London, June 11: A planned holiday advertisement showing Jesus in the womb has triggered a new abortion controversy in Britain with protesters accusing churches of political naivety.
The ‘Ultrasound Jesus’ ad, set to appear on billboards in December shows a fetus with a halo and announces, “He’s on his way: Christmas starts with Christ.” The campaign aims to reach 40 million people.
Drawn up by ecumenical charity, Churchads.net, the campaign is backed by a number of Christian organisations including the Church of England, the Baptist Union, the United Reformed Church, the Anglican and the Methodist churches.
The National Secular Society (NSS) has criticised the ad, saying it gives the impression that it is politically motivated.
“It is an incredible piece of naivety on their part,” said Terry Sanderson, director of the NSS. “If they are hoping to stop the drift away from Christmas, they risk doing the opposite. It gives the impression that it was politically motivated, that they are trying to put across some sort of subliminal message.”
John Smeaton, of the Society for the Protection of the Unborn Child, welcomed the campaign as a “wonderful help in changing people’s minds in the abortion issue”.
—AGENCIES