In December, town officials in Glenview, Illinois, a northern Chicago suburb, ordered all Christmas decorations removed from the inside of a firehouse. Some residents complained that they could see Christmas lights, a Christmas tree and a Santa Claus inside Glenview's Station No. 7 when they drove down Glenview Road. Village officials declared that they wanted "to [...]
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 elves [...]
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 [...]
"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 mention of Santa [...]
Catholics who live on Long Island have had to endure a steady stream of attacks on Rockville Centre Bishop William F. Murphy. The bishop's only crime seems to be that he previously worked in Boston. Unlike others, the Catholic League does not believe in guilt by association—we actually look for evidence of wrongdoing. Not having found [...]
A Catholic congressman from Wisconsin, as well as two Catholic state legislators, have objected to a letter from Bishop Raymond Burke of La Crosse regarding their voting record on life issues. The bishop, who has been named the new Archbishop of St. Louis, said that if the lawmakers continued to vote "anti-life," he would "ask them [...]
Catholics for a Free Choice (CFFC) has commenced a "Good Catholics Use Condoms" public education campaign that condemns the Vatican for its opposition to condoms. The group's director, Frances Kissling, accuses the Catholic Church of promoting a culture of death; it is planning an ad campaign in Washington, D.C. and overseas. We responded with the following [...]
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," adding [...]
In December, on a billboard in Providence, Rhode Island, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) featured a portrait of the Virgin Mary holding a dead chicken. Next to this was the inscription, "GO VEGETARIAN: It's an Immaculate Conception" (a cross was placed inside the letter O, thus resembling the Celtic cross). We took issue [...]
