Commenting on the New Line Cinema film “The Nativity Story” is Catholic League president Bill Donohue:

“The media love a good story, but they hate it when they’re deprived of one they were betting on. That’s what happened when the Vatican, as well as Catholic and Protestant groups throughout the world, failed to withdraw their support for ‘The Nativity Story’ once it was revealed that the 16 year-old who plays the Virgin Mary, Keisha Castle-Hughes, is pregnant out-of-wedlock.

“On Nov. 24, UPI wrote that ‘Some Christian groups in the United States and Canada reportedly have been questioning Castle-Hughes’s ‘suitability’ to play the role of Mary.’ On the same day, the Times of London implied that the pope had subsequently refused to see the film (this was picked up by some U.S. media sources). On Nov. 26, the Detroit Free Press said that ‘Vatican officials’ were allegedly ‘not thrilled to have the issue cloud their enjoyment of the movie. So Castle-Hughes was dropped from the invitation list for the Vatican’s world premiere of the movie today.’

“As it turns out, none of this is true, as both USA Today and the New York Times accurately reported: the pope was embarking on his trip to Turkey and the girl was in Australia doing a movie.

“Despite what some think, Christians do not turn their backs on unwed mothers: they provide services for them. What Christians object to are performers like Madonna who intentionally and repeatedly insult them. They also object to media outlets like the San Francisco Chronicle’s website, SFGate.com. On Nov. 27, it ran a patently inaccurate story that beckoned the hand of bigots: the bloggers didn’t disappoint.

“Kiera McCaffrey, our director of communications, saw the film and loved it. So will all Christians. The only ones who won’t are those who wanted the Vatican, and Christians generally, to shun Castle-Hughes.”

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