Zombie Jesus Nativity Scene Is Blasphemous, Says Ohio Pastor
An Ohio man is facing a fine of $500 per day as he refuses to give up his freedom of speech and comply with orders from local authorities to remove a zombie-themed nativity scene displayed in his front yard.
For the second holiday season in a row, Jasen Dixon and his wife, Amanda, have constructed a nativity scene in their front yard in Sycamore Township that is stirring outrage among Christians, local officials and even his own family.
Dixon's controversial manger scene features a wooden manger roof, a bed of hay, gloomy lighting and figures that resemble zombie versions of baby Jesus, Mary, Joseph and the three wise men, with baby Jesus depicted as having greenish-gray skin and demonic eyes.
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Town officials maintain that Dixon needs to have a permit to display the nativity scene in his front yard; however, he was denied a permit for the display when he applied because officials claimed that the zoning code doesn't allow for "accessory structures" in font yards.
The township sent a letter to Dixon last Wednesday telling him to take down the display and explained that if he didn't remove it by last Friday, he could be fined $500 each day he continues to display the nativity scene.
Although the Dixons began dismantling the display after being threatened by authorities, the family decided to leave up the scene without the manger roof.
"I think it's the theme," Dixon told WKRC. "It just rubs people the wrong way and it puts the spotlight on me. That's why they're coming down so hard on me."
Dixon, who also manages a "13 Rooms of Doom" haunted house, told Fox19 that the reasons behind the family's decision to create the display last year was that he always wanted to create a zombie-themed nativity scene and thought it would be good publicity for his haunted house.
"I just wanted a nativity scene. I had been talking about the zombie nativity scene for a long time," Dixon said. "My father hates it, [but] the other neighbors, they drive by and give me thumbs up."
Dixon explained that he decided to bring back the nativity scene this year because it was "such a hit" last year. Although Dixon says he has received support from a few of his neighbors, area Christians have denounced the zombie display.
On Sunday, Dixon posted on a Facebook page set up to advertise the nativity scene that two Baptists had dropped off a pamphlet at the feet of zombie Jesus that condemns the display and states: "God frowns upon this manger scene. If you read the scriptures closely, the God of the Bible is not only a God of love, but also a God of wrath," the pamphlet states. "God never expresses even the slightest inkling of humor toward demons, on this case, zombies."
"Jesus has supreme power over death and evil; he is not a zombie," the pamphlet adds.
Indiana pastor and Internet radio broadcaster Paul Begley took to his online radio show earlier this week to label the zombie nativity scene as demonic and an attempt to make a mockery of Christ's resurrection.
"You talk about something that is blasphemous … this is just pure demonic and people are very upset," Begley argued. "You don't want this being baby Jesus, this is a pure mockery of the first prophecy in the entire Bible. … When people raise from the dead, they are not zombies. People are coming from the grave in the likeness of Christ. This zombie manger scene is mocking the resurrection and mocking the virgin birth and is glorifying the demonic presence of the devil."
Although town officials assert that Dixon does not have the legal right to display the zombie manger scene without a permit, he suggested to Fox19 that municipal law says otherwise.
"This year, I got all the paperwork and how it was wrote out and it says as long as it's not over 200 square foot that I can have it without a permit," Dixon said. "And, it's about 65 square foot."
Sycamore Township administrator Greg Bickford told CNN that the town's disapproval of the manger scene has nothing to do with the display depicting Jesus as a zombie but rather the fact that it consists of a 15-foot high manger housing that exceeds the town's 5-foot height limit.
"We couldn't care less about the zombies," Bickford said. "What we care about is the zoning codes."
As the Dixon family could be facing $500 daily fines for the duration of the display, Dixon established an online fundraiser to help pay the fines. The fundraiser has raised over $2,500 in eight days, as of Wednesday afternoon. The fundraising site states that 50 percent of the proceeds will be donated to a nonprofit organization.
Dixon told Fox19 that he hopes that passersby and visitors see the nativity scene as an expression of art and an exercise of free speech. Additionally, Dixon said that this will likely be the last year he sets up the nativity scene in his yard because of the amount of work it takes.
