BEHEMOTH Frontman Says Poland Must Repeal Medieval Blasphemy Law

Oran O'Beirne of Ireland's Overdrive recently conducted an interview with BEHEMOTH frontman Adam "Nergal" Darski. An excerpt from the chat follows below.

Overdrive: Do you find that, still today, people can't accept the concept of a different religious stance. And more importantly, the tendency to overlook and turn their heads away from the abhorrent behaviour of their beloved church be it Christianity or Catholic, Protestant, Gnostic, Mormon, Evangelical, Anglican or Orthodox, or follower of another branch of the religion?

Nergal: "It seems like for some people and some organizations, I'm an easy target. They don't really do much research or do any digging into who I am, what we are and what we are doing. They see the aspect of metaphorical evil, or me as being the poster boy for a campaign against the Church. They think that's what I'm obsessed with and the be all and end all of my motives is purely for all my artistic creations. While sometimes, targeting the concept of Nergal or other artists that seem too 'radical' for these people, [it's] all they know. They should spend the time to look around and they'll notice that there are far more dangerous and disturbing things happening right under their noses, especially in their own beloved organizations. There is some really evil shit happening right now that these people are not seeing. Do you know what I mean? This is my everyday bread and I deal with this type of stuff literally on a daily basis, but I don't have problems being who I am. They just need a scapegoat and that's how they capitalize on attacking someone or something that they find is too radical for their own beliefs. They attack me, and the name comes out, they capitalize on that, but at the end of the day, there is no substance. This happens every now and again back in Poland and the shitstorm is about to start again and the truth is, it doesn't really bother me anymore."

Overdrive: What is happening in Poland that you're referring to?

Nergal: "Now it's gonna be the 'Jesus dildo' case and it's ongoing. There's gonna be a court case. There was already a hearing, and I'm going to be charged. So, I mean, it's another case. It's not the first one, nor will it be the last one. Like I recently said on my social media, I can promise I can never stop being myself and it seems like these people have a huge problem with me exercising my artistic freedom. I find this very sad. When I enter Poland, it still says 'democracy,' so within that 'democracy,' I will be using my freedom in any way that I want. Even though they state 'democracy,' they [Poland] want to turn it into a sort of totalitarian state of sorts. It's all going in that direction right now. As long as it's a democratic country, I'll be using my freedom. The reason for all my legal problems in Poland is a blasphemy case, and I believe that Ireland recently just deleted it from your constitution.

Overdrive: That's correct. It was thankfully removed by referendum back in October 2018.

Nergal: "I find this amazing. To me, there is no evolution with this case being part of any constitution, and I'm really supporting Ireland for doing this and the government for giving the people the chance to make their own minds up. I really look up to Ireland for being a Catholic state and choosing a civilized way for people to co-exist with different religious beliefs and backgrounds. There is no reason why people with different beliefs can't co-exist. It's not like I'm active creatively. Do you know what I mean? It's not like I'm saying, 'Kill all the Christians,' or, 'Burn all the churches.' I don't do this, because my artistic creativity is going to be very, very limited and I would hate that. I'm a part of society, and I accept that fact. So, in so many ways, I need these people there. I truly believe in the symbiosis of both entities. But they must accept me also. If we want to evolve and enter a new decade and develop as a country, we must delete blasphemy from our law system just like Ireland did."

Overdrive: Do you plan to be an advocate for this to happen in Poland?

Nergal: "This is another mission for me. I know it can be done, as I've seen it here [in Ireland] and I'm prepared to be the stepping stone for this to happen. I'm not saying how we'll do it, because I'm not a politician."

Read the entire interview at Overdrive.