( CNN ) -- I 've just been watching the trailer for `` Black Jesus , '' a show that will premiere on August 7 on the Cartoon Network during its child-unfriendly late-night spot , which they call Adult Swim . Already at least one Christian group has begun to lobby the network to cancel the show , regarding its contents as blasphemous . ( Cartoon Network is owned by Turner Broadcasting , which owns CNN . ) From what I can tell , the series is a bit of a spoof , with some foul language . The general notion seems clever : A guy who thinks he is Jesus , who might even be Jesus , lives in a poor neighborhood of Compton , California . He 's got a ragged band of followers -- they look like winos and potheads -- who follow him around with lots of bantering . The scenes shown in the trailer seem relatively funny , and it appears that nobody is quite sure whether this is a madman who thinks he is Jesus or maybe the Lord himself come back in a strange outfit and , indeed , black skin . Is this offensive ? The jury will have to be out until we see whole episodes , but in conceptâ€ ” particularly if the rest of the show is like the trailerâ€ ” it does not seem so . Let me explain . First , let 's look at the criticism : `` Adult Swim is not ridiculing any other religion and would n't dream of mocking Mohammed or Muslims , but has no problem denigrating Christians '' the conservative Christian group American Family Association writes on its website . It 's certainly a good point . People feel free to mock Christianity and Jesus , but they hesitate to mock Mohammed . This is likely because some Islamic fundamentalist groups can be more than touchy and sometimes dangerous . I generally do n't think one should attack Mohammed , as it obviously offends large groups of sincere followers , and there are some extremists ready to kill to make their point . It was , however , truly horrific to see what happened to Salman Rushdie in 1989 when the Ayatollah Khomeini of Iran issued a fatwa ordering Muslims to kill Rushdie , as he had written what the Ayatollah considered a blasphemous novel , `` The Satanic Verses . '' I admire Rushdie immensely , as a writer and person , and I would argue that he had every right to publish `` The Satanic Verses , '' at least in Western countries . In the context of his book , a work of literature , he was clearly being satirical , and if satire goes , the whole shebang -- meaning literate and moral culture -- vanishes with it . Satire is one of the essential ways that human beings have for looking at themselves and laughing , seeing themselves in a larger context . As someone once said , tragedy is a short-term view of things ; comedy is the long view . But is `` Black Jesus '' appropriate satire , and does it do anything to harm Christianity ? As a Christian myself , I like the idea of seeing Jesus return in various guises , skin colors , outfits and social contexts . Why not ? The Jesus I know and love was something of a party animal . His first miracle was to turn water into wine at a wedding : and lots of wine was apparently drunk . At the Last Supper , in keeping with Jewish tradition ( if you regard this as a Passover feast or seder ) , everybody was obliged to drink four glasses of wine . In Luke 5:27-32 the Pharisees condemn Jesus and his friends for eating and drinking with `` publicans and sinners . '' In Matthew 11:18-19 , we read that Jesus is accused of being `` a drunken and a glutton , a friend of tax collectors and sinners . '' On and on , the image of Jesus and his band , which includes a fair number of women -- including Mary Magdalene , Joanna and Susanna ( see Luke 8:2-3 ) -- seems one of a merry-making group , not a pious and bedraggled or depressed conclave . Jesus met with whores and bartenders ( publicans ) and all sorts of marginal folks . It 's not unreasonable to think that , if he should return today , he would socialize as well with bums and pot-growers and winos , even someone from the IRS . He would associate with anyone who would lend an ear , spreading his good news , which to Christians is the joy of the coming kingdom , the joy of giving one 's time and treasure to those in need , the pleasure of becoming God 's hands in the world . This was what Jesus did . Christians should understand that following Jesus means acting in the world in ways that improve it . Matthew tells us in 7:16 : `` By their fruits ye shall know them . '' I 'm sure the message of Jesus can survive `` Black Jesus . '' And I look forward to many other versions of Jesus , in many settings . He would always speak in the lingo of the neighborhood , even if to some ears this might sound `` foul-mouthed . '' He would show irreverence of a sort , great joy , and a passion for justice . His sense of humor would take on many forms , as it did during his life . He would spread the gospel in whatever language and manner the context required .
Jay Parini : Trailer for new TV show `` Black Jesus '' drawing ire of conservative Christian group . It shows guy who lives in California , says he 's Jesus , is black , consorts with rough sorts . Parini : Criticism seems misplaced ; Jesus ' image as man-of-people runs through Bible . Parini : Jesus I know , love was something of a party animal . He can survive `` Black Jesus ''