Pope 'condom' gaffe: Foreign Office apologises

An embarrassing memo leaked by the British foreign Office regarding the Pope's visit to the UK.
The memo reads like an April fool. It suggests the UK should mark Pope's visit by asking him to launch a range of Benedict-branded condoms.
Britain should mark the Pope's visit this year by asking him to open an abortion clinic, and bless a gay marriage.


www.telegraph.co.uk...
www.guardian.co.uk...

The Gaffe was made by a junior foreign office employee, who probably thought they were being funny but this is an embarrassing case of incompetence at the Foreign Office.
I'm no fan of the Pope, but the memo is both offensive to the Pope and the Catholic Religion. certainly not the Job of the Foreign Office

Judging by what the brits did to my life, most of these people in british government must be pretty thick.

There is no human rights in uk, if your irish, and just because you do not know about it, they may still be targeting you.

reply to post by andy1033


Andy, you've been very good lately and I've even starred a couple of your posts....don't start this nonsense again.

If this memo was just meant as a joke between colleagues then who really cares, lighten up a bit.

If it is an official memo then he deserves to be strung up.

There is a tendency in this country to blow irrelevant things out of all proportion yet the truly important things remain secret and behind closed doors.

I was raised a Catholic, I now describe myself as agnostic, and take no offence over it.

I am sure there are some that might, and I respect their religous views etc, but come on, it's hardly akin to calling him a devil worshiping sodomiser like Dr Ian Paisley did a previous Pope, but no-one berated him for that scandalous insult.

I have dissed the Catholic leadership more than once,but the civil servant who wrote this should not be in that job IMO.

Sack the fool.

Or at least investigate his motives..
Then sack him.

I saw this on the news and actually thought it was hilarious.
I agree that if this truly is the genuine outcome of a "Brainstorming" session by Foreign Office staff, then someone needs the sack.... But in light of recent events and scandals surrounding the Catholic church, I think this is a very humorous and satirical dig at the pope and Catholic church.

I found it very funny.

But then I do have a warped sense of humour.

reply to post by blupblup


What is hilarious(in that laugh or else get really angry type way)Is that Idiot Civil servant is probably getting a £50K wage for this crap,out of our taxes naturally.

What a joke!
You could'nt make it up.

reply to post by Freeborn


Its not nonsense, my life is real in london.

Its a pretty thick thing to circulate in government building and my life has proven the english government are using electronic mind control in schools, and thats a human rights violation.

There is no human rights in uk, if your targeted, and my life was ruined.

But on topic, what sort of civil servant would make such rubbish up in a government document, and you people should be pissed that your money is wasted keeping people in these jobs, when it must be total incompetance what they did, and its embarrassing.

So the foreign office of London can apologize on behalf of all Londoners for a joke but the Pope can't apologize on behalf of his organization for the systematic rape and torture of children. I see.

reply to post by ZombieOctopus


Well said,its only the pope,gotta have a bit of fun at work!
Catholic priest = pedophile, simple maths lol!!

I am sure there is a real threat from some quarters to try to get the Pope arrested, which I am sure right now would bring the church and the Popes position into further dispute.. So how convenient this memo is released now and that it might end up causing the pope to cancel his trip to Britain.

Even tho I am a catholic I would rather this Pope not visit..

But I did like the idea of a duet with Queenie, and doing cartwheels with kids would be cool, tho both seem little to much like Monty Python sketch for me not to feel this more a set up to allow the Pope an escape route out of visiting.