Polish singer cleared for ripping up Bible in show

The Associated Press, Thursday, August 18, 2011, 2:26am (PDT)

WARSAW, Poland (AP) -- A Polish court has issued an innocent verdict in the case of a death metal singer who ripped up a Bible during a show and called it "a deceitful book."

Adam Darski, who goes by the stage name Nergal and is the lead singer for the death metal band Behemoth, was charged with insulting religious feelings when he destroyed a Bible in a 2007 concert in Gdynia.

He tore pages from a Bible and threw them to the audience, asking fans to burn them. He also called the church a "criminal sect" — strong language in this predominantly Catholic country.

Prosecutors charged him with offending religious feelings but the district court in Gdynia argued Thursday that audience members who testified in the case said they were not offended.