海角大神

A woman places her foot on the table and Sheikh Muslim Jiddan gingerly lifts the hem of her robe 鈥� then drops it again in shock at an impossibly hairy calf.

In Tunis, a roomful of young bloggers bursts into laughter as the scene unfolds via a laptop and wall projector.

The fictional sheikh appears on听, a new secular-minded website that includes听skits poking fun at Islamic legal opinions by dramatizing them far beyond their logical conclusions. (This one advises women not to shave their legs.)听

The site is far more than satire, though. Most content is reporting and commentary on current events听by writers from across the Arab world. Launched last month by Moroccan journalist Ahmed Benchemsi, it aims to sustain the spirit of intelligent irreverence that helped drive the Arab Spring.听

Serious fun

Mr. Benchemsi is an old hand at critical journalism. For a decade in Morocco, he scrutinized authority and challenged taboos at the helm of sister newsweeklies听TelQuel听(in French) and听Nichane听(in Arabic).

However, in 2010 Benchemsi ran into trouble.听Nichane听was shuttered after what he calls an advertising boycott听led by a holding company owned by King Mohammed VI.听To protect听TelQuel, he resigned and moved to the US.

He watched the Arab Spring unfold from听Stanford University, where he听became and remains听a visiting scholar.

鈥淚 discovered there were thousands of people out there sharing the same values,鈥� he says. 鈥淒emocracy, but also individual freedom, secularism, and creativity.鈥�

According to a description on the website, Free Arabs听is built on democracy, secularism, and fun 鈥撎齣ntrinsically linked concepts, says听Benchemsi.听

鈥淔un is a very serious matter,鈥� he says. 鈥淎ll the humor on the site is about the Arab world and Arab mainstream mores, which means it鈥檚 self-criticism.鈥�

Authority, meanwhile, often seems allergic to criticism 鈥� lighthearted or otherwise. Last week the popular Egyptian TV听satirist听Bassem Youssef was arrested for allegedly insulting Islam and听Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi.

Slapstick sheikhs

In addition to reporting Arab-related news,听Free Arabs听aims to听prod the sore spots of Arab-Muslim society 鈥� thus features like

In one episode,听Sheikh Muslim Jiddan (鈥淰ery Muslim鈥�) recites in flowery classical Arabic what the site says are real fatwas, or Islamic legal opinions. (Details and web links are provided听with each video clip.)听A disciple bangs the table for emphasis.听

Next, the pair act out each fatwa with props, music, and a touch of slapstick.听

Each clip of 鈥淭he Fatwa Show鈥� contains a disclaimer that no insult to Islam is intended. The听skits鈥� target, says Benchemsi, are those who exploit religion to bully and meddle.

Fatwas are non-binding legal opinions based on Islamic scripture and precedent, says Sheikh Musa Furber, a scholar at the Tabah Foundation, an Islamic NGO in Abu Dhabi. Many Muslims seek them as guidance to living ethically.

Traditionally, that meant directly contacting a recognized Islamic authority. But these days Muslims turn increasingly to the internet for religious advice, says Dr. Gary R. Bunt, a specialist in online Islam at the University of Wales Trinity Saint David.

The consequences can be hard to predict, he says. 鈥淎nyone can technically go online, set up a website, start generating fatwas, and acquire an audience.鈥�

While the internet connects people, it also offers a platform for ill-informed or extreme views that wouldn鈥檛 survive in mainstream Islamic institutions, says Dr. Bunt.

The best response to questionable fatwas is respectful criticism, says Sheikh Furber. Not 鈥減ersonal attacks against and mockery of the source (whether it be the individual or the religion itself).鈥�

Jokesters, or 'satan worshippers'?

Free Arabs is still a work in progress, says Benchemsi. So far it has been volunteer-funded and most content is in English, but Arabic and French versions are planned.听

Two weeks ago听Benchemsi showed off the site to around a dozen young trainee bloggers at Nawaat, a Tunisian independent news website.

鈥淭he next one鈥檚 not for under-18鈥檚,鈥� he joked, as he queued up a 鈥淔atwa Show鈥� clip.

The bloggers giggled and took notes. One sketched Benchemsi, lean and energetic, with large eyes and a crisp white shirt.

Some visitors to听Free Arabs听are less enthusiastic. One commenter on the site said 鈥淭he Fatwa Show鈥� was 鈥渒ind of tasteless.鈥� 听Another advised the site鈥檚 creators to 鈥淔ear God, O Satan-worshippers.鈥�

Benchemsi is undeterred.听

鈥淎 society that can鈥檛 take a joke is a society that can鈥檛 be taken seriously," he says.