Behemoth Singer Nergal Facing New Anti-Blasphemy Charge in Poland

Heavy metal singer Nergal (aka Adam Darksi), who is best known for his work with Behemoth, is facing new anti-blasphemy charges in Poland after allegedly sharing an altered image of the Virgin Mary on Facebook back in September of 2019. Darski was indicted on this charge in Warsaw and has pleaded not guilty.

According to Aleksandra Skrzyniarz, a spokeswoman for the district prosecutor’s office in Warsaw, Darski allegedly posted “a damaged picture showing the image of the Mother of God with a shoe-legged figure placed in the place of the indicated figure, which was described by + on the set +, which translated means + on the set +, thus offending the religious feelings of four people.”

Skrzyniarz’s statement also mentions that members of the ultra-conservative Ordo luris, a fundamentalist Catholic organization known for its anti-abortion stances and the lesser-known Patriotic Society, became aware of Darski’s charge. Her statement also claims that a religious studies professor was appointed to the case, which led the Warsaw prosecutor’s office to determine “that treading with a shoe on the image of the Mother of God is an offense against religious feelings.”

This isn’t the first time that Darski and Behemoth have been hit by Poland’s anti-blasphemy charges. The singer was forced to appear in court last year to defend Behemoth’s white eagle logo, which faced charges of being “anti-Polish” and “blasphemous.” In a recent statement, Darski criticized the Polish government and pushed for the removal of anti-blasphemy charges.

“Another lawsuit in the process. Reason? In every case the same: offense of RELIGIOUS FEELINGS! Can u imagine this nonsense in XXl century? Poland is mentally soooo fuckin’ behind the civilized Europe that we r literally THE last bastion of so called ‘blasphemy casus,'” Darksi wrote on Instagram. “Even extremely Catholic Ireland removed this paragraph from constitution lately. It WILL happen in Poland at some point …. and yea, I’m willing to be that stepping stone. FUCK religious fundamentalism in every fuckin hole. And frankly, I’m sure I will win this and EVERY other case. Just wait and see 😎 ***** ***”

Darski has been keeping busy outside of his legal controversies as well, hosting a Behemoth live stream last September. The vocalist also joined Jeff “Mantas” Dunn for cover of Venom’s “Satanchist” in isolation last May.