One Million Moms urges FOX to drop 'Lucifer'
HOLLYWOOD (Christian Examiner) -- One Million Moms and its affiliate the American Family Association are encouraging constituents to sign petitions asking Fox Network to drop its plans to air its new series Lucifer set to launch in 2016.
"The Devil has come to Los Angeles," says Fox in its description of the new show. According to the network's description of the plot, the fallen angel grows weary of being the lord of hell. He leaves the abode and retires to Los Angeles, the City of Angels, where he opens an upscale nightclub called Lux.
In a clear reversal of the biblical account of Satan in which he is described as a murderer and the ruler of this world who is eternally consigned to hell by God as punishment, the plot turns him into a "good guy" whose character is admirable and evokes sympathy from viewers, critics claim.
"Charming, charismatic and devilishly handsome, Lucifer is enjoying his retirement, indulging in a few of his favorite things – wine, women and song," the promotional material reads.
Lucifer finds a new calling assisting the Los Angeles Police Department solve a murder that occurred outside of his nightclub. This awakens within Lucifer something he has not felt in nearly all of history – compassion and sympathy. He and a fellow demon who appears in the form of an attractive woman find this disturbing.
However, a female LAPD detective is fascinated by Lucifer's "talent for drawing out people's secrets and his desire to dispense justice, doling out punishment to those who deserve it." Lucifer becomes enamored with the detective's alleged inherent goodness and purity causing him to ponder whether or not there is yet hope for his own soul.
In a further twist of the biblical account of good and evil which describes all-powerful God who is not the author of evil, heaven sends its own emissary in the angel Amenadiel to try to convince Lucifer to return to the underworld.
"Can the Devil incarnate be tempted toward the side of Good, or will his original calling pull him back toward Evil?" the FOX description asks.
Previews of the pilot, according to the AFA, depict graphic acts of violence and a nightclub featuring scantily-clad women and a demon.
In its petition, which reflects 34,068 viewers, AFA says, in part: "The program previews mischaracterize Satan, departs from true biblical teachings about him, and inaccurately portrays the beliefs of the Christian faith. By choosing to air this show, FOX is disrespecting Christianity and mocking the Bible."