State broadcaster, RTE, was forced to apologise to Christians offended by a news skit on its New Year’s Eve Countdown Show which Archbishop Eamon Martin described as “blasphemous”.
The mock news clip produced by satirical group Waterford Whispers News accused God of rape. The mock news piece reported: “God became the latest figure to be implicated in ongoing sexual harassment scandals” and “stood accused of forcing himself on a young Middle Eastern migrant and allegedly impregnating her against her will.”
In two tweets on Friday, the Primate of All Ireland expressed shock at the piece which he said was mocking and “deeply offensive” to Christians. Archbishop Eamon Martin called for the satirical clip to be removed “immediately” from the national broadcaster’s online player.
In a statement on Saturday, RTE apologised to those who were offended by the segment. However, the station said it had no plans to remove the segment of the show from the online player, though a warning advising “viewer discretion” has been added.
Over 1,100 complaints about the sketch were received by Saturday. “To broadcast such a deeply offensive clip about God and Our Blessed Mother during the Christmas season on RTE and on the Eve of the Solemn Feast of Mary, Mother of God, is insulting to all Catholics and Christians,” Dr Martin tweeted.
“I am shocked that producer/editor of 'NYE Countdown Show'… didn’t realise how deeply offensive was a mocking ‘news report’ accusing God of rape & reporting his imprisonment. This outrageous clip should be removed immediately & denounced by all people of goodwill.”
His strongly worded condemnation was echoed by Fianna Fáil Councillor Michael Sheehan of Wexford who said he had made a complaint to the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland (BAI) about it. Cllr Sheehan said his phone had been “hopping” all Friday afternoon.
“People were outraged. It was crass and in bad taste.” The Chief Imam of the Islamic Centre of Ireland, Dr Umar al Quadri said the sketch not only offended religious people throughout Ireland but “also sought to make comedy out of the very serious issue of sexual abuse”.
Archbishop-elect Dermot Farrell also decried the skit in a tweet. Describing himself as “very disturbed” by the piece, he said it had “betrayed a fundamental lack of understanding of the nature of rape and of God.”
Criticising the “deeply troubling” and “disturbing” trivialisation of rape, he said: “A discourse which fails to respect the victims – of all ages and genders – of this most degrading of crimes has not any place in our world.”
Separately, this weekend Archbishop-elect Farrell told the Irish Times that he favours women deacons but that women priests could split the Catholic Church as the issue had done in the Church of England. On the issue of homosexuality Bishop Farrell said Pope Francis had given Catholics “a great lead” and that the Church’s description of it as a “strong tendency ordered toward an intrinsic moral evil” is language disliked by the Pope. However, he ruled out blessings for same-sex couples.
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