Catholic League president Bill Donohue released the following comments today on “South Park”:

“Several news stories today are reporting on the decision by Comedy Central to pull a scheduled rerun of the ‘Bloody Mary’ episode that was  shown on ‘South Park’ on December 7-10.  The decision reflects what I asked for in our news release of December 8.  Therefore, I commend Comedy Central for finally making the right decision.  That it aired in the first place, however, does not speak well for the bigots responsible for creating it.

“In our December 8 news release, I also said, ‘Remember, they chose to insult Our Blessed Mother on the eve of the Immaculate Conception, and the holy day itself.’  The episode in question featured a statue of the Virgin Mary spraying blood from her vagina.  It was one of the most vile TV shows ever to appear, and that is why I asked Joseph Califano, a practicing Catholic and member of Viacom’s board of directors (Viacom is the parent company of Comedy Central) to issue a public condemnation of the ‘Bloody Mary’ episode; I also asked that he do whatever he could to pull any scheduled reruns of the episode.

“On December 9, the day Califano received our request, he released a statement condemning the episode.  He also said that any further decisions would have to be made by Tom Freston, president and chief executive of the New Viacom.  For the past few weeks, we have been in touch with Freston’s office awaiting his decision.  Yesterday, we received a phone call from Tony Fox, executive vice president for corporate communications at Comedy Central, informing us that there were no plans to rerun ‘Bloody Mary.’

“Already, we are being deluged with hate mail that is as obscene as it is viciously anti-Catholic.  All because we exercised our First Amendment right to request that Comedy Central not offend Catholics again!  But we’re used to such things and will not be deterred.”

Tonight, ABC’s “Primetime” will air a segment, “On the Trail of Pope Joan,” that raises questions about the possible existence of Pope Joan.  Catholic League president Bill Donohue weighed in today:

“ABC has been busy questioning the divinity of Jesus for years, what with its infamous ‘Search for Jesus’ specials.  In May of this year, it went back to the well again with a ‘20/20’ episode questioning the resurrection of Jesus.  Correspondent Elizabeth Vargas told viewers: ‘Whether the resurrection proclaimed by the disciples was physical, metaphysical, or simply a hallucination—the dreams of grieving followers,’ is not known.  In other words, Christians have likely been duped.  And tonight we learn that we’ve been duped again—a woman pope ruled in the ninth century.

“Diane Sawyer not only wants us to believe in Pope Joan, she takes us to exact street where she processed.  ‘Fact or Fiction’ she exclaims!  Indeed, Sawyer tells us that Pope Joan gave birth while processing.  Pope Joan, she says, dressed in male garb, but this is not an historical anomaly: Sawyer shows us a picture of a woman dressed as a soldier in the U.S. Civil War and then proclaims, ‘Which brings us back to Joan.’  But of course.  Another segue could have been little girls dressed up as GI Joe on Halloween, but that might have unsettled the sure-mouthed Sawyer.

“Sawyer does not interview either Paul Johnson, the world renowned historian and author of ‘The Papacy,’ nor does she interview Eamon Duffy, the brilliant historian from Cambridge and author of the magisterial volume, ‘Saints and Sinners: A History of the Popes.’  Had she done so they would have laughed in her smug face.  So who does she rely on?  Donna Cross and Mary Malone.  Cross wrote a novel about the mythical Pope Joan and has no standing among scholars.  Malone is an ex-nun who lost her faith and hates the Catholic Church.  ‘I can no longer pray,’ she said in 1996, ‘because of the language, and because it seemed so essential as the core of the tradition that God be male.’

“In other words, ABC’s gospel has no room for Jesus but plenty of room for Pope Joan.  We could squeeze more truth from a used-car salesman than we could from these people.”

The following events/remarks were made at Christmastime 2005:

The Palm Beach Post said that in South Florida malls, “There are dangling ornaments, Christmas trees, but no crosses or angels, certainly no Mother Mary cradling her newborn son” (our italics).  Senior citizens were told by government officials in Winter Park, Florida that they were not allowed to sing Christmas carols.  Government workers in Illinois were ordered not to say “Merry Christmas.”  Christians in Rhode Island were told they could not put Christmas decorations on the City Hall’s lawn.

In a park shared by Neptune Beach and Atlantic Beach, Florida, the private display of a manger scene was originally censored, but a large menorah was said to be okay.  No schools in Palm Beach permitted crèches, but some allowed menorahs.  School districts in Glendale, Illinois, Eagle County, Colorado and Long Island, New York, banned Christmas religious songs but allowed songs celebrating Hanukkah.

Residents in Middletown, New Jersey, got a holiday card from town library officials that included Christmas greetings in Spanish, Chinese, French and German, but not in English.  Students at an Alexandria, Virginia school were told they could sing “Feliz Navidad,” but not “White Christmas.”  A school in the Belleville, Illinois area banned all references to Christmas but allowed an Indian, John White Antelope, to speak about his native religion.

In the Los Angeles Times, writer Joel Stein said, “We Jews find it a little embarrassing that adults can still make such a fuss over Christmas.  To us, Jesus was just a cool guy everyone liked because he died young.  And even 16-year-old girls eventually take down their James Dean posters.”  Andrew Edlin, a New York gallery owner, offered, “All the people who have murdered us over the years have Christmas trees.”  The sign, “Jesus Is The Reason For The Season,” incensed Amanda Alpert of Raleigh, North Carolina because “I’m Jewish, and the reason for the season is upsetting to me.”  When asked to explain why Christians were unhappy with her opposition to crèches, Rabbi Leah Richman of Pottsville, Pennsylvania said, “They’re taking my stand as being anti-tolerance and anti-diversity because I’m not tolerant of their nativity scene.”

Catholic League president Bill Donohue commented today on the two latest examples of attempts by the secular left to censor Christians:

“New York and California are among the most left-wing states in the nation, and now they have added to their legacy by trying to shut down Christian speech in two unrelated incidents.

“In New York, Attorney General Eliot Spitzer unleashed his lawyers yesterday in an effort to stop a pro-adoption group from suing the state on First Amendment grounds: the group, Children First Foundation, wants ‘Choose Life’ license plates to be legal.  Spitzer wants the phrase censored.

“California State University, San Bernardino wants to censor a student group, the Christian Student Association, because a) the group has a constitution that references sexual morality, and b) it wants to restrict leadership positions to Christians.

“One of Spitzer’s attorneys, State Assistant Solicitor General Jennifer Grace Miller, told a federal appeals court that the phrase ‘Choose Life’ might lead to road rage.  Just think about this.  A pro-abortion advocate, who probably owns two dogs and is driving while speaking to her therapist on her cell phone, may drive off the road if she sees a license plate that reminds her that it’s wrong to kill the kids.  Quite a gal.

“Cal State at San Bernardino would no doubt find it perfectly acceptable, even commendable, if a group of lefties had a constitution that referenced sexual immorality and relegated all leadership positions to secular supremacists.  But that may be redundant—they already have an Academic Senate.

“There’s another way around this.  New York could issue ‘Choose Death’ license plates to please the pro-abortion enthusiasts, and Cal State could pressure the Women’s Resource Center to open its doors to Christian men.”

Here’s what Catholic League president Bill Donohue said today about the rash of vandalism this year at Christmastime:

“From nativity scenes to secular Christmas displays, vandals have hit the following places: Homewood, AL; Montgomery, AL; Bella Vista, AR; Van Buren, AR; Eureka Springs, AR; Little Rock, AR; Covina, CA; Fremont, CA; Newport Beach, CA; Fresno, CA; Westminster, CO; Cape Coral, FL; St. Petersburg, FL; St. Lucie West, FL; Port Saint Lucie, FL; Delray Beach, FL; Longboat Key, FL; Galesburg, IL; Belleville, IL; West Frankfort, IL; Cohasset, MA; Brockton, MA; Quincy, MA; Londonderry, MA; Severn, MD; Glen Burnie, MD; Waltz, MI; Port Huron, MI; Marquis Point, MN; Asbury Park, NJ; Trenton, NJ; Old Bridge, NJ; Howell, NJ; Branchville, NJ; Prospect Park, NJ; Hamilton, NJ; Holbrook, NY; Pearl River, NY; Troy, NY; Hilton Head, NC; Wilmington, NC; Dayton, OH; Fremont, OH; Hamilton, OH; Cheviot, OH; Whitaker Park, OK; Medford, OR; Watsontown, PA; New Kensington, PA; South Kingstown, RI; Houston, TX; Killeen, TX; Murfreesboro, TN; Draper, UT; Fredricksburg, VA; Eatonville, WA; Seattle, WA; Madison, WI; Oak Hill, WV.

“Some of this is the work of very sick people.  In many cases, Christmas decorations in cemeteries have been vandalized, and headstones have been overturned.  A large blindfolded Santa was found hanging from a tree in Miami Beach, FL; in Boston, vandals decapitated Santa; Santa had his throat cut in Lincoln, NE; a dead Santa turned up in Oklahoma City, OK; and a bloody Santa holding a severed head was displayed in New York City (this was done intentionally by the homeowners).

“The authorities should throw the book at these people.  If they did, we wouldn’t have to go through this every year.”

Catholic League president Bill Donohue commented today about the league’s nativity scene in Central Park:

“The Catholic League is proud to display its nativity scene in Central Park, but we continue to be dismayed by the refusal of New York City to allow a crèche in its public schools.  That issue is still before the courts, and it is our hope that a ruling by a federal appeals court will overturn a federal district court decision that sided with the City.  If the Catholic League can secure a permit from the New York City Parks Department to put a manger scene in Central Park, then logic dictates that we should be able to display a crèche in the public schools.  Currently, New York City discriminates against Christians by allowing the Jewish religious symbol, namely the menorah, to be displayed in the schools, but not the nativity scene.

 “Our goal is to see manger scenes where there are menorahs (and vice versa).  A Christmas tree is a poor substitute for a representation of Joseph, Mary and baby Jesus.”

A report by Americans United for Separation of Church and State on Supreme Court nominee Samuel Alito was the subject of commentary today by Catholic League president Bill Donohue:

“Americans United has just released a report on Samuel Alito that is rife with bogus charges.  In the first paragraph, the report suggests that the First Amendment pits the Free Exercise clause against the Establishment Clause.  But as Judge John Noonan has written, ‘There are no clauses in the constitutional provision.  Clauses have a subject and a predicate.  This provision has a single subject, a single verb, and two prepositional phrases.’  Noonan is correct.  ‘Congress shall pass no law respecting the establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof’ is one clause, and both references to religion were meant to safeguard religion from the state, not society from religious expression.

“The report assumes that if Alito departs from rulings held by Sandra Day O’Connor that this is somehow unfair, thus implying that Alito should be placed in O’Connor’s jurisprudential straitjacket.  Even more absurd is the spectacle of an organization that is ostensibly interested in religious liberty going bonkers whenever it discovers that Alito values religious speech as much as secular speech (e.g., see the section on the Pinetteruling on p. 7).  Similarly, the report faults Alito for ruling that a first-grade child has a right to draw a picture of Jesus and have it displayed in school (Alito is also hammered for not wanting to censor the same kid from reading a selection from the Bible in class).  And Alito is criticized for ruling that religious symbols like the crèche and menorah may be placed outside city hall if accompanied by secular symbols.

“If Americans United had its way, censorship would reign supreme: there would be virtually no public expression of religion allowed, save for instances when religion is the subject of obscene attacks (e.g., dunking a crucifix in a jar of urine is not only fine by Americans United—the guardians of liberty think the artist is deserving of a federal grant).

“President Bush made an outstanding choice in selecting Sam Alito.  I look forward to debating his nomination with his critics.”

WHEN:                THURSDAY, DECEMBER 15, 1:30PM

WHERE:               FRONT OF ST. PATRICK’S CATHEDRAL, NYC

PURPOSE:           JEWS OKAY CHRISTMAS CELEBRATIONS

ATTENDEES:

• DON FEDER, PRESIDENT, JEWS AGAINST ANTI-CHRISTIAN DEFAMATION (JAACD)
• JACKIE MASON, FOUNDING MEMBER, JAACD
• RABBI ARYEH SPERO, JAACD BOARD OF ADVISORS
• RAOUL FELDER, JAACD BOARD OF ADVISORS
• BARRY FARBER, JAACD BOARD OF ADVISORS
• BILL DONOHUE, PRESIDENT, CATHOLIC LEAGUE

FOLLOWING THE PRESS CONFERENCE, THE ATTENDEES WILL RIDE DOWN 5^TH AVENUE IN A  FORD EXPLORER WITH BANNERS PROCLAIMING:

JEWS SAY IT’S OK TO SAY MERRY CHRISTMAS

Patricia Sonntag, director of the office of Services to Students with Disabilities at California State University, Sacramento, has banned 4^th of July celebrations, along with Christmas, from her office.  Here is her directive:

“With the new year, we will now celebrate the seasons and holiday without decorations in the public areas and hallways.  This is a secular university and we are a public service area that has a diverse employee and student populations [sic] even in our private offices.  In order to avoid offending someone else, we will not display celebratory reminders.  This specifically includes Christmas, Thanksgiving, Halloween, Valentines,4^th of July, St. Patrick’s Day and Easter, off the top of the list [my emphasis].  I, for one, am the worst offender and celebrant.  Time has come to recognize that religious discrimination, as well as ethnic insensitivity to certain holidays, is forbidden.  I am sorry if this offends anyone, but it is time to start the new year differently.”

We contacted Frank Whitlatch, Associate VP, Public Affairs, about Sonntag’s directive.  He said, “The guidelines it sets out do not reflect general practice at Sacramento State, and in fact there are holiday decorations on display in offices and public areas throughout the campus.”  But not in Sonntag’s area.

Catholic League president Bill Donohue responded as follows:

“Every day I come to work, I learn something new.  Today I learned, courtesy of Patricia Sonntag, that the 4^th of July is a religious holiday.  Last week a rabbi told me the Christmas tree is a religious symbol.  Yesterday, one of Donald Trump’s towers banned Christian mangers but allowed Jewish menorahs, because, as condo board member Laura Esrov explained, the religious menorah is really secular.  It never occurs to these secular supremacists that it is their aversion to anything religious—or patriotic—that accounts for their desire to muzzle free speech.

“Let the Provost at Sacramento State, Ric Brown, know how you feel.  He can be reached at ricb@csus.edu.”

Catholic League president Bill Donohue commented today on Christmas party etiquette:

“This is a big week for Christmas parties in the workplace, so be careful.  Monster.com doesn’t mince any words: ‘A Christmas party may alienate some staff.’  Unfortunately, it doesn’t give any advice on who these anti-Christmas party people might be.  Jacqueline Whitmore, the founder of The Protocol School of Palm Beach, says that company policies on Christmas ‘can make the office a stressful place.’  Fun is now stressful.  Lynn Ruby, director of development at Henry & Horne, doesn’t want fun to be stressful, which is why last year before one of the staffers dressed as Santa, ‘we asked people to make sure it wouldn’t be offensive to anyone.’  How sensitive.  Lydia Ramsey, an ‘expert’ on such matters, says the best way to cut down on stress is to ‘Be careful of anything that sings or dances’ in your cubicle.  Elvis included?

“Diane Hershberger, an official at a Kansas City diversity resource organization, says her idea of fairness is to have a Jewish religious symbol, namely the menorah, alongside a secular Christmas symbol, the tree.  Mike Blumenthal, an attorney in Kansas City, says a Christmas tree is not necessarily a Christmas tree: ‘A Christmas tree is appropriate, because in our culture it’s not necessarily a Christmas symbol.’  What he doesn’t like are nativity scenes because ‘it can look exclusionary.’  One solution is to destroy both Christmas and Hanukkah, equally.  Catherine Thoele of Kirkwood Florist in St. Louis recommends a Christmas tree trimmed in blue and silver (the colors of Hanukkah).

“Kathie Lingle, director of Alliance for Work-Life Progress in Scottsdale, Arizona, posesthe question: ‘What can we do to offend the least number of people?’  Her answer—provide ‘food stations that sample various ethnic offerings.’  Not quite.  Olivia Burley ofBusiness Journal warns that ‘dietary restrictions because of health, religious and cultural beliefs and personal convictions may limit food options.’  Right.

“We at the Catholic League will be celebrating Christmas by going to Lazarra’s for pizza and beer.  There will be no options.  Our motto is—eat it or starve.  And the beer is mandatory.”