Ignatius Press, Charlotte Church story making the rounds...

...popping up all over the place:

• "Ignatius stops sale of Charlotte Church works after singer's TV pilot" (Catholic Online)
• "Church Drops Nazi Nun Slur" (Contact Music)
• "Charlotte Church faces Catholic boycott over Nazi Pope jibe" (Daily Mail)
• "Holy Ban on Church" (Mirror.co.uk)
• "Charlotte's Sin Binned!" (icWales.co.uk)
• "Charlotte Is Boycotted After Nazi Jibe At Poe [sic]" (INS News)
• "Publishing Company Discontinues Line of "Angelic" Catholic Artist Turned Blasphemer" (LifeSite.net)

And then there are the Catholic-bashing bloggers:

• "Pope Adolf can't take a joke!" (Warning: Offensive language)
• "God-muncher publishing co. bans Church"

Comments

[MenTaLguY]

Man. I really don't get the logic that when something like this leaks, it's magically supposed to be okay just because it wasn't really intended for publication. Even the lame old classic, "I didn't really meaaaaan it," would be a better defense.

I wish it were easier for the contemporary mind to understand why, without a sincere and public repentance on Charlotte's part, there's just no way a publisher like IP could continue to sell her works without contributing to the scandal. For that matter, I wish the contemporary mind had a notion of what scandal was -- it's like water to fish these days.

Anyway, kudos to you guys for doing the right thing (as if you needed me to say it).

[Jackson]

How did these outlets find out about this? I can't believe that they read this blog. Did IP issue a press release?

[Albert]

Actually, the way Miss Church has been carrying on in public in the last year or so (typical teen female singer gets drunk and makes a public spectacle of herself), it was probably fortuitous that she made this easy for Ignatius. Her boorish tabloid like behavior is hardly the sort of thing one would point to as "role model" material.

[Mark Brumley]

IP hasn't issued a press release. As far as I know, all we did was post an item on the blog and on IgnatiusInsight.com.

[Plato''s Stepchild]

Don't look at me.

[Rivendell]

Well, I really didn't think that this whole story would get such widespread coverage in the press after Ignatius' action to remove her works from its catalog. Is Charlotte Church really that big a celebrity? I don't know, I never followed her career or heard her sing, though I know how people have said that she has a nice singing voice. I agree with comments some have made in other comboxes that observe how difficult it is for talented child stars to make a smooth transition into adulthood. There is so much psychological and spiritual poison that these child celebrities are allowed to be exposed to and one wonders about their parents and what kind of upbringing (or lack thereof) they receive. Fame can be dangerous to kids and if there is no responsible adult keeping strict control over a child phenom's rapid rise to fame, then this latest example we're seeing in Charlotte Church can result. Hope is not lost, she is still young, and maybe after some years living and learning in the school of hard knocks, she can turn her life around and be whole again. One can certainly pray for that.

[Cristina A. Montes]

I think part of the shock is due to the fact that Charlotte Church used to sing a lot of sacred music like "Pie Iesu".

[Jackson]

My dad's a Hollywood guy and I've had some exposure to the world of showbusiness through him, at recording sessions etc. Rivendell, you're right on about the psychological and spiritual poison among this crew. One would have to possess a deep faith to withstand it, though I'm convinced that one with a deep faith would never be attracted to the showbiz world to begin with.

[Matt C. Abbott]

As I have posted on Dom's blog:

If one does a Google search on Charlotte and views some of the photos of her that are “out there” in cyberspace (which I do not recommend), one will quickly realize that she is far from wholesome.

Sad.

[Cajun Nick]

I agree with MenTaLguY, and I want to commend Ignatius Press for taking the stand that it did. You have set an example that all of us could learn from.