As the Republican National Convention was winding down, a counter-convention event was taking place in New York that featured composer Philip Glass. Glass told a room of celebrities that the U.S. is being “taken over by religion” and that the country is being “ruled by the Bible and not the Constitution.” It is not surprising that Philip Glass... [Read more...]
Comparing Christmas, Ha-nukkah and Kwanzaa e-cards by Hallmark, American Greetings and Yahoo! Greetings, the ones by Hallmark were the most equitable in their treatment of the three holidays in 2003. There are some real problems with the other two companies. American Greetings had a slew of tasteless Christmas cards. For example, there was one where... [Read more...]
On December 25, WCBS-TV aired a story about a menorah that was vandalized on Christmas Eve in Pearl River, New York. In the course of the story, reporter Lou Young mentioned that “the menorah shares the small park here with a nativity scene and a Christmas tree in a town that is heavily Irish Catholic.” He also said, “It is probably... [Read more...]
“Bad Santa,” a movie distributed by the Disney subsidiary Miramax, opened in time for the holidays. Louis Giovino, director of communications, was given an opportunity by Miramax to preview the film. His report on the movie provided the basis for William Donohue’s statement to the media: “In a word association game, the mere... [Read more...]
At a Vatican Christmas concert, hip-hop artist Lauryn Hill read a lengthy statement blasting the Vatican for the homosexual scandal in the Catholic Church. “God has been a witness to the corruption of his leadership, of the exploitation and abuses…by the clergy,” she said. Hill told the audience to seek blessings “from God, not men,”... [Read more...]
In 2003, the Catholic League celebrated its 30th anniversary. Founded in 1973 by Jesuit scholar Father Virgil Blum, the league is dedicated to defending individual Catholics and the institutional Church against discrimination and defamation. That we spend much more time defending the Church against defamation than we do defending Catholic men and women... [Read more...]
January On its webpage, the Feminist Majority lists under “Feminist News” news articles of interest to its members. For instance, at the end of January it drew attention to articles titled “Women Sue AT&T for Contraceptive Coverage,” “Title IX Commission To Meet on Final Recommendations: Women’s Groups to Hold... [Read more...]
January Seattle, WA—An art exhibit at the Roq la Rue Gallery called “Gods and Monsters” featured a work called “Frankenkreist,” which depicted Christ as Frankenstein’s monster; and “Naughty Guadalupe,” which depicted a topless Our Lady of Guadalupe. Shortly after the show started, a piece depicting the Koran... [Read more...]
San Francisco, CA—Divine Interventions sells sex toys with a religious theme. On its website it offers sex toys that are in the shape of a crucifix, the Blessed Mother, baby Jesus, a nun, Judas, Moses and the Devil, as well as Buddha and the Grim Reaper. Product descriptions include: “Hail Mary! Virgin Mary, like most smart women, knows there... [Read more...]
January Westfield, MA—Students at Westfield High School who were suspended in December 2002 for distributing candy canes with messages attached filed suit in federal court claiming school administrators violated their constitutional rights to free speech and expression. The message with the candy canes explained the candy canes’ shape and colors,... [Read more...]