Profanity-Laced Tupac 'Hail Mary' Rap Lyrics Printed in Christmas Carol Program in Sri Lanka
In this day and age, the term "Hail Mary" means different things to different people and organizers of a Christmas carolling event organized by the Archdiocese of Columbo in Sri Lanka this December learned that lesson the hard way.
To many Catholics, the "Hail Mary" is a prayer recited for the intercession of the blessed virgin mother of the Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
To football fans, a "Hail Mary" is a long pass thrown in desperation to the end zone at the end of a game in hopes that it somehow comes down in a receiver's hands for a touchdown.
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As for many hip-hop fans, they think of the title of a rap song by by the late rap legend Tupac Shakur when they hear the term "Hail Mary."
Unfortunately, the organizers of one of Sri Lanka's largest Christmas carol fundraising services didn't double-check which version of "Hail Mary" was included in the programs for the Joy to the World 2016 service before they printed and handed them out.
Attendees of the Dec. 11 service held in the nation's capital city of Colombo were surprised to find that instead of the Catholic prayer they are accustomed to seeing and reciting, the program included Tupac's version of the "Hail Mary."
Anyone who attended the service and read the program might have been alarmed to find such expletives as the N-word and might have been even more alarmed that the program asks "do you want to ride or die?"
A Christmas Carol service in Sri Lanka has accidentally printed the lyrics of Tupac’s Hail Mary, instead of the prayer.#SriLanka#lkapic.twitter.com/djhJPAWhcj
— Ravindu Thimantha G. (@IamRavindu) December 25, 2016
"I ain't no killer but don't push me. Revenge is like the sweetest joy, next to getting [inappropriate term for female reproductive body part]," the program recites. "Picture paragraphs unloaded, wise words bein' quoted. Peeped the weakness in the rap game and sewed it."
The gaffe made waves on Twitter and other social media platforms, as an attendee posted pictures of the program's "Hail Mary" page.
"A lot of people were in shock as whether it was a joke or someone would actually rap the song," an attendee named Andrew Choksy told CNN. "A few of the older ladies in front of us could not stop looking at the printed booklet."
The event was organized in part by the Archdiocese of Colombo and the Joseph Vaz Trust. Following the unwanted attention caused by the error, a representative from the archdiocese told CNN that the organizers didn't realize the mistake until it was too late.
Once they realized the mistake, the organizers asked for the programs to be returned.
"The page was in the middle of the booklet. When people looked at this page, they saw it before the start of the show," Father Da Silva explained. "Two people saw it and alerted us to it."
"We are very sorry to say that this happened," he added.
