Recognizing a significant scandal brewing, PMO spokesperson with Dimitri Soudas is quick off the mark with an attempt at damage control over Stephen Harper's insult to Canadian Catholics last week, when as a non-Catholic he accepted and then pocket the host wafer at the funeral service of former Governor-General Romeo LeBlanc (h/t):
The Prime Minister's Office moved swiftly Wednesday to refute allegations that Stephen Harper pocketed a sacramental communion wafer at the funeral mass of Romeo LeBlanc instead of consuming it."It's totally absurd," the prime minister's press secretary, Dimitri Soudas, said. "The priest offered the host to the prime minister, the prime minister accepted the host and he consumed it."
Unfortunately for Dimitri, though, his explanation is belied by the video evidence, which clearly shows Harper accepting the host and slipping it in his pocket:
Which raises a follow-up for Dimitri, and for Harper who should really man-up and explain this one himself. If he did eat the wafer, when? If it was shortly after he got it, why pocket it first? Or was it later that day or something, did he save it for later? Why?! And is it really appropriate for a non-Catholic to do accept it in the first place? Why not just respectfully pass?
Soudas' explination is deeply lacking on many fronts.
UPDATE: According to the Toronto Star, Soudas is claiming Harper never even pocketed the thing but apparently "consumed it" right away:
"The story today alleges he put it in his pocket and did not consume it which is false. It's totally absurd and ridiculous."Umm, have you SEEN THE VIDEO, Dimitri? Watch it, and then get back to us with a less idiotic line, please.
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6 comments:
He looks like he wanted to shake the priest's hand, and didn't know what to do with the host once he had it. I'm also thinking that the priest was wrong to hand a non-Catholic the host in the first place.
Were I in Harper's place and the priest had given me a host, I would also not have eaten it but wouldn't have made a little scene by turning it down.
Really, does this matter?
It seems to matter to the mobs of shrieking conservatives who went full metal ape-poo flinging mode when the subject arose at the Pharyngula blog. Anyone who 'pocketed' a host for whatever reason instead of instantly consuming it, was committing an immoral act insulting to Catholics on a scale equivalent to murdering them at the altar.
But I'm sure it's different somehow when the last 'Republican' bastion of leadership in the benighted western hemisphere does it.
It actually does look like Harper's trying to shake the priest's hand, which merely makes him a complete bloody moron I suppose. Seriously, is his life experience really that narrow that he doesn't know that when everyone walks to the front of a Catholic or Anglican church it's for communion?
So this is latest manufactured scandal the Liberals are going to cook up during the summer political doldrums.
Heh.
I HATE that this story is getting more attention than Diane Ablonczy's demotion for giving sponsorship money to the Toronto PRIDE committee.
Ah Michael Harkov, when are you going to realize that this is just the sheer buffoonery of that rube you love; harper. Really, you've been on that broken record for so long it lacks credibility.
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