A last-minute decision by a Tarleton State University drama professor to cancel the blasphemous play “Corpus Christi” is a victory for decency and for those who believe in accurate portrayals of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Like many others, the first I heard about plans for the controversial play to be staged in Stephenville came just last week. An area television station aired a broadcast about the theatrical production, and the Fort Worth Star-Telegram published news reports about it, as well.

Within short order, the student-directed play had created such an uproar that college officials eventually backtracked from their earlier pledge to let the play go on.

It was to have been presented last Saturday on the Tarleton campus. Community members and others with ties to the university were outraged to learn that Jesus was depicted in the play as being homosexual.

It gets worse.

Reported foxnews.com: “The play presents a modern-day version of Jesus’ life and death in 1960s Corpus Christi, Texas, with a few controversial updates. The apostles are all gay, Joseph is an alcoholic wife-beater, and Mary gives birth alongside a chorus of moaning men.”

In the play, Jesus through his character (called Joshua) “shows Judas the full extent of His love, kissing the son of perdition at Pontius Pilate High School’s senior prom,” according to the network Web site.

“Corpus Christi” also depicts Jesus performing a same-sex wedding for two of His apostles.

It is disturbing that a college professor would think it is all right to allow students to stage a play that denigrates Christ -- the only one, according to biblical accounts, who ever lived a perfect, sinless life. It is equally disconcerting that top officials at Tarleton covered for the professor’s poor judgment.

Before the play was halted, Waco television station KWTX on its Web site said, “The university is committed to solidarity during the controversy.

“Tarleton President F. Dominic Dottavio said Monday the play would be staged because the school is committed to protecting and preserving freedom of thought, speech and expression.”

Tarleton deserves much better leadership than that.

Student-director John Jordan Otte chose the production -- written in the 1990s by Terrence McNally -- for a class project. He said he did so to “bring people together” and help gain acceptance for homosexual Christians, whom he said often feel alienated from their churches.

That’s curious logic. Bearing false witness, lying about who Jesus is, so you can “bring people together”?

Said David Harris, minister at Hillcrest Church of Christ in Stephenville: “It infuriates me that somebody would be given a platform to be able to demean and degrade the Son of God.”

Harris also noted: “At the end of the play [Jesus] is crucified with the moniker above His head as ‘King of the Queers.’ And they call this art.”

The message of the play “Corpus Christi” is that anything goes, and a loving God benignly smiles and says, “Do as you please.” But the vast majority of Americans reject that kind of logic.

And enough people made their voices heard to the point that Tarleton officials got the message-- however belatedly. For that, we can be grateful.

Jim Lowe is editor and publisher of the Lampasas Dispatch Record.