VIENNA (LifeSiteNews) — A blasphemous, state-funded art exhibition in Vienna openly mocks the passion of Jesus Christ and the Blessed Virgin Mary.

The title of the exhibition, “You shall make for yourself an image,” is an inversion of God’s command found in Sacred Scripture to “not make to thyself a graven thing, nor the likeness of anything that is in heaven above” (Exodus 20:4).

The sacrilegious feature image of the display, prominently shown at the entrance of the “Künstlerhaus” in Vienna, is meant to depict the Blessed Virgin Mary as a bearded man holding a child.

The Catholic activist group TFP Student Action, which started a petition to end the blasphemous display, named the following as the most outrageous images shown: a crucified green frog that mocks Our Lord’s Passion, a bearded man dressed as Our Lady is pictured holding a child, a rendition of the Pieta statue depicting Our Lady in complete nudity, and liturgical vestment stained with blood, urine, and feces.

The Christian organization “Christenschutz” said the exhibition is a “targeted, tasteless denigration of the sacred.” Christenschutz president Jan Ledóchowski said these mocking displays would never be done in the context of Islam or Judaism and asked why Christianity is considered “fair game” for obscenities.

The Künstlerhaus, where the exhibition was displayed, is funded by the city of Vienna.

TFP Student Action noted that the timing of the blasphemous display adds insult to injury: “For Christians across Austria, Europe, and beyond, the timing is especially painful: this exhibit remains open throughout Advent, Christmas, and into February – the very seasons in which the Church contemplates the Incarnation with love and reverence.”

The TFP’s petition “calls upon Tanja Prušnik, President of the Künstlerhaus Vereinigung, to withdraw the exhibition out of respect for the faith that shaped Austria as a nation and culture and continues to guide millions of its citizens.”

“We know that public blasphemy does real spiritual harm,” the Catholic organization continued. “And because God is offended wherever His glory is denied, the faithful everywhere have a responsibility to stand up – peacefully, firmly, and without hesitation.”

“This is why the campaign’s rallying cry is: ‘Christmas Without Blasphemy.’”

You can sign the TFP’s petition against the blasphemous Vienna exhibit HERE.