It appears that fame may have gone to the head of 21 year-old Catholic, Welsh singer/actress Charlotte Church, who has so often been dubbed "The Voice of an Angel" (after the same name of one of her song releases). Miss Church has been making her first steps in imitating older singer/actress Madonna who, like Church, was raised Catholic but is known (and often applauded for) her public blasphemy against the sacred. Unlike Madonna, Church was once hailed by appreciate Catholics world-wide for using well her God-given talents. In fact, at the tender age of 12, Miss Church sang for Pope John Paul II. It seems she's changed however - and for the worse. The former child wonder, who has already caused scandal by posing nude for a few magazines, has recently stepped up to blasphemy.
In July 2006, the pilot of The All New Charlotte Church Show saw Church, cast in the role of a drug-taking nun, saying she worshipped “St. Fortified Wine,” sticking chewing gum on the face of a statue of the Child Jesus (Amy Proctor), and “smashing open a statue of the Virgin Mary to reveal a can of cider and eating a communion (sic) wafer emblazoned with an ecstasy smiley face and pretending to hallucinate…” Miss Church also called Pope Benedict XVI a "Nazi" and made personal, derisive remarks about two fellow entertainers. (EntertainmentWise.com)
As a result of Church’s shocking portrayal of a drug-taking, blasphemous nun, Ignatius Press has announced it is dropping from their catalog all Charlotte Church items (CD’s, DVD’s, audiocassette tapes, and VHS tapes). The announcement, made on the blog Ignatius Insight Scoop, was stated as follows:
“It is with regret that we do this. Miss Church possesses a great gift from God, and in the past she has used her talents to offer praise and glory to our Lord. But we cannot stand by a young woman who uses her stature in the media to mock the Eucharist, slander the Holy Father, and denigrate the vows of religious women."“Therefore, our catalogues and website will immediately withdraw all compact discs, cassette tapes, DVDs and VHS tapes that feature Miss Church. Please join us in praying for this troubled young woman."
Good for Ignatius Press! Not only are they standing up against blasphemy and slander, they remind us to pray (and I would add, sacrifice) for this young woman.
Now, with all due respect and sincerity, if only Ignatius Press would also move so quickly in dropping the works of the deceased Hans Urs von Balthasar and Henri du Lubac (two Jesuits who, during their lifetimes, accomplished more damage within the Catholic Church than the increasingly raucous Miss Church can ever hope to match), they could be taken even more seriously when they take a just stand against blasphemy and slander.
