Rosie O’Donnell is no stranger to Catholic bashing, so when it was announced that she was joining the ABC-TV program “The View,” we wondered how long it would take for her to start venting. The answer? Six shows.

On September 12, co-host Elisabeth Hasselbeck made the rather unexceptional observation that radical Islam is a threat. “Just a minute,” thundered Rosie, “radical Christianity is just as threatening as radical Islam in a country like America where we have separation of church and state.” Hasselbeck replied that “We are not bombing ourselves here in the country.” Even Joy Behar, who usually takes aim at Christians, was forced to say that no Christians were “threatening to kill us.”

But Rosie didn’t get it. Like a Mac Truck out of control, she then accused the U.S. of “bombing innocent people in other countries.” Of course, not only has the U.S. never intentionally killed an innocent person in Afghanistan or Iraq, it has gone out of its way not to hit civilians, as well as mosques. And in any event, none of this has anything to do with equating Americans who want to keep “under God” in the Pledge of Allegiance with suicide bombers.

Looks like Rosie has lost her mind. She can’t distinguish between Christian activists who want a voice in the public square and Islamic fascists who want to blow it up. Look for her to get dumped from the show.

Catholics may know preacher Jimmy Swaggart from previous accusations of anti-Catholicism directed at him. In 1983, two Atlanta television stations dropped his show after the Atlanta archdiocese complained that the evangelical preacher was slandering priests. The Associated Press reported in 1984 that Swaggart’s show, in addition to being dropped in Atlanta, was also dropped in Boston. In a 1982 article titled “A Letter to My Catholic Friends,” published in Swaggart’s magazine The Evangelist, Swaggart wrote, “I maintain that the Catholic superstructure and organization is not really a Christian organization. Its claims are false.”

More than 20 years later, some things never change. The Evangelist has been printing a series of articles titled “Catholicism: A Modern Babylon.” Jimmy’s wife, Frances Swaggart, writes the series. In the latest installment, which appears in the September issue of the magazine, Mrs. Swaggart writes that the Catholic Church’s hierarchy is “outside the Biblical model,” “Church law is a roadblock to the Cross,” and that Pope Stephen claimed St. Peter descended from Heaven to deliver a handwritten letter. In the letter, St. Peter asks of aid for the Roman people. The article claims Pope Stephen then delivered the letter to the Frankish king Pepin. The supposed letter “from Peter” is included in the article. The article also compares St. Peter’s appearance to “the countless apparitions of Mary and her messages from Heaven that people follow all across the world today! What’s next?—UFOs and messages from aliens?”

In the May issue of The Evangelist, Frances Swaggart writes that “to this day, Mary-worship has not only been condoned by the Catholic Church, it has become one of her most predominantly practiced doctrines.” Attacking the Church’s beliefs in the April issue, Mrs. Swaggart writes, “‘Purgatory’ has undoubtedly provided the Catholic Church with a very effectual means to rake heaping piles of money into its coffers.” We could go on with the many slanderous statements in this series of articles, but there is not enough room to recount them all.

The article in the September issue of The Evangelist appears to be part 15 of an ongoing series about Catholicism. We wonder how people who call themselves Christian can publish anti-Catholic nonsense such as this. Such slander does show that bigotry can come from all sides, but it must never be tolerated.

To amend the Revised Statutes of the United States to eliminate the chilling effect on the constitutionally protected expression of religion by State and local officials that results from the threat that potential litigants may seek damages and attorney’s fees.
— H.R. 2679

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), Americans United for Separation of Church and State and other well-funded groups of their ilk frequently sue local governments, Boy Scout troops or veterans councils over issues regarding the separation of church and state. When they are successful, these groups are often awarded large sums of money to recover attorney’s fees. As the taxpayers are responsible for such bills, fear often motivates those being sued to capitulate to the demands of the plaintiffs, rather than face hefty legal fees.

Senator Sam Brownback of Kansas and Representative John Hostettler of Indiana are out to change this. Both lawmakers have proposed legislation called “Veterans’ Memorials, Boy Scouts, Public Seals, and Other Public Expressions of Religion Protection Act of 2006” (S. 3696) and “the Public Expression of Religion Act of 2005” (H.R. 2679). The bills would amend the Civil Rights Attorney Fees Award Act of 1976 in order to require that parties in Establishment Clause cases take responsibility for their own legal fees. Should these bills become law, well-funded advocacy associations would have a harder time intimidating local governments and less wealthy groups into removing such things as displays of the Ten Commandments or stamping out references to Christianity in public schools.

The Catholic League is pleased to support these bills, which are currently under consideration in Congress. The House Judiciary Committee has passed Hostettler’s act, and it will now be sent to the full House of Representatives for a vote. The Senate Judiciary Committee is still considering Brownback’s version.

We will be following their progress closely, and urge interested members to contact their senators and representatives to register their support for this legislation.

Members may recall that last November we ran an article in Catalyst, “Religious Intolerance in Education,” that explained how National History Day had inserted a negative comment about Pope Pius XII into a flier regarding a student contest. We protested that it is slanderous to assume that it is historically true that Pius XII failed to oppose Hitler. It is a credit to the group that they listened and corrected the record.

Unfortunately, National History Day did not correct this misleading remark on its website. So we wrote to them again. We are happy to report that once again the officials in charge of this worthy enterprise made the necessary changes to clear the good name of Pope Pius XII.

The Catholic League extends our thanks to Thomas A. Horkan, Jr. and Peter A. Crowdrey, Jr. for bringing this latest matter to our attention.

Nature, a highly respected scientific journal, created quite a stir recently when it issued a press release about an article in its publication that claims to have found a way to generate human embryonic stem cells without destroying the embryo. The only problem with the news release was that it was false.

The author of the article, Dr. Robert Lanza, did not make such an extravagant claim; the problem lay with those who sought to hype the research. Indeed, Dr. Lanza was never shown the news release about his research.

The major media, of course, didn’t bother to fact check the claims made in the news release. Thus did they disseminate false reports. Richard Doerflinger, a senior staff member of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), accurately branded the story a “sham.”

Kudos to the USCCB for jumping on this from the get-go. They smelled a rat right away and said so. Too bad the mainstream media doesn’t approach science the way Catholic officials do.

A woman named Janice Taylor who considers herself a “weight-loss artist” runs a website called “Our Lady of Weight Loss.” Taylor has also recently released a book by the same name, subtitled Miraculous and Motivational Musings from the Patron Saint of Permanent Weight Loss. Mixing in practical advice on losing weight and getting fit with artwork, the goal of “Our Lady of Weight Loss” is to help and encourage dieters.

Taylor’s artwork is frequently centered around wacky and irreverent pictures of the Blessed Mother. In one, her halo is actually the dial of a scale. In another, the Virgin smokes a cigarette and says, “Darling, please excuse my oral fixation.” The website boasts “The Ten Commandments of Permanent Fat Removal.” One commandment is “Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s plate.” Our Lady of Weight Loss is quoted as saying, “Should you succumb to the Call of the Cheeto, dust the crumbs off and get back on the wagon. ‘All is forgiven. Move on.'”

When we were originally notified about Taylor’s website, we thought speaking out about it would only cause it to garner more attention. Now that Taylor’s book has been released and is available in bookstores, however, it is no longer prudent to ignore her. This is even more true because the popular shopping club Costco has featured Taylor in the September issue of its magazine, The Costco Connection.

Bill Donohue wrote to Costco and asked that the magazine discontinue promoting Our Lady of Weight Loss. Donohue stated, “Taylor’s book and her images of the Blessed Mother merging with vegetables are not egregiously offensive. However, they do show a lack of respect for the Virgin Mary, whom Catholics revere. For Costco to feature Ms. Taylor’s work is insulting to many Catholics, who do not like to see their faith treated as a joke.

“I know Costco has no desire to alienate customers of any religion. Therefore, I wanted to let you know how upset many Catholics were by the article and ask that you discontinue the dissemination of this book. We will notify our 300,000 members nationwide of your decision regarding this matter.”

Occasionally, we learn of problems within private communities, where homeowner’s associations inhibit the expression of individual Christian faith. The most recent case of such a situation was in Chester Springs, Pennsylvania.

John McMahon, whose family recently purchased a house in a new development called Byers Station, wished to display a 24-inch statue of the Blessed Mother outside his home. McMahon and his wife, Cindy, erected the statue between his front steps and a shrub, not thinking this would cause any controversy. (They had inquired about putting such a statue outside their home before purchasing, and were only informed that swimming pools and basketball hoops were off limits.)

Shortly afterward, however, the McMahons received a letter from the Byers Station Homeowner’s Association stating that if they wanted to keep the statue outside, they would have to submit a form requesting permission. The McMahons dutifully complied with the order and sent in the form. They were shocked by the answer they received.

A letter from the board of directors of the community association denied the McMahon’s application for permission to keep the statue. The board’s explanation was as follows: “Some homeowners in the community may take offense to a religious statue and therefore, the Board has decided not to approve this request. The Board is requesting the statue be moved either inside your home, or placed in the backyard so that it is not viewable from the street.”

The McMahons saw the absurdity of the board’s decision, and quickly contacted the Catholic League, as well as a number of other organizations and the local media (who jumped at the chance to publicize the story), to request assistance. Bill Donohue quickly fired off a letter to the Byers Station Community Association asking them to rescind the order that the McMahons remove the statue.

Donohue asked the members of the board: “Have you considered that this ruling is precedent setting? Are you prepared to enact this ban on religious items across the board? Doing so will mean barring menorahs during Hanukkah, crèches during Christmas and even small garden angels.

“I also wonder about your assumption that residents of Byers Station are so quick to be offended by symbols of religion. Is Byers Station a haven of intolerance? After all, no one save a bigot is bothered by seeing others express their faith.”

Since being contacted by the league and being the target of a local media frenzy, the homeowner’s association has decided to drop the ridiculous ban on the Blessed Mother. The McMahons have been verbally informed that the statue can stay. In addition, another family in the community has placed a statue of the Blessed Mother on their lawn.

From public property to public schools, a major issue is the separation of church and state. The issue has made headlines in a number of cases recently. We’ve taken the opportunity to highlight the most notable.

●  One of the most high-profile cases involves the Mt. Soledad Cross, located on city property in San Diego. A veteran who happens to also be an atheist sued in 1989 to have the cross removed, saying it violates California’s constitutional ban on government exercise of religion. A U.S. district judge had originally ordered the cross to be removed back in 1991. Since then, a number of appeals have taken place. Most recently, President Bush signed a bill that transfers ownership of the cross and the memorial site to the federal government. Supporters of the memorial believe they have a better chance of winning under federal law than state law. Opponents of the cross say the case is still the same, regardless of whether it’s handled under federal or state law.

●  In another prominent case in California, church and state issues arose when a state senator proposed a bill that would have resulted in Mission San Miguel, a Catholic mission, receiving money to recover from earthquake damage. Some legislators raised concerns because religious services are held at the parish. The legislators were allowing the sponsor of the bill to modify the legislation so it would not raise church-state issues.

●  Another cross came under scrutiny, this one in St. Bernard’s Parish, Louisiana. Parish residents wanted to erect a memorial to Hurricane Katrina victims that features a cross bearing a likeness of the face of Jesus. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Louisiana sent a letter to parish officials in August, saying what the parish was planning would be a violation of the separation of church and state. The ACLU argued that the memorial would be on public ground and that government officials were working on the memorial. Parish officials countered that the memorial would stand on private ground and that the government officials who were working on it were doing so on their own time. The planned memorial, including the cross with the face of Jesus, was erected on August 29.

● In Fort Collins, Colorado, the city council was already thinking ahead to the Christmas season. In July, the council decided that only a Christmas tree would be allowed on city property during the holiday season. Previously, the council had ruled that a menorah would be allowed on each night of Hanukkah. For one city councilman, favoring one religion over another was not the motivation in this decision. Ben Manvel said, “The Christmas trees aren’t a problem because they were originally pagan. If we allowed the menorah and a crèche, then we’d end up with a parade of other religious symbols.”

● In Nevada, a high school valedictorian began referencing Jesus in her graduation speech, and school officials subsequently cut off the power to her microphone. The officials had screened Brittany McComb’s speech earlier and removed any references to Jesus. McComb memorized the parts that were removed and began reciting them during her speech. The former student is suing school officials.

●  One place in which prayer was an issue was the locker room. In July, a U.S. district judge ruled that the East Brunswick High School (New Jersey) football coach’s constitutional rights were violated when the East Brunswick Board of Education told the coach he was not allowed to bow his head and “take a knee” during prayers, led by his players, in the locker room before games. The Board of Education has filed an appeal to the judge’s ruling.

●  In a case in West Virginia, Americans United for the Separation of Church and State and the West Virginia ACLU sued the Harrison County Board of Education because a high school in the district had a portrait of Jesus hanging outside the principal’s office. Supporters were able to raise at least $150,000 to allow the Board to defend the portrait’s placement. The board has since decided to ask for a dismissal of the case, as the portrait was stolen. Meanwhile, students presented the school’s incoming principle with a mirror to replace the portrait. The mirror’s inscription reads, “To know the will of God is the highest of all wisdom. The love of Jesus Christ lives within each of us.” It’s not clear whether the principal will hang the mirror outside his office, but the executive director of the West Virginia ACLU says this would also be inappropriate for a public school.

●  College campuses continue to be a place where religion and government clash. At the University of Wisconsin, two groups might be denied funds. The University, at its Madison campus, is not recognizing the Knights of Columbus. The University said the group’s policy on admitting only Catholic men is against the state’s law that prohibits discrimination on the basis of religion or creed. Also in question is the status of InterVarsity Christian Fellowship at the University of Wisconsin-Superior. The issue in that case is that the organization limits its leaders to only Christians.

Some of these cases are still pending, but the results do indicate that the freedom of religious expression is never safe from those who wish to place state sanctions on it. The Catholic League continues to monitor such cases and will take action when necessary. 

Dirt Rag is a magazine devoted to mountain biking. Its online version is www.dirtragmag.com. The content, generally geared toward young males, focuses on athletics and is unobjectionable. However, we were alerted to a couple of products sold by the magazine that give us pause.

T-shirts bearing the Sacred Heart and the words “Dirt Rag” are available. So too are pint glasses with the same image. While most of us would be hard pressed to explain the link between bike riding and a devotion to Jesus, the merchandising team at Dirt Rag are content to offer the flimsiest of explanations: the sales pitch for the shirt urges readers to “display your divine love of mountain biking with our new Sacred Heart shirt.” The pint glass is described as “sacred and strong, enduring and ever-lasting, our new sacred heart pint glass fuses the imagery of the Sacred Heart with the pastime of adventurous mortals.”

As there is nothing inherently troublesome about mountain biking, pints of beer or casual clothing, these items aren’t extremely offensive. However, they do underscore the willingness of many artistic and pop-culture outlets to misappropriate Catholic imagery to make a buck. It’s much easier to cheapen someone else’s beliefs than to come up with something truly creative.

The FX cable television show “Rescue Me” has again decided to use the Catholic Church as a target of ridicule.

“Rescue Me” is a drama about the personal and professional lives of New York City firefighters. The show was co-created by Denis Leary, the comedian/actor who also plays Tommy, the main character in the show. Leary has referred to himself as a lapsed Catholic, and has aimed insults at the Church in the past. Last winter, Comedy Central aired his special “Merry F***ing Christmas,” in which Leary said, among other things, “Do I believe there was a baby Jesus? You bet your ass I do. But I believe that nine months before he was born someone sure as s— banged the hell out of his mom.” Previous episodes of “Rescue Me” featured Tommy dreaming about having sex with Mary Magdalene and Jesus subsequently shooting him. In another episode a priest admits to molesting a young boy. The priest also says he was molested as a youngster and that he enjoyed it.

The latest offense involved an episode of “Rescue Me” (titled “Twilight”) that aired this past summer. In this episode, Tommy comes home to discover his roommate Lou (played by John Scurti) has had sex with a nun. Lou tells Tommy “She’s a semi-nun,” to which Tommy responds, “She’s a semi-nun? Lou, what does that mean? She’s in the nun National Guard? Huh? She’s the bride of Christ one weekend a month? What the hell does that mean?” Lou also tells Tommy, “She’s only been with two other guys. One was some clown way back in high school, and the other is, you know [covers his mouth and muffles the next word], Jesus.” Lou tells Tommy that the nun is leaving the order at the end of the month. Tommy asks if that means the nun is cheating on Jesus with Lou. Lou responds, “I got a hundred pounds on the guy and look [holds up his hands], no holes in my hands. Bring it on, Jesus!”

John Scurti is given the story writing credit in this episode, but it’s not clear who came up with the witty dialogue. One thing is clear: Denis Leary’s contempt for the Catholic faith has been a continuing feature of his work. A change of direction is long overdue.