"This is God speaking. I'm not able to take your call right now. Please leave a message or call back later and who knows, maybe then you'll get an answer."
That's a translation of the voicemail message you'll hear if you call a new Dutch mobile number. It might sound like a joke, but not to the man responsible, Dutch conceptual artist Johan van der Dong, who says,
 Johan van der Dong |
Mr van der Dong chose to use a mobile phone because God should be available anywhere, anytime. Earlier, he says, people went to churches to pray, and he was interested to see how people would react if they were offered a hotline to God.
The artist has been surprised by the response to his project. The number was launched at the beginning of the week and since then, the phone just hasn't stopped ringing. There are more messages than he can count, he says, with people calling night and day.. Just what those messages are though, will remain a secret, the artist promises:
"I'm not a pastor, I'm an artist and I won't listen to the messages. It's a secret between the Lord and the people who are calling."Blasphemy?
The Godphone is part of an installation that will go on show on Saturday, in the city of Groningen. It focuses on changes in the way the Dutch perceive religion by using sounds and images from the 1970's and the present. Religion is, of course, a very sensitive issue for many people and some Christians may see the hotline as blasphemy. Mr van der Dong is quick to stress his good intentions:
"People may be offended but it is symbolic, yes that's the word, it shouldn't be taken literally. So I hope people will understand that and that I am not offending them with this piece of art. That's not my purpose."
The hotline will be accepting messages for the next 6 months.
The number to call is +31 (0) 6 442 449 01
The artist's website is at http://www.johanvanderdong.nl/.
Tags: freedom of religion, God, prayer, religion