News / International
Vatican take legal action over Pope Benedict XVI kissing a Muslim imam picture
17 Nov 2011 at 21:34hrs | Views
Benetton withdrew the picture featuring Pope Benedict XVI kissing a top Egyptian imam on the lips after the Vatican denounced it as an unacceptable provocation.(Patrick Kovarik, AFP)
The Vatican announced on Thursday that it will take legal action over an advertising campaign by Benetton which showed Pope Benedict XVI kissing a Muslim imam.
According to telegraph.co.uk the Holy See said it wanted the offensive image removed from magazines, newspapers, websites and Benetton shops around the world, saying it was in extremely poor taste.
The image of the Pope was part of a campaign, launched on Wednesday, called 'Unhate' which features leaders from opposite sides of the political and religious divide exchanging kisses in digitally manipulated montages.
Other photos showed Nicholas Sarkozy smooching the German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, Barack Obama kissing his Chinese counterpart, Hu Jintao, and Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel's prime minister, locked in an embrace with Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian leader.
Benetton had defended the provocative campaign, saying its purpose was to stimulate debate on reconciliation and mediation in politics and religion.
Its aim was to "contrast the culture of hatred and promote closeness between peoples, faiths, cultures and the peaceful understanding of each other's motivations. The central theme is the kiss, the most universal symbol of love."
But the Vatican's spokesman, Father Federico Lombardi, said on Wednesday that the image showed "a grave lack of respect for the Pope and an offence to the feelings of believers." Benetton is well known for its controversial publicity campaigns, which in the past have included the image of a nun kissing a priest and parents grieving over a man dying of Aids.
According to telegraph.co.uk the Holy See said it wanted the offensive image removed from magazines, newspapers, websites and Benetton shops around the world, saying it was in extremely poor taste.
The image of the Pope was part of a campaign, launched on Wednesday, called 'Unhate' which features leaders from opposite sides of the political and religious divide exchanging kisses in digitally manipulated montages.
Other photos showed Nicholas Sarkozy smooching the German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, Barack Obama kissing his Chinese counterpart, Hu Jintao, and Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel's prime minister, locked in an embrace with Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian leader.
Benetton had defended the provocative campaign, saying its purpose was to stimulate debate on reconciliation and mediation in politics and religion.
Its aim was to "contrast the culture of hatred and promote closeness between peoples, faiths, cultures and the peaceful understanding of each other's motivations. The central theme is the kiss, the most universal symbol of love."
But the Vatican's spokesman, Father Federico Lombardi, said on Wednesday that the image showed "a grave lack of respect for the Pope and an offence to the feelings of believers." Benetton is well known for its controversial publicity campaigns, which in the past have included the image of a nun kissing a priest and parents grieving over a man dying of Aids.
Source - telegraph
