(AP) (PHILADELPHIA) The archbishop of Philadelphia said
Friday that a satirical sketch mocking sexually abusive priests, scheduled to be
performed in the city’s annual Mummers Parade, is an “attack on the Catholic
faith.”
The sketch, put on by the Slick Duck Comic Brigade, will
admittedly stretch the bounds of good taste, with priests being chased by police
officers and nuns in a go-go cage.
Cardinal Anthony Bevilacqua, in a one-page statement,
called on Catholics to “express their displeasure” with the skit, which is to be
performed Saturday after rain delayed the traditional New Year’s Day parade.
“This group plans to do an insensitive and tasteless skit
which can only be extremely painful for any victim who has experienced any type
of abuse. I am horrified that any person or group can be so callous,” Bevilacqua
said.
“At the same time, I express outrage over the demeaning
caricature of our Holy Father, bishops, priests and religious women. While such
mean-spirited mockery may be protected as free speech, it is still hateful
speech and as such has no place in a city parade.”
…”That is the whole point of the comics. It is political
satire,” said Eddie Hall, a Mummer and longtime comic who supervises the parade
division that includes the Slick Ducks. “This is a group of people who are
really ticked off about the scandal, and they want to make that known.”
[Full Story]
In this tolerance-charged politically correct society anti-Catholicism
remains the protected bigotry of choice. If they had a bunch of suicide bombers
being chased by police officers with women in burkas in go-go cages, I don’t
think this would have been accepted. Exactly how does nuns in go-go cages
reflect that people are ticked off about the scandal? If people want to engage
in mockery of the church, fine; just don’t have the city endorsing it. I don’t
think we are going to hear form the People for the Separation of Church and
State on this one.
Update: Mummers Club
Drops Church Parody
