Rachel Bevilacqua of Columbus, Georgia, isn't too happy these days. A judge in New York has taken her ten-year-old son away from her because of her religion, er, her mockery of religion.

Rachel is a member of the Church of the SubGenius.

Just before Christmas, she sent her son to visit his father in New York. As soon as the child arrived, her ex-husband went to court to ask for full custody. Orleans County Judge James Punch granted the husband's request, and Rachel is no longer allowed to even see her son?

Why? There's been no charge that she is an unfit mother, but the judge said it's "obvious" she shouldn't have him because she's a member of the Church of the Subgenius, a parody religion, or a religion of parody, whatever.... Rachel was quite active in the Church, which holds Devivals in which particpants take the stage and rant out their personal parody. Rachel is known in SubGenius circles as Magdalen.

Rachel has a court date next month in front of a different judge. After much publicity, Judge Punch (no relation to Judge Judy) recused himself from the case. Praise Bob!

Then again, I first attended a Slackfest Devival in 1991, and look how I turned out!

— Widow's Son

Read Rachel's blog.
Read a news article.
Read a religious researcher's blog about this.
Read a pagan perspective.

In 1991, film maker Douglass Smith directed this one minute SubGenius ad, which was originally shown on music video networks. It was written by, and stars, Rev. Ivan Stang. Stang is co-sub-founder of The Church of the SubGenius, the infamous UFO-sex-death cult from Texas, based on the Slack teachings of J.R. "Bob" Dobbs — which some claim is merely a satire, while others warn that it is all too real. The music is by Rev. Mark Mothersbaugh of DEVO. The commercial is also part of the earliest SubGenius feature video, ARISE! Other videos, and the SubGenius weekly radio show The Hour of Slack, are available via the SubGenius.com website.




Church of the SubGenius | Ivan Stang | Religion | Divorce | J.R. "Bob" Dobbs | Slack | Devival | Magdalen