Bill Maher takes potshots at Christianity with self-mocking satire

It’s Bill Maher at his most mocking. In a new video for the award-winning “Funny or Die” website, the HBO comedy host poses as an undercover Christian trying to explain his faked atheist schtick to a stunned colleague — all the while managing to convey his absolute disdain for the faith.

Called “Bill Maher’s Dirty Secret,” the satire video opens with the comedian on bended knees, holding a rosary while worshiping before a portrait of what appears to be the Virgin Mary. A woman walks into his room and asks in surprise, “What are you doing?” Mr. Maher then crosses himself over the chest, stands and hugs her.

“Praying,” he says, the video showed.

“Bill, you’re an atheist. Everybody knows you’re an atheist,” the woman responds.

“Well, everybody in the business knows I play an atheist,” Mr. Maher says. “This is an act. This is what we do. This is Hollywood, sweetheart.”

The woman then brings up the movie Mr. Maher made, “Religulous” that scorned the faith.

“I made a movie because that’s where the money is. If stupid atheists want to give me their money, go around all the country, see me play — every place I play, I take that money, I give it to local churches,” he said. “This is strictly for enforcing religious dogma because that’s what it’s all about.”

Mr. Maher then says he had a “vision” at the age of 14 when Jesus Christ sat at the end of his bed.

“This was real. There was a white light that came into the room, floated down — just the way you pictured him, the beard, the hair, the robe, and he sat at the edge of the bed, and we had a conversation,” Mr. Maher said. “And he just told me — have fun with it. That’s what he said. Just have fun with it.”

Mr. Maher continued: “Because [Jesus] said if you do the right thing, you’re gong to get to Heaven, but Heaven — [it] doesn’t even pay to explain it to you because you have to experience it to know.”

He then said he hangs out with Ann Coulter — and “we pray. That’s what we do,” the video showed.