Scribbled obscenities included "F*** the Bible", and the offending pages were removed by the exhibit's proposers, the Metropolitan Community Church in Glasgow.

The Revd Jane Clarke, an outreach worker, said the project had been exploring the place of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgendered people in sacred history. In an online response she acknowledged: "Some of the postings in the Bible were infantile and some were downright offensive. . . I had hoped that people would show respect for the Bible."

Asked on Tuesday whether she would have done the same with the Qur'an, Ms Clarke responded: "The Qur'an is not my Holy Book, and has not shaped my faith. I do not know or love the Qur'an the way I know and love the Bible.

"Muslims believe the Qur'an is the word of God, which hasn't gone through any human process of editing or revision. For Muslims, the Qur'an holds the place of honour, love, and respect that we have for the Lord Jesus.

"Evangelical Christians are taught to make notes in their Bibles, to underline passages, and to annotate. . . No Muslim would do the same with the Qur'an, as it would be seen as desecrating God's Word."

Mr Schrag has appealed for calm. "What we need to do now is stop blaming innocent people . . . and stop accusing people of being disrespectful, when they have not done anything of the sort," he said.

The page the Bible is opened at will change regularly. Earlier this week, it was open at Matthew, where someone had underlined "Judge not that ye be not judged" and added an exclamation mark in the margin.

"Made in God's Image" runs until 22 August. www.glasgowmuseums.com