Comic Relief - Huh! Don't Make Me Laugh!

In the highly unlikely event that any genuine Catholics are thinking of supporting "Comic Relief", they should read read John Smeaton's S.P.U.C. recent post , which is reproduced below.

[To:]
Gregory Pope
Deputy Director
Catholic Education Service
39 Eccleston Square
London SW1V 1BX

4th February 2013

Dear Mr Pope,

We know that misinformed publicity about Comic Relief has caused considerable confusion and distress in the past, particularly among Catholic schools wanting to support Red Nose Day and Sport Relief. So in 2000, we opened up a dialogue with the Catholic Bishops of England and Wales to help communicate the facts.

At that time, they issued a statement confirming that, after careful examination of our records, they were satisfied with Comic Relief’s assurance that we do not fund and have never funded abortion services or the promotion of abortions. The Bishops’ Conference and the Department of International Affairs confirmed that they were confident that Catholics may continue to support Comic Relief’s fundraising initiatives in good faith. Our commitment remains the same.

Our international funding goes to all kinds of projects – providing education, rehabilitating child soldiers, peace-building, fair trade, supporting street children and a range of other work helping people in the world's poorest countries to turn their lives around.

This includes over £13.6m of grants to more than 50 projects managed by the Catholic Agency for Overseas Development (CAFOD) and the Scottish Catholic International Aid Fund (SCIAF) for work across Africa, Asia and South America.

Yours sincerely,

Aleks Leimanis
Schools & Youth Manager
Comic Relief

Comic Relief’s "assurance that [it] do[es] not fund and have never funded abortion services or the promotion of abortions" is highly misleading. Comic Relief has for many years funded organisations which perform and/or promote abortion - see our charities bulletin entry dated 6 February this year and older information in our 2006 charities bulletin. Comic Relief has funded, among others:

• the International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF)(screenshot below from Comic Relief website), the world's largest provider and promoter of abortion
• African Initiatives (screenshot below from Comic Relief website), for a project "on women's rights specifically in the areas of sexual and reproductive health". Such language is commonly used, either as technical language or euphemistically, to denote abortion on demand
• Womankind (screenshot below from Comic Relief website), a radical pro-abortion group which attacks the Catholic Church for upholding the sanctity of human life - see my blog "The Tablet helps radical pro-abortion group raise money"
• Brook (screenshot below from Comic Relief website), one of the UK's leading pro-abortion organisations
• Marie Stopes International (MSI), another of the world's largest abortion providers
• Population Concern, which promotes abortion out of 'concern that the world is over-populated
• Reproductive Health Alliance Europe
• Save the Children (screenshot below from Comic Relief website), which supports abortion and promotes contraception
• Oxfam (screenshot below from Comic Relief website), which has a long history of support for abortion
• The African Women's Development fund (AWDF) (screenshot below from Comic Relief website), for a project supporting "reproductive health" and "sexual minorities". The AWDF charter of feminist principles proclaims its commitment to "Freedom of choice and autonomy regarding bodily integrity issues, including reproductive rights, abortion, sexual identity and sexual orientation"
• Barnardo's (screenshot below from Comic Relief website). Barnardo's runs the Young Womens London Project which offers a 'sexual health service'. Through the service "young women can access a nurse for free condoms, contraception (including emergency contraception) pregnancy testing and advice about abortion/termination." The Barnardo's website recommends the websites of Marie Stopes International and the Family Planning Association, two of the UK's leading abortion agencies
• Terrence Higgins Trust (screenshot below from Comic Relief website), one of the leading lobby groups promoting homosexuality.

This list is by no means exhaustive  - go tohttp://www.comicrelief.com/how-we-help , click on 'Search' on the bottom right-hand corner of the map, and in the 'Type keywords' box, enter the search-terms "sexual" or "reproductive" or "gay".

It is simply unethical for anyone - let alone Catholic schools - to raise money for Comic Relief, that massive bankroller of the culture of death.

I would like to know what Austen Ivereigh's apparent innuendo on Twitter is all about. Can anyone, please, help?

The following exchange is verbatim from Twitter,

A. Ivereigh, a "Catholic Voice", tweeted today "if only those little old ladies duped into believing SPUC is Catholic knew what their money is being spent on ...."

When I tweeted back, asking for an explanation,   "@austeni @blondpidge @PeterDCXW What does SPUC spend their money on?"
 Blondpidge replied,  "very good question. As they are a lobby group & not a charity we'll never know."

I replied, "If we'll never know, why the innuendo about how old ladies' money spent? Seeking clarification as someone who workes (my typo. Should be worked) with SPUC."


Blondpidge: "Well how does pursuing campaign against archbishops & catholic voices further pro-life cause? Please tell me?"

I replied, "If ++s in question were soft on abortion, or immoral sex-ed, campaign would help."

I would like to know what Austen Ivereigh's apparent innuendo is all about. Can anyone, please, help?

Did Bonfire Night Trump SPUC? We Want the Truth

The ever-vigilant Linen on the Hedgerow points out that a SPUC fund-raising event on 5th November in Bath will probably not take place, since no reply has been received from Bishop Declan Lang to a request to use the city's main church hall.

What are we to think?

We know that in "thinking Catholic" circles of the Blairite persuasion SPUC is an object of scorn, but has the disease infected the hierarchy as well?

Or perhaps the hall has already been ear-marked for a Guy Fawkes night party?

My mind is weary from boggling.

A Useful Glossary for Thinking Catholics

A glossary for thinking, liberal Catholics:


Bigot: someone who believes that there is only one truth. Wears cheap suits, has harsh, grating voice, unattractive to women, probably has halitosis - at least we hope so


Catholics, traditional: bigoted backwoodsmen, taliban, Father Z, nuff said

Catholic Voices: a powerful force for sanity in the church. Content with the way things are. Busy harvesting the Fruits of Vatican II


Dance, Liturgical: a beautiful, dignified expression of Joy and Faith. Great because it allows women to express themselves freely and annoys traddie bores

 
Faithful, the: Catholic Voices

Form, Extraordinary: aptly named, a hopefully short-lived sop to Latin-groupies and incense-freaks


Magic Circle: neither magical or circular, but Just Us


S.P.U.C. an unpleasant and very un-urbane pressure group, obsessed with sex, which bangs on about abortion and sex-education. 


Taliban Catholic: one who follows what (s)he believes to be the teaching of the church to its logical conclusion. An empowered bigot

Ultamontane: believing that the Pope is more than just another bishop

Z, Father: a Catholic Taliban leader, or ayatollah

Why the aversion to SPUC?

There seems to be an aversion amongst some Catholics to SPUC and John Smeaton.

Does anyone have any idea why?