Source (http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/apr/25/pope-apology-condom-memo).
QuotePope receives apology from UK Foreign Office for 'condom' memo
Internal Foreign Office memo filled with ironic suggestions about the pope's September visit to the UK has prompted an official apology to the Vatican
An internal Foreign Office memo about this September's papal visit to Britain which started as a Friday afternoon joke, today has resulted in a formal government apology to the Vatican.
The memorandum, apparently written following a brainstorming session by a group of junior civil servants planning events for the four-day visit by Pope Benedict XVI, suggested among other ideas that he might like to start a helpline for abused children, sack "dodgy" bishops, open an abortion ward, launch his own brand of condoms, preside at a civil partnership, perform forward rolls with children, apologise for the Spanish armada and sing a song with the Queen.
It was circulated across Whitehall, including to Downing Street with a covering note suggesting it should not be shown externally and adding, unnecessarily perhaps, that its ideas were far-fetched.
The joke fell very flat indeed after the memo was leaked to the Sunday Telegraph, with David Miliband, the foreign secretary, said to be appalled, a grovelling apology from his department and a formal expression of regret offered to the Vatican by the British ambassador Francis Campbell.
In a statement, the Foreign Office said: "This is clearly a foolish document that does not in any way reflect UK government or Foreign Office policy or views. Many of the ideas ... are clearly ill-judged, naive and disrespectful. The text was not cleared, or shown to ministers or senior officials before circulation. As soon as senior officials became aware of the document it was withdrawn from circulation. The individual responsible has been transferred to other duties. He has been told orally and in writing that this was a serious error of judgment and has accepted this view."
The civil servant responsible, said to be in his 20s, appears to have written the document on a Friday in early March, some weeks before the latest waves of child abuse accusations engulfed the Catholic church, which has indeed resulted in the departure of several bishops, including two this weekend, in Ireland and Belgium. Among the memo's other suggestions were that the now-Catholic Tony Blair and the singer Susan Boyle might be suitable candidates to be introduced to the pope, while the aggressive atheist Richard Dawkins and Wayne Rooney – who married in a Catholic ceremony – might be less suitable.
The ludicrous nature of the suggestions did not prevent some within the Catholic church reacting to what they claimed was a disrespectful slur, demanding apologies that many senior Vatican officials have in recent weeks declined to offer children abused in church care.
Bishop Malcolm McMahon of Nottingham told the Sunday Telegraph that the memorandum was appalling, before somewhat moderating his views overnight and telling the BBC that he hoped the memo had been lighthearted, adding: "That in itself can be dangerous if these memos move around departments. They tend to gain momentum."
While the Vatican itself made no comment, Cardinal Renato Martino told the Mail on Sunday : "The British government has invited the pope as its guest and he should be treated with respect. To make a mockery of his beliefs and [those of] millions of Catholics is very offensive indeed."
The response was more intemperate on the web. A Catholic commentator for the Daily Telegraph denounced "snide, cheap and ignorant prejudice [which has] flourished under this government and its civil servants ... wall-to-wall secularists."
Commenters on the site demanded the official should be sacked and called for criminal charges against "atheist scumbags". One, londiniensis, wrote: "Once Oxbridge scrapped its Latin entrance paper and oiks began to be actively encouraged to apply, this sort of degeneration was almost bound to happen."
It was left to Jack Valero, a spokesman for the organisation Catholic Voices, to add a note of moderation: "I think it is a joke that has gone wrong – light relief out of control. I think Catholics will just take it like this – they'll think about it today and then forget about it. In the Catholic church we are used to forgiveness – it's part of our culture."
In Italy, centrist newspaper La Stampa reported the story under the headline "Too much humour, we're British", and, while describing the proposals as "intentionally absurd", said the author of the memo "certainly hasn't helped improve the anti-papal feeling that certain sectors are trying to feed in Great Britain ahead of the pope's visit".
Corriere della Sera also said that the incident "risked spoiling the climate of expectation" leading up to the visit.
:lol:
You CoE types have never let it go.
Bloody hell, people should grow a sense of humour.
Increasing numbers of Swedish cases of Catholicism (AKA child abuse) are being reported. I don't understand why we removed the DP for being Catholic.
Quote from: Tyr on April 25, 2010, 09:25:24 AM
Bloody hell, people should grow a sense of humour.
Impossible. 24 hour news cycle plus culture of greivance plus gotcha journalism means that anything that can be taken in a negative light will be.
Gotcha journalism :wub:
Any government bureaucrat should know that humour does not survive being written down.
We make plenty of dark humour jokes around the office, but never, ever write them down...
Quote from: garbon on April 25, 2010, 11:19:33 AM
Gotcha journalism :wub:
Poors and low-class individuals love it. You've just outed yourself yet again.
I just love terminology that reminds me of Palin.
You betcha.
I'm a maverick. :goodboy:
Quote from: CountDeMoney on April 25, 2010, 09:00:34 AM
You CoE types have never let it go.
Maybe English can apologize for all the priests they executed.
Quote from: Razgovory on April 25, 2010, 06:37:32 PM
Maybe English can apologize for all the kiddy-fiddlers they executed.
Fixed! ;)
Quote from: Razgovory on April 25, 2010, 06:37:32 PM
Maybe English can apologize for all the priests they executed.
The problem with that is that those passing the memos would have to be aware of such an event. All they know is what's on the news.
Quote from: Habbaku on April 25, 2010, 11:44:31 PM
Quote from: Razgovory on April 25, 2010, 06:37:32 PM
Maybe English can apologize for all the priests they executed.
The problem with that is that those passing the memos would have to be aware of such an event. All they know is what's on the news.
Since the UK has apologized, there seems little reason for English to do so as well.
I read that the Church in Glasgow actually wants Susan Boyle to perform for the Pope.
Silliness aside, the memo is indicative of a serious problem of the Church as an institution.
Just today, I read in the paper that the Vatican was backing some kind of ethical investment fund. The first thought that popped into my mind was: Hasbro, Disney, Mattel, . . .
When JPII was Pope, whatever one thought about the Church , it was something that demanded to be taken seriously, and that sometimes played a significant role in world events.
Now it cannot avoid being victimized by the most dangerous enemy of any large institution: sustained mass ridicule.
What do people mean by gotcha journalism? Because this just looks like journalism to me.
Quote from: Sheilbh on April 27, 2010, 01:19:27 PM
What do people mean by gotcha journalism? Because this just looks like journalism to me.
I haven't heard the term before, but I assume it means journalism that focuses on juvenile and harmless missteps like this, rather than on issues and important events.
Quote from: Martinus on April 27, 2010, 01:24:52 PM
Quote from: Sheilbh on April 27, 2010, 01:19:27 PM
What do people mean by gotcha journalism? Because this just looks like journalism to me.
I haven't heard the term before, but I assume it means journalism that focuses on juvenile and harmless missteps like this, rather than on issues and important events.
I'd say the
Foreign Office passing memos like this around other major government institutions including the executive is a pretty fucking big deal.
Then again, perhaps we just have higher expectations of our diplomatic corps?
Quote from: Martinus on April 27, 2010, 01:24:52 PM
I haven't heard the term before, but I assume it means journalism that focuses on juvenile and harmless missteps like this, rather than on issues and important events.
I've only heard it from Palin. I thought she meant aggressive questioning to get a 'gotcha' moment when the pol fucks up.
It could mean over-the-top jingoism like the Sun 'GOTCHA!' headline.
Neither of those seem to be the case though. Maybe you're right, in which case I don't think they're mutually exclusive.
Quote from: Sheilbh on April 27, 2010, 02:54:24 PM
Quote from: Martinus on April 27, 2010, 01:24:52 PM
I haven't heard the term before, but I assume it means journalism that focuses on juvenile and harmless missteps like this, rather than on issues and important events.
I've only heard it from Palin. I thought she meant aggressive questioning to get a 'gotcha' moment when the pol fucks up.
It could mean over-the-top jingoism like the Sun 'GOTCHA!' headline.
Neither of those seem to be the case though. Maybe you're right, in which case I don't think they're mutually exclusive.
It's far easier to interpret it as "journalism I don't like."
The Vatican should display its famous sense of humor and leak a memo making fun of the British.
It's a bit strange that they did it. If you work in any large bureaucracy surely you learn that the number one rule is don't mock the pope.