AboutEd Buckner Expertise Nationally known freethinker will answer questions on church and state, including giving specific quotations and historical or logical support on religious liberty questions. I`m an expert on the U.S. Constitution, First Amendment, and the Treaty with Tripoli (1796-97). I am a Regional Director for the Council for Secular Humanism, active in the Freedom From Religion Foundation, and a leader of the Atlanta Freethought Society and The Georgia Chapter of Americans United for Separation of Church and State. I earned a Ph.D.in Educational Leadership from Georgia State University in 1983.
Expert: Ed Buckner Date: 11/25/2007 Subject: Christian prophecy embedded in art protected by copyright.
Question Hi, in 2005 I reached a conclusion that the two witnesses that appear in the Bible in Revelation 11:3 have already come and delivered their messages of prophecy during a 1,260 day period.
The nature of the prophecies are such that I am obligated to disclose the prophecies they delivered to the general public. However, the prophecies were delivered to mankind within artistic creations that are currently under copyright protection.
The persons and companies that hold these copyrights will not give me permission to talk about their works in this light, in either a published, for profit setting or an unpublished, non-profit setting.
I feel that my right to religious expression trumps corporate interest. Am I correct? Is this a case that could generate new law. Should I just go forward with my disclosure to the public and go to court if necessary?
Any advise you could give would be greatly appreciated.
Sincerely,
Jacob
Answer Mr. James,
I'm not an attorney and not really an expert on your question's subject. And besides that, I lack any belief in the supernatural, so I am, as you would no doubt expect, skeptical of your conclusion. Nevertheless, I do have an opinion, which I'll offer for what it's worth, along with advising you to consult an attorney knowledgeable in such matters before you proceed.
"And I will give power unto my two witnesses, and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and threescore days, clothed in sackcloth." This verse--the one you're citing--is so broad and open to so many interpretations (or, as Jefferson said of that whole book of the Bible, so incomprehensible as to be probably not worth even trying to comprehend), that it could mean anything. My best guess then, is that any court anywhere--in the US, in Australia (under down, as it's sometimes called), or elsewhere, would conclude (as I would) that corporate interest in copyrights would soundly trump your rights in this case. I'm predicting, in other words, that you'd lose decisively, with whatever consequences that might entail.
So, unless a competent attorney advises otherwise, I recommend you rethink your approach.
Of course, no *commentary* on any artwork or regarding religion by you is subject to any copyright, so if all you want to do is comment, you can probably have at it.
