Just when you thought the religious news could not get any stranger:
Baby Jesus billboard star
Anti-abortion groups in the U.K. celebrate an ad featuring a haloed fetus
From Salon.com
People see Jesus in a lot of things: Shrouds, grilled cheese sandwiches, ultrasounds. And in Britain this December, you’ll be able to see the baby Jesus in a simulation of what his own ultrasound would’ve looked like. If, you know, Mary’s OB-GYN in Nazareth had the technology. It even has a halo!
The ultrasound is part of an ad campaign that will be featured on billboards with the goal of reaching 40 million people.
The ad is backed not by the adamantly anti-abortion Catholic Church but by several Protestant Churches, including the Church of England and the Methodist Church. Despite the fact that conversation about the ad has focused on abortion, Mike Elms, vice-chair of the agency that created the ad, claims that it’s not about politics. “We wanted to convey that Christmas starts with Christ.”
ACNS reports the Anglican co-founder of the campaign said, ““This image—of a baby in the womb—is one that transcends cultures. There’s no reason this image wouldn’t deliver the same challenging message in Singapore or Kenya. So I’m inviting Anglicans right across the Communion to take this initiative and make it global.””