An article by Deborah Dwork and Eric Greenberg criticizing the Church for pursuing the cause of sainthood for Pope Pius XII was recently published on the website of the Philadelphia Inquirer. Dwork, a specialist in Holocaust studies at Clark University, and Greenberg, a rabbi and director of interfaith policy for the ADL, have the credentials, but their... [Read more...]
Catholic League president Bill Donohue looks at Hollywood’s treatment of the apocalypse in “The Book of Eli” and “Legion”; the former opens January 15, and the latter a week later: By all accounts, “The Book of Eli” puts a positive spin on Christianity. The lead character, Eli, is played by Denzel Washington. Following a nuclear war which... [Read more...]
Bill Donohue explains why the Catholic League is sharply critical of Celebrity Cruises: Ten days before Christmas, we learned that Celebrity Cruises had just announced that beginning in 2010, it would no longer have priests on board to celebrate daily and Sunday Masses. We immediately followed up by questioning the cruise line about its new policy.... [Read more...]
Just as the sun sets in the morning, we know that every December the anti-Christmas folks swing into high gear. And as evidenced by the articles in this issue of Catalyst, 2009 was no exception. Save, perhaps, for one thing: the tactics this time around were noted for their novelty. Nothing gained the Catholic League more publicity this past Christmas... [Read more...]
We previously reported in Catalyst that New Line Cinema has not shown much interest in making any more movie versions of Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials trilogy; his first book in the series, The Golden Compass, hit the big screen in 2007, and was the subject of a vigorous Catholic League protest. At the end of 2009, our dream came true: there... [Read more...]
It would be hard to find an organization in the United States which treats animals more unethically than People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA). In 2008, as demonstrated by the Center for Consumer Freedom, PETA killed 95 percent of the adoptable pets in its care. Indeed, it killed an average of six pets a day in 2008 at its headquarters... [Read more...]
For whatever reason, there were more raunchy Christmas plays this year than ever before. Not surprisingly, many were gay-themed, most were confined to the east and west coasts, and all were loved by art critics. The plays ran the gamut from the irreverent to the extremely vulgar. New York City is a natural home for such fare. Naked performers were seen... [Read more...]
The Christmas season is a lonely time of year for those who believe in nothing. Most, however, manage to get by without having to lash out at believers. But not the Freedom from Religion Foundation. In 2008, this group took its campaign to Olympia, Washington, and this past year, the religion haters took their show on the road to Springfield, Illinois.... [Read more...]
Leading up to Christmas, we issued a news release noting how the anti-Christmas band was revving its engine. · The menorah in a Nashville park was okay by the ACLU, but the crèche in Clarksville, Tennessee was not. Why? The City of Clarksville paid $200 for the animals used in the nativity scene. · A woman from Manchester, Massachusetts was told... [Read more...]
In the December 7 issue of the New York Times, there was a story about White House social secretary Desirée Rogers. In it, reporter Sheryl Gay Stolberg wrote: “When former social secretaries gave a luncheon to welcome Ms. Rogers earlier this year, one participant said, she surprised them by suggesting the Obamas were planning a ‘non-religious Christmas….’” This... [Read more...]