Australian Christians poured out of churches across the country, smashing store windows and setting fire to cars, chanting “Death to the Blake Society!” after an art competition included images of the Virgin Mary in a burqa, and Osama bin Laden morphing into Jesus Christ.

Oh, wait. No they didn’t.

CONTROVERSY has erupted over two entries in a prestigious art competition, one which depicts the Virgin Mary in a burqa and an image of Osama bin Laden which morphs into Jesus.

The work’s have been entered into Australia’s top religious art competition, the Blake Prize. Prime Minister John Howard has been critical of the inclusion of the works, which he said were insulting and lacked any artistic merit, News Ltd reports. “The choice of such artwork is gratuitously offensive to the religious beliefs of many Australians,” he said.

But the Uniting Church minister who chairs the Blake Society said his mission was to spark debate about spirituality in a world that was “cynical, degraded and in crisis”. Reverend Rod Pattenden said he didn’t expect the exhibition to be controversial, “because the Christian community doesn’t look at art a great deal”.

Australian Christian Lobby spokeswoman Glynis Quinlan questioned whether the artists would have used icons of Islam rather than Christianity. “It’s really unfortunate people take liberties with the Christian faith they wouldn’t take with other religions,” she said.