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April 13, 2006

Sticks and Stones

Christians in Germany are irritated over disrespectful cartoon images being published by MTV this week. The full-page cartoon advertisements depict Jesus, having come down from the cross, wearing a crown of thorns and watching television, with a tagline that reads, "Laughing rather than hanging around."

This pre-Easter advertisement promises even more offense to come:

The ad promotes MTV's plan to broadcast a cartoon lampooning the pope and Vatican hierarchy. The series, Popetown, was considered too controversial to be aired in Britain, and it caused an uproar in the one country where it has appeared, New Zealand.

Joachim Herrmann of the Christian Social Union party believes MTV would perhaps not have attacked the faith of Muslims.

"It is not acceptable that the Christian faith in particular is dragged into the dirt just because it is easier and less dangerous," he said, calling for MTV to pull both the series and the "tasteless" ads.

Christians have gone on the defense. The German Bishop's Conference is trying to talk MTV management out of airing the cartoons, saying it is simply "a provocation for Germany's Christians just a few days before Good Friday and Easter." Munich Archbishop Cardinal Friedrich Wetter has called the cartoons deeply hurtful to Christians. Verse One (a Christian magazine), who thought the world had agreed "that media should show consideration for the religious feelings of believers" after the whole Mohammad cartoon mess, is protesting online and boycotting the program. The Catholic Bishops Conference is calling on Catholics to boycott television stations owned by the broadcaster and companies advertising on those channels.

MTV describes its new cartoon this way:

"Banned from TV, damned by the church, and brought to you in devilishly uncensored form."

The show does sound pretty disrespectful:

The series portrays the pope as an uncontrollable, infantile character who pogo-sticks around a Vatican populated by corrupt, money-grabbing cardinals.

Still, despite the in-your-face tone of the show, I think these paranoid Christians need to cool off. Nothing is so sacred these days that it can't be lampooned. The world is too big and too full of different ideas to try to homogenize humor.

Besides, the Catholic church practically begged for this type of disrespectful treatment when it stood by while thousands of little boys were molested by priests and refused to take appropriate punitive action against the offenders. It's a little hard to feel sorry for them now.

Posted by Becky at April 13, 2006 09:39 AM

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