A Spanish LGBT group was vigorously denounced by Spanish Catholics for launching a pride month advertising campaign that sexualized images of the Virgin Mary.
The ad was created and widely circulated by Edevant, a left-wing political organization, and depicts two devotional images of Mary kissing one another, under the slogan: “Against the holy oppression, love as you want.” The ad also invites individuals to participate in a pride parade in Valencia on June 18.
The two devotional images are Our Lady of the Forsaken, patroness of Valencia, and Our Lady of Montserrat, patroness of Catalonia and one of Europe’s black madonnas.
The Archbishop of Valencia, Antonio Cardinal Canizares, condemned the “unfair and gratuitous” advertisement, calling it “a desecration.” He invited Valencia’s Catholics to pray the rosary and participate in a reparation Mass that stands against the “serious expression of intolerance and lack of respect for the religious beliefs of thousands of Valencians.”
Canizares is currently the subject of a hate crimes probe, after comments made in a May homily in which he condemned “the acts of political and social forces, to which are added movements and acts by the gay empire, by ideologies such as radical feminism, or the most insidious of all, gender ideology,” which threaten family life. Spanish law requires that complaints brought to local authorities for alleged hate speech must be investigated. No decision has been made by Spanish officials concerning possible criminal charges. (RELATED: This Spanish Cardinal Is Under Investigation For Hate Crimes)
Some LGBT organizations distanced themselves from Edevant and the controversial campaign. Association GayValencia LGTB, a major Valencian gay rights group, issued a statement saying they were not involved in the production or distribution of the Edevant material, and that image does not reflect the motto of 2016’s pride month, “Bisexual people, diverse and equal.”
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