Jesus - bigger than the BNP

After the BNP's hope to make South Shields the jewel in their crown I decided to look around for a bit of background on them. I stumbled across this old spat between the fundamentalist Christian Voice and the fascist BNP. Despite their handbags at dawn, there are many similarities between the two groups - they court publicity, shout louder than their membership size suggests and criticise any sign of progressive attitudes in modern Britain.

Both groups are paranoid about Muslims, whipping up hate towards the Muslim community. They suggest that Britain is becoming an Islamic state, despite the lack of street corner stonings. Although given the 'tough on crime' image they like to portray, I suspect the BNP may support such a punishment. The groups' accusations that governments show deference to Islam conveniently forgets that British armed forces have killed more Muslims over the last ten years than at any time since the Crusades, and ignores Tony Blair's support for a country which spent much of 2006 using Lebanese civilians for bombing practice.

The BNP and CV trod the same ground over 'Jerry Springer The Opera', both arguing that it should be banned, whilst apparently unaware of the irony that organisations that benefit from our country's respect for free speech would wish to deny that very same right for others.

However, the brief courtship between the two couldn't last, and perhaps a souring should have been expected. Christianity, especially the fundamentalist kind practised by CV, is not compatible with BNP mantra.

Fundamentalist Christians believe that Adam and Eve were the mother and father of humanity. That means that, according to Acts 17:26, that we are all of "one blood". That's blasphemy to the BNP's race-hate core values. Instead, the BNP markets a twisted interpretation of evolution disturbingly reminiscent of Nazi race theory in which, according to BNP press officer Phil Edwards (a pseudonym), "white people are more highly evolved than blacks".

To most Christians the race issue is a no-brainer - BNP ideology is not compatible with the ethic that all Christians are brothers and sisters under God, irrespective of race. This is reflected in the number of Christian organisations opposed to fascists like the BNP, which in turn reflects the massive ethnic diversity of the Christian church.

Over the subject of race, there's no middle ground or 'third way' for the BNP and CV.

In an odd synergy of irrationality, the epic 'Nazi evolution' vs 'supernatural creation' battle between the BNP and CV somehow managed to achieve the impossible, and allow both to conquer the intellectual low ground at the same time.

But despite their ideological mud fight over creation, they still hold similar enough views over homosexuality, Muslims and free speech to confirm that both groups deserve little more than ridicule.