Vegetarian Virgin Mary Ad Riles Boston Church
Wed Dec 24, 9:20 AM ET
BOSTON (Reuters) - The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston Tuesday
demanded the
removal of an animal rights group's billboard advertisement depicting
the Virgin Mary cradling a lifeless chicken in her arms.
The ad by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals features the
tagline "Go Vegetarian -- It's an Immaculate Conception," a reference to
teachings about Mary's purity.
But the church said the billboard was "offensive at any time" and
especially so during the Christmas season.
"Why any organization would seek to garner goodwill for itself and its
message by promoting an ad campaign that is so offensive to a large
number of people within the community is unclear," the archdiocese said
in a statement.
"What is clear is that if PETA truly cares about ethical behavior, the
billboard message should be taken down as soon as possible," it added.
PETA said it has no plans to take down the billboard in Boston.
PETA said a similar advertisement went up in Providence, Rhode Island,
earlier this month but was quickly removed by the billboard's owner amid
similar complaints from Catholics there.
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