Our Lady of Perpetual News Cycles

September 22, 2006

Is this cross thing ever going to end? Now NBC is pondering the symbol and its place in Madonna's concert.

In just about every country she’s visited during her "The Confessions Tour," Madonna has got-up-on-her cross and sang: “Live to Tell.” And controversy has ensued. See, people got a thing about the cross. They think it was Jesus's and Jesus's only.

England was angry; Russia went ballistic; Italy wanted her excommunicated. Even the Muslims and the Jews thought she was out of line.

And she hasn’t changed her show.

Which is why the latest news that NBC is flirting with the idea of cutting that section of her show made us all yawn. Don’t get us wrong, we’re excited and we want to see her concert on telly. This is just one of those stories that won’t go away.

Madonna has been urging people to see her show before criticizing her act. NBC plans to air a Madonna concert in November culled from various stops on her current ''Confessions'' tour. Madonna said in a statement Thursday that there had been so many ''misinterpretations'' about her act ''I wanted to explain it myself once and for all.''

''This is not a mocking of the church,'' she said. ''It is no different than a person wearing a cross or 'taking up the cross' as it says in the bible. My performance is neither anti-Christian, sacrilegious or blasphemous. Rather, it is my plea to the audience to encourage mankind to help one another and to see the world as a unified whole. I believe in my heart that if Jesus were alive today he would be doing the same thing. Please do not pass judgment without seeing my show,'' she said.

Here’s the point being made by “The Catholic League” -- Last winter, the world went nuts over some Danish cartoons that depicted the Prophet Muhammad. NBC News did not show the cartoon. So, the League is saying that showing Madonna’s “mock crucifixion” will send a message that Christianity counts less than Islam.

They claim that, by their count, 85% of the country is Christian, and go on to make the (relatively absurd) point that making Muslims seem more important than Christians is “not a decision that any responsible person or company can afford to make.''

NBC has supposedly not made a decision, but they have said: ''We viewed it and, although Madonna is known for being provocative, we didn't see it as being ultimately inappropriate.''

So far, the scene is still in.