Reuters has picked up the story of America magazine’s ad for a condom-covered statue of Mary. They give the editors’ response and even highlight Diogenes’ comments and criticism. I find the response by the America editors to be glaringly lame.
Another issue may be Catholic priests’ unfamiliarity with what condoms look like.
“We’re Jesuits,” Martin said. “I don’t think you could have found anyone in the editors’ room who has seen a condom.” The mention of a “veil of latex” failed to register, he said.
Let’s set aside the fact that America has been consistent venue for discussion of contemporary Western culture, especially sexuality and even artificial contraception. Let’s also set aside the fact that the “we’re priests” and “we’re Jesuits” defenses are insulting because we know that there are more than a few gay priests and gay Jesuits (how many have died of AIDS in the past 20 years? Hundreds in the US alone).
Is there anyone in the US today who doesn’t know what a condom looks like? We’re bombarded by sexual content day and night. If this were some devotional pamphlet for elderly grannies, that would be one thing, but we’re talking about a leading Catholic newsweekly. As a colleague put it, “I’m bald but I know what a hair dryer looks like.”
I also find it interesting that Reuters, of all venues, gave it such straightforward treatment, including the criticism by Catholic World News and another blogger, and even providing a link to CWN. Good show for Reuters on that one.
Technorati Tags: Catholic, Catholic-bashing, contraception, culture, Jesuits, media
I’m ready to believe that the ad was put in by some administrative assistant with her brain turned off. Something unexpected can go by you even though it’s obvious. If the editorial staff reviewed the layout, there’s probably nothing they would pay less attention to than an ad for a statue of Mary. It’s just not something they’d be interested in.
Any other explanation for this whole business just seems too weird. I have to say, though, that when you’re in a mess the best way to say something that sounds like truth is to tell the truth, and “we’re Jesuits so we don’t know what condoms look like” is obviously not true. “We’re Jesuits so we never pay attention to figurines of Mary” would have been closer. So if the bottom-line lesson is “don’t trust these people” I think there’s something to it.
I don’t read America, so I can’t say for sure, but I doubt that there are many ads in their pages for statues of Mary.
I read a number of other Catholic “intellectual” publications, and the majority of the ads therein are for other publications, for religious orders and retreat opportunities, and for seminars. I would surmise that any ad for a religious statue would not be mundane but rather most rare, and therefore not something you’d pass by, as an administrative assistant, with your brain turned off.
No, the ex post facto lame excuses from the Jesuit editors, America’s history of pushing the Catholic envelope, along with the fact that no other Catholic publication has been similarly flummoxed by pro-condom activists, makes me believe that the ad was placed in a publication that the artist knew would, unquestioning, publish it.
“Is there anyone in the US today who doesn’t know what a condom looks like?”
Honestly, I’m one who’s not entirely sure what an unwrapped condom looks like. And I’d like to keep it that way. I’ve seen cartoonish versions of them in fora frequented by college kids, and I had to throw out one free wrapped condom I received in a entering-student kit, but that’s about it. If my public school sex ed covered it, I’ve long since forgotten it out of embarrasment.
Yeah, a cynic can claim the Jesuits’ operating principle is “We’ve lost our innocence, but at least we can feign naivety!” But they might actually be telling the truth on this one. Pro-abortionists sometimes are actually ignorant of what an abortion is, it wouldn’t be surprising if condom-pimps were ignorant, too.
Here are a couple of links to stories that have quotes from the ad-placer…
http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/0,2106,3521169a12,00.html
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/national/1110AP_Virgin_Mary_Ad.html
One interesting part of the story in the first link:
The artist, British-based Steve Rosenthal, said in a media email today, “The primary aim of the work is to highlight the Vatican’s continuance of non-advocation regarding the use of condoms and I conceived America magazine to be the most suitable place to contextualise the work outside of the gallery space and produce a dialogue.”
Besides the funny We’re Jesuits” line I thought the artists response was instructive. When he made the statue as a comment on the Churches teaching he first thought of America magazine as the place to advertise it. So the editors can say whatever they want about mistakes, but it was the tone of their magazine that caused the problem in the first place.
The whole thing is hilarious. Can you believe that the Jesuits really think we’ll believe they don’t know about condoms??? They have taken us for fools for years….but it doesn’t work anymore. Too bad, so sad. I’m totally amused.
Some years ago (many actually) a Jesuit prof of mine told me that the Jesuits surmised that they would have a higher place in heaven than ‘regular folk’ because, being of higher intellect, they could better appreciate the mysteries of God. It seems they were quite in earnest about that.
I would love to run into that same Jesuit today, now they are pleading they are just a bunch of ‘country bumpkins’ who don’t know from straight up.
I guess when they get to heaven’s gate they’ll plead ‘invincible ignorance’ and claim heaven by default.
I can believe that, Bibiana. It’s been the general demeanor of the Jesuits since Vatican 2.
It’s not often appreciated how much of the bad teaching after V2 originated in the works of Jesuits. Look it up sometime. And they and several other large groups were responsible for the general mean-mouthing and denigration lay Catholics have received since Vatican 2—running down devotional practices, etc.
BTW, did you guys realize that this event was picked up by Vittorio Messori and got some very negative comment over in Rome?
Maybe the Jebbies will be in hot water in days to come?
Here’s Messori’s commentary (in Italian).