Christians and Muslims hold forum to read, discuss potentially controversial comic book

Jack T. Chick is a fundamentalist Christian comic book artist, determined to save the souls of the world.

During his controversial 40-year career, he's published more than 500 million copies of pocket-size booklets and comics that condemn non-believers, who include Roman Catholics, Muslims, Jews, evolutionists and trick-or-treaters (celebrating that pagan festival, Halloween) -- to name a few.

Chick tracts are intended as a not–so-subtle evangelical tool. But on a recent evening, a Chick comic served quite a different purpose at Holy Cross Church in Wayne, where an interfaith youth forum, sponsored by the North Jersey Christian Muslim Project, read and discussed a Chick comic called "The Prophet." The text attacks both Roman Catholics and Muslims in a conspiracy-filled tale, which the group used as a bridge to learn about their respective religions.

Nothing unites people like a shared bully.

In Chick's pages, the pope is a stand-in for Satan -- and Islam is not a true religion but an invention of the Vatican, part of a grand plan to conquer the world.

Two important points for those unfamiliar with Chick's works: At first glance, the books resemble standard comic books. The simple, colorful sketches could draw in any comic fan, young or old. Some theological and historical facts are woven into the plot lines, leaving readers befuddled about what to believe, critics say.

Mohammad Ramadan, a 20-year-old Passaic County Community College student, sat at a table composed of Catholics, Protestants and Muslims. Reading aloud sections that described respected Catholic theologian St. Augustine as a co-conspirator of Satan, Ramadan didn't know what to think. Then he glanced at the young man sitting next to him, a Catholic who was smirking uncomfortably. "Looking at his facial expressions, I knew it could not be true," said Ramadan, who worships at the Islamic Center of Passaic County.

Rev. Phil Latronico of St. John the Apostle Parish in Linden -- and an organizer of the event -- calls the comic "hate literature" capable of leading people to believe untruths.

"It confuses people," Latronico said as he introduced the comic to those seated around circular tables in the church basement. "Things written in it bring dishonor to religious groups that could lead to physical harm."

Chick tracts are sold online and at Christian bookstores. At the Hawthorne Bible House, you can purchase a 25-pack or individual tracts at .18 cents a piece. Though they do not carry "The Prophet," a clerk said they sell another Chick comic, "This was your life." "So many people buy them," said a clerk answering the telephone at the Hawthorne book shop.

Latronico stumbled upon his first Chick tract decades ago while a student at Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken; he found it lying in a cubicle in the library.

Not everyone dismisses Chick's work as hate literature. Comic book collectors have been known to pay up to $500 for vintage copies. Kurt Kuersteiner, an avid collector and author of "The Unofficial Guide to the Art of Jack T. Chick," explained his admiration for the artist in a phone interview from his Florida home.

The proselytizing power of Chick should not be underestimated, said Kuersteiner, who said he knows dozens of people who found Jesus via the tracts. The back page usually poses the question, "Did you accept Jesus Christ as your own personal savior?" followed by "Yes" or "No" boxes to check. He said missionaries have been known to buy box loads of the tracts, which are translated into more than a hundred languages.

Kuersteiner doesn't consider the tracts to be hate literature. Chick may be "politically incorrect" and paint certain groups in an "unflattering light," Kuersteiner said, but he believes Chick's work stops short of being hate literature because it doesn't directly call for violence. If anything, he added, "it makes people think."

What constitutes hate literature is often disputed, said Etzion Neuer, regional director of the New Jersey Office of the Anti-Defamation League -- and religious speech further complicates the matter. "Where do we draw the line between religious chauvinism and outright hatred for a group?"

Banning offensive texts is not the answer, Neuer said. "The most effective way to counter it is through education."

At the Wayne forum, Latronico instructed attendees to pick out what they considered to be the "zingers" or untruths about other religious groups. A table of women took turns reading passages.

Eileen Esposito, a youth leader from St. John's the Apostle Parish, was tongue-tied when she hit Arabic names like "Abd Al-Muttalib." Across the table, sisters Jasmin and Sonya Bayramoglu softly corrected her.

As they flipped through the tale, Jasmin said, "My mom's going to be flipping out." Her mother was reading the comic at a nearby table.

No one mentioned the comic's cover, which depicts the Prophet Mohammed standing in the desert, wielding a crescent-emblazoned flag and sword. Islam discourages the depiction of Allah, Mohammed and the Major Prophets. In 2005, a satirical cartoon published in a Danish newspaper sparked riots throughout the world and deaths among Muslim protestors; it depicted Mohammed wearing a bomb-shaped turban.

During evening prayers in the sanctuary, one Christian man pointed out what he considered a major inconsistency: In the comic, Catholic monks groomed Mohammed for his role as a Vatican puppet by having him read the works of St. Augustine.

"Mohammad couldn't read or write," the man said.

Muslims believe that Allah recited the Koran to Mohammad in a prophecy.

"That gives the Quran its credence," Latronico explained. "Where did he get all his knowledge from if he couldn't read or write?"

Later, Latronico asked the attendees if any of them had encountered the comics on their own. A shaggy-haired teenager raised his hand. Walking home from the Stop and Shop in Westfield, he found one on the road. "I laughed," he said.

Latronico then asked groups to think about how they might engage someone who believes in Chick's messages.

"It's hard to dialogue if they're going to be stubborn about it," said Sonya Bayramoglu, a student at Clifton High School.

All agreed that they would question where the comic got its facts. Kelly Zeigler, a Muslim convert, pointed out that most Christian Evangelicals who hand out religious tracts, on sidewalks and outside grocery stores, seem genuinely concerned for people: "I don't think they're out spreading literature to pervert the world," she said.

As for the claim that one is doomed for not accepting Jesus Christ, she has a rebuttal: We stand in heaven alone. It's our burden and responsibility to choose for ourselves how we get there.

Mohammad Qatanani Imam of the Islamic Center of Passaic County said he wasn't unsettled by the evening's comic reading: "The purpose of the gathering was to teach others how to defend each other and how to respect each other. It's very easy to know our own religion."

Reach Sachi Fujimori at 973-569-7154 or fujimori@northjersey.com.