The Tin Compass

The Catholic Free Press did us a good turn in publishing the CNS article on the Movie The Golden Compass [Critics debate merits of 'The Golden Compass' CFP 12/7/2007].

The Golden Compass, starring Nicole Kidman and Daniel Craig (007) is based on the books by atheist Philip Pullman. Pullman has declared "I’m trying to undermine the basis of Christian belief." His character Mary Malone, in The Amber Spyglass (the third volume of his trilogy), says, "The Christian religion is a very powerful and convincing mistake." The atheism and Anti-Christian themes in the Pullman books have been toned down in the movie in an attempt to prevent the outrage that could prevent the making of the second and third movies of the Pullman trilogy. However, as the CFP article pointed out, many Catholics rightly worry that children seeing this mildly anti-Christian movie will want to read the strongly atheistic and Anti-Christian books.

What is most troubling is that movie reviewers from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops have written a mostly positive movie review, with none of the moral caveats one would expect from a Bishop, and now the Movie publicity campaign has taken this review and is promoting this anti-Catholic movie as "'entirely in harmony with Catholic teaching' - the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops." As if parents do not have enough of a problem limiting the corruption of their children in todays self-centered culture.

The Bishops need to take back control of the USCCB, and fire Harry Forbes, Director of the U.S. Bishops' Office for Film & Broadcasting, for writing this execrable review and for putting our Bishops in the position of endorsing scandal.

End Game: silence Moral-based dissent

The November 5th Catholic Free Press editorial by Dan Avila on the Acquittal of Larry Cirignano summed up the good result from what began as an ugly smear campaign by the Pro-homosexual marriage forces. As many people know, Larry escorted ACLU board member Sarah Loy back into the crowd after she stood in front of the Podium at the Vote on Marriage Rally last December 16, holding her pro-same-sex marriage sign. When Ms. Loy was out of reach of Cirignano she tripped over a 13-year olds foot. Everyone who believes in Democracy and Freedom of speech should thank 13-year old Lauren and her mother for testifying against this obviously trumped-up attempt to silence the voices supporting the democratic process and Traditional Marriage between a man and a woman.

Sadly, I have come to expect this double-standard from the ACLU, a group allegedly so dedicated to Free speech rights that they have defended the rights of Neo-Nazi groups to hold public parades, yet they protest and attempt to silence Vote on Marriage.org when we held a rally in defense of the democratic process and traditional marriage. The more ominous question remains: Why did Worcester police spokesperson Sgt. Kerry Hazelhurst claim in the media that Larry Cirignano admitted to pushing Sarah Loy down when in fact he did no such thing? Is there such a thing as a coordinated misunderstanding?

This trumped up distraction gave cover to the same-sex marriage lobby political arm-twisting that derailed the Vote on Marriage Petition drive and left Massachusetts as the only State in the Union with a coerced and manufactured Right to redefine Marriage. We should remember this at election time.