The Times decided to run an extremely offensive cartoon last Wednesday (18 March 2009) which depicted the Holy Father with a condom on his head.The Pope is Christ's representative on earth for around 1.13 billion people.
A similar attack on the Prophet Mohammed was greeted with outrage by Muslims worldwide, and the cartoon was deemed unacceptable.
So why is it unacceptable to depict the Prophet Mohammed in a cartoon, but it is ok to pillory the Holy Father for stating the teaching of the Catholic Church (especially when those teachings are actually backed up by evidence)?
Is it possibly because Catholics don't answer back or protest when the Church is attacked?
Time to speak up in defence of our Holy Father. Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor did actually write to the Editor to complain, but we need to drive the point home.
First, write to the Editor in Chief. I have to admit that I couldn't quite work out, from The Times website, who that was. However, the Times Online Editor in Chief can be reached by email, as can The Times Editorial Departments for Home News and Foreign News. There's no harm in sending emails to all three... better to send too many than too few.
And then, contact the Press Complaints Commission. They have an online complaints form, which makes it easier. You can have a look at the Code of Practice, but the category you need to note is Section 12 (i):
i) The press must avoid prejudicial or pejorative reference to an individual's race, colour, religion, gender, sexual orientation or to any physical or mental illness or disability.
The publication date was 18 March 2009. You also need to include the internet link. The most relevant one is, I think, this one.
Thank you so much for going to all the trouble to make it easy for us to make a complaint about the insult done to the Holy Father in particular and to Catholics in general.
ReplyDeleteI am going to send the email addresses you have found to my family.
i had no idea about that picture; how disgusting.
ReplyDeletethat's for the info
Mac, i don't purchase newspapers anymore as i read them online for free and had not seen the repugnant depiction of Papa. Thanks for this post, i wouldn't have known where to start complaining, but now i shall do so, vehemently.
ReplyDeleteLast night I put a link to the Press Complaints Commission at the top of my sidebar on 'Thoughts from an Oasis in French Catholicism'. You can make your complaint on line.
ReplyDeleteI also posted and thanked Frs Tim, Ray, and Mac for drawing attention to the Harvard pro-Benedict contribution.
Mac, thanks for the information about complaining to the Times.
J
Ok, i have emailed the necessary departments and blogged a post about it , linking here of course, once again, thanks for providing all this info and the links/emails. What an absolute outrage this is.
ReplyDeleteHave only just sent my emails of complaint off but wanted to thank you for making the task so much easier to do.
ReplyDelete