Catholic TV in Brazil Removes Pro-Homosexual Host After Protests
The largest Catholic television network in Brazil has chosen to stop airing a controversial new program amid outpouring that the show promotes non-Catholic values such as abortion and homosexuality.
New Song TV canceled the program after outraged viewers started an internet protest as well as a campaign on Twitter.
The show, titled "Justice and Peace," was scheduled to air weekly and be hosted Edinho Silva, who is known locally for his liberal views concerning homosexuality and abortion. Silva is also the leader of the ruling Labor Party in the state of Sao Paulo.
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Catholic officials were concerned that Silva, who leads a party that is seeking to legalize abortion throughout Brazil, were concerned that it would give him a platform to promote the idea of legalizing abortion in the name of "public health."
During the national elections late last year, Silva's political team led several attacks against Catholic bishops who sought to alert voters about the pro-abortion policies of the Labor Party, according to The Christian Telegraph.
"The president of the Labor Party in the State of Sao Paulo is the same who, in 2010, directly promoted the persecution of the document of the Southern Division of the National Conference of Brazilian Bishops, which asks Catholics not to vote for pro-abortion politicians like President Dilma Rousseff," wrote Wagner Moura, one of Brazil's top Catholic bloggers.
"Through Labor Party attorneys, the president went to the Electoral Court to prevent the continuance of the printing of the documents," Moura adds. After the documents were obtained by local authorities the act was declared illegal by a Brazilian court.
The Brazilian Catholic website "Feel with the Church" responded to the news of the canceled show by showing a cartoon featuring Edinho Silva being "defenestrated," tossed out of a window from the New Song TV headquarters by Jesus and a Catholic bishop, as reported by the Catholic News Agency.
