An art exhibition containing an etching depicting Jesus and the apostles engaged in a "homosexual orgy" during the biblical Last Supper has sparked outcry in Austria. Gallery visitors look at artworks by Austrian artist Alfred Hrdlicka (Photo: AP) Cardinal Christoph Schoenborn, the top church leader of the largely conservative and overwhelmingly Catholic country, has ordered the offending artwork removed. The dispute began on 12 March with the opening of Religion, Flesh and Power, a collection of about 50 paintings, drawings and sculptures - some with homo-erotic themes - by Austrian artist Alfred Hrdlicka. Among them is Hrdlicka's rendition of the Last Supper: a large, loosely rendered black and white etching that shows Jesus and his disciples engaging in sex acts on the table where they shared their final meal before Christ's crucifixion. Hrdlicka, who turned 80 earlier this year, drew the scene in 1984 in tribute to Pier Paolo Pasolini, an Italian philosopher and award-winning filmmaker whose treatment of religious themes put him at odds with the Catholic church. Angry faithful have been quarreling mainly about the venue: an Archdiocese of Vienna museum just across the cobblestones from St. Stephen's Cathedral, a grand church that was built in 1147 and serves as the epicenter of the capital. "That such an exhibit is on display in a diocesan museum is unbelievable," said visitor Richard Lyon, of Glasgow, Scotland. "I am deeply offended and profoundly disgusted," Lyon wrote in the museum's guest book. "Whatever led the directors and others responsible to think that our Lord could be represented in such a way?" The etching has since been moved to the private Ernst Hilger Gallery, a short stroll from the cathedral museum, where the rest of Hrdlicka's works will remain on display until next month. This story continues on the link below.