magazine cover 'Last Supper of Suharto'
Source : Google.com

One of Indonesia's top news weekly Tempo has featured a sketch of Suharto taking the place of Jesus Christ place at the table surrounded by his sons, causing an uproar by the Christians.


Figure 2 : Original painting by Da Vinci
Source : www.oceanru.com

Koran Tempo, a daily published by the same outfit posted an apology with large headings on its second page stating that Tempo had no intetions to hurt the Christians stating that they were only inspired by the composition of the painting.

It is understandable why did the Christians protest over the cover of Tempo. The picture represents Suharto as Jesus Christ, the god that they have faith in. The replacement of Jesus Christ with Suharto will also raise questions among Christians where they will wonder if Suharto is being compared to Jesus Christ? Or, is Suharto eligible to take Jesus Christ’s place in the picture.

It is indeed unethical and immoral for the magazine to mimick the painting of Jesus Christ as it shows disrespect to Christianity. Feijter (2008) states, exploitation of religious themes or persons for the selling of products is deemed as morally wrong and it should not be done by anyone.

For one that does not practice the religion of Christian, it is not surprised that they do not realize the picture as a representation of Jesus Christ. Same goes to one who is not familiar with the Holy Bible, the event of the 'Last Supper' will not be understood in their cultural context. Schriver (1997) argues that culture strongly influences the way individuals decipher words and images. Therefore, it is unavoidable that people interpret the picture of the 'Last Supper' differently, first printing it on the front page of a magazine, and last, evoking the anger of Christians. According to Haynes, what exactly is considered blasphemy can vary between religious groups and people (Michael, 2007).

Putnis & Petelin (1996, p. 224)state that a document designer should take into consideration the audience, purpose and context to design a good document. In this case, document designers neglected the sensivity of the minority audience in Indonesia – the Christians, causing a global uproar.

In my opinion, document designers should always bear in mind the cultural issues of others. An apology can be said, but the reputation of the magazine will be tarnished by the disrespecting the sensitive issue of religion.

References

1. ABC.net, ‘Indonesian weekly apologises over Last Supper Suharto cover’ 2008, viewed15th June 2009,< http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/02/06/2156269.htm >
2. Feijter, I 2008, ‘The Art of Dialogue: Religion, Communication and Global Media Culture’, LIT Verlag Berlin-Hamburg-Münster, viewed 15th June 2009, < http://books.google.com/books?id=gq2yJFu3EUAC&printsec=frontcover >
   
3. Michael, M 2007, ‘Freedom of Religion Confronts Journalism’, BCHeights.Com, viewed 15th June 2009, < http://media.www.bcheights.com/media/storage/paper144/news/2007/03/26/News/Freedom.Of.Religion.Confronts.Journalism-2791570-page2.shtml >
4. Putnis, P & Petelin, R 1996, Professional communication : principles and applications, Prentice Hall, Sydney.
5. Schriver K.A 1997, Dynamics in Document Design: Creating Texts for Readers, Wiley Computer Pub., New York