Cardinal of Barcelona: The City Council Ridicules Our Lady
La Mercè is the annual celebration historically honoring the Virgen de la Mercè, the patron saint of Barcelona.
This year’s advertisements feature elements such as a baroque-style retablo, a crown, and a central female figure closely resembling traditional depictions of the Virgin Mary. However, the figure appears on a theatrical cart surrounded by performers, creating a circus-like or carnivalesque atmosphere.
Cardinal Juan José Omella, Archbishop of Barcelona, acknowledged that the City Council gives the festival an entirely secular character but expressed “surprise” that religious imagery continues to appear in official promotional materials year after year.
In a democratic society, religious sensibilities must be respected, the statement said, adding that the portrayal offends the devotion of those who venerate the Virgin as the city’s patroness.
Gaslighting: The poster’s creator, Lluís Danés, and the Barcelona City Council maintain that the design draws inspiration from popular street theater and traditional pageantry, not religious iconography.
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