The Catholic Church has only
made the controversial art exhibit at the Cultural Center of the
Philippines "more famous, more relevant" with the acerbic remarks
against the CCP management and artist Mideo Cruz.
This was the reaction of Carlos Celdran, a Reproductive Health
(RH) bill advocate who earned the ire of the Catholic Church because of
his advocacy.
"The Catholic conservatives are not only breeding a new generation of
youth that are disenchanted with their heavy handed tactics, but they
made Mideo's artwork more famous, more relevant, and more expensive,"
Celdran said.
He also said Catholic church officials and several lay groups have
made a "mountain out of a molehill" with its reactions to Cruz's work.
"It's a mountain made out of a molehill and a bunch of magazine
cutouts... I wonder if this is the measure of success that they were
seeking?" Celdran said.
Celdran, who works as a tourist guide in Intramuros, Manila, was
almost ex-communicated by the Catholic hierarchy after going inside one
of a Holy Mass, holding up a placard bearing the word "Damaso".
Damaso is an abusive friar in Jose Rizal's book, Noli Me Tangere.
Celdran was protesting the Catholic church's aggressive campaign
against RH bill, which remains pending in the House of Representatives
and the Senate.