Slippery Morals

Whatever its ethical flexibility in defending sex pests and collaborating with fascists, the Church of Rome has rarely been afraid to take a hard line against artistic freedom. A Catholic diocese in Germany has sinned exceedingly in thought, deed and image with a television broadcast which not only implied that childbirth through an intact hymen can be a messy business, but used a female performer to represent Baby Jesus. The expectable squeals of righteous indignation erupted from the expectable schools of theology, and the diocese duly expressed repentance for its deviationism and incorrectitude. It is certainly deplorable that believers in Christ should be asked to contemplate the idea that the offspring of a god and a virgin, with power over the living and the dead, might have a touch of the alien about it.