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Opus Dei Complains Over BBC Drama

ramonmercado

ramonmercado

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Opus Dei complains over BBC drama

Sue Johnston stars as forensic psychologist Grace in the show
Controversial Catholic group Opus Dei has complained to the BBC about what it says is a "defamatory" portrayal in primetime drama Waking The Dead.
Two episodes of the crime series, shown last weekend, featured devotees of the religious organisation embroiled in a gruesome double murder.

Opus Dei said the BBC broke religious guidelines by showing its members as "murderers, thieves and adulterers".

The BBC said it had not yet received an official complaint.

This portrayal is lifted from the Da Vinci Code

Opus Dei statement
Opus Dei was formed in 1928 in Madrid by the priest Josemaria Escriva de Balaguer. Its name means "the work of God".

It encourages members to see religion as something that should direct every minute of their lives, rather than being a matter of just turning up for Mass and confession.

Novel inspiration

But it has aroused controversy in the past, with critics calling it secretive and ultra-conservative, claims which its members deny.

Dan Brown's Da Vinci Code novel famously painted the organisation as a power-hungry movement bent on covering up the truth about Christ's bloodline.

Opus Dei claim it was this portrayal of their organisation that was the inspiration for Waking The Dead.


Opus Dei founder Josemaria Escriva de Balaguer has been canonised
"The three characters portrayed as members are self-serving hypocrites whose main reason for belonging to Opus Dei is depicted as being their wealth," it said.

"This portrayal is lifted from the Da Vinci Code, a book and film which claimed - against all evidence - to be based on fact."

The group says the BBC has broken its own editorial guidelines on religion, which state: "We will ensure the religious views and beliefs of an individual, a religion or religious denomination are not misrepresented".

A BBC spokeswoman said the complaint would be dealt with using the "usual procedure" once it had arrived.

"We cannot comment on something we have not yet received," she added.

Sunday's episode of Waking The Dead, entitled The Fall, was seen by 7.2m people.


http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/6294595.stm
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ramonmercado said:
Opus Dei founder Josemaria Escriva de Balaguer has been canonised
"The three characters portrayed as members are self-serving hypocrites whose main reason for belonging to Opus Dei is depicted as being their wealth," it said.
Click to expand...

That's not true of course - they're sanctiminous, fanatics who make the Taliban look like liberals.
 
Are they claiming that every one of their members are completely incorruptable, non-fanatic and utterly beyond reproach? That's impressive since even some of the Lord's disciples were fallable and corrupt.
 
Ding! Dong! The Witch is dead! :twisted:

Maybe they'll have a whiparound for her.

Kelly to step down from cabinet

Ruth Kelly on her resignation

Transport Secretary Ruth Kelly is to step down from the government at the next cabinet reshuffle.

The mother-of-four told the Labour conference it was time to "step back" from politics and put her family first.

There had been reports she was unhappy with Gordon Brown's leadership, but she described him as a "towering figure".

Mr Brown told the BBC Ms Kelly had informed him of her plans in May, adding: "There are no political issues between Ruth and me."

Mr Brown, who sought to reassert his leadership in his conference speech on Tuesday, denied suggestions more resignations might follow.

Embryology Bill

The reshuffle could come as early as next week, following the Conservative Party conference.

Ms Kelly, whose four children are aged 11 or under, was appointed transport secretary in July 2007 after Mr Brown took over as prime minister.


It is well known that Ruth Kelly was among those most unhappy with the direction of the Labour Party under Gordon Brown
Nick Robinson
BBC political editor


There had been speculation the 40-year-old, a devout Catholic, could leave the government because of her objections to the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill.

Bolton West MP Ms Kelly, who previously served as communities secretary and education secretary, is understood to have wanted to resign in May, but to been asked by Mr Brown to stay on until the next reshuffle.

BBC political editor Nick Robinson said Ms Kelly was known to be unhappy with the direction of the government in recent months and, before the prime minister's conference speech on Tuesday, a number of cabinet ministers had been considering resigning with her.

'Determination'

But Ms Kelly told the Labour conference in Manchester: "It's been a tremendous privilege to have worked with both Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, two towering figures in the Labour Party, government and on the world stage.

"But, as well as a frontline politician, I'm also proud to be a mother and a wife. To have been able to hold these jobs, I've relied on the support of my husband and my family.

"So I ask for your understanding when I say that I now owe it to my children and family to take a step back and start putting them first.


Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play.

Gordon Brown gives his reaction to Ms Kelly's decision

"If I do not, then I know that this is something I will come to regret deeply."

Ms Kelly, who on Tuesday dismissed suggestions she might leave her job during an interview with BBC Radio Manchester, said: "This was not a decision I took lightly... The past 15 years have been an amazing and, at times, humbling experience."

Visibly moved when talking about her family, she was given a standing ovation by delegates. The Labour conference closed with a speech by deputy leader Harriet Harman.

The prime minister, touring the television and radio studios on Wednesday, paid tribute to Ms Kelly and said her decision - which was first reported on BBC Newsnight - was a personal one and "nothing to do with politics".

He told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "There are no political issues between Ruth and me."

He also said: "Ruth has been an MP all the time that her children have been growing up...

"This is the decision that every parent faces. It is nothing to do with politics. Sometimes we have got to make decisions that are difficult."

In another interview on BBC 5 Live it was put to Mr Brown that Ms Kelly was "not a big fan of yours".

Mr Brown replied: "She's a very good friend of mine - I think you've got that wrong."

Her said they had worked together when they were both in the Treasury, and said he wished she would stay on in government.

The reshuffle could also see Chief Whip Geoff Hoon made a European commissioner, a No 10 source said.

The MP for Ashfield, a former Member of the European Parliament, is reportedly being lined up to replace Peter Mandelson.

But Mr Hoon told the BBC: "I have not had a discussion specifically relevant to me.

"What would actually be by far the best solution, if it is possible, would be for Peter Mandelson to remain in post. I've certainly had discussions along those lines."

Huge pressure

Mr Brown addressed Labour's annual conference on Tuesday, claiming it was "no time for a novice" to lead the country.

This was seen as an attack on Conservative leader David Cameron and a coded warning to supporters of would-be Labour challenger David Miliband, the foreign secretary.

Mr Brown also sought to reassert his authority by telling party rebels to focus on challenges facing the country, not internal rows.

The prime minister insisted he would steer the country through the current financial crisis.


Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play.

He said the Tories could not be trusted to run the economy and vowed Labour would not stop fighting for a "fair society".

He delivered a more personal conference address than normal, preceded by an unusual introduction on to the stage by his wife Sarah.

Mr Brown told Today that "it was her decision to speak", adding: "We work as a team and we are very much people who know that we are in public life."

The Labour conference closed with a speech by deputy leader Harriet Harman.

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/u ... 632778.stm
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More revelations about how Opus Dei indoctrinate and exploit young women.

Unveiling Opus Dei: Irishwoman from FT investigation speaks out​

Updated / Saturday, 30 Mar 2024 15:42

Ann Marie Allen's story was central to a major investigation published by the Financial Times two weeks ago.

Ann Marie Allen's story was central to a major investigation published by the Financial Times two weeks ago.


Ann Marie Allen was 15 when she joined training course at an Opus Dei-run catering school. By 16 she had become an 'assistant numerary' within the organisation. During her years with Opus Dei, she worked from early morning until late evening in places like the organisation's students' residence in Galway, cooking and serving meals, doing laundry and cleaning rooms.

While not working she lived in an Opus Dei centre. There, she says, she was pressured to attend mass, deprive herself at meals, sleep on the floor one night a week, and tie a ‘cilice’ - "a barbed wire with the sharp bits on the inside" - around her leg for two hours daily.

She says she was isolated from her family, that her post was monitored, and her phone calls listened in to.

Eventually, with the help of her father, she says she "escaped" and rebuilt her life. Now, decades later, she has become a key part of a global effort by former assistant numeraries to unveil what happened within Opus Dei, and demand reparation.

Ms Allen’s story was central to a major investigation published by the Financial Times two weeks ago. In her first interview with Irish broadcast media, she told Katie Hannon on ‘Upfront: The Podcast’ further remarkable details about what she experienced within the organisation.

Listen: Katie Hannon speaks to Ann Marie Allen on Upfront: The Podcast
Opus Dei is a conservative Catholic institution which was founded by Saint Josemaría Escrivá in 1928. It now has a presence in over 60 countries. It consists of lay members and clerical members.

Upfront asked Opus Dei to respond to the details of Ann Marie’s story. In a statement, it said "we reject the accusation of exploitation," adding "we are very sorry and deeply regret that Anne Marie Allen was hurt by her time in Opus Dei."

Ms Allen says she was not paid during the seven years she was working in Opus Dei in the late 70s and early 80s. She wants the organisation to abolish the assistant numerary grade itself. ...
.
https://www.rte.ie/news/upfront/202...-irishwoman-from-ft-investigation-speaks-out/


Unveiling Opus Dei: Ann Marie Allen speaks out​

29 MAR • 37 MINS • UPFRONT: THE PODCAST

Ms Allen’s story was central to a major investigation published by the Financial Times two weeks ago. In her first interview with Irish broadcast media, she told Katie Hannon on ‘Upfront: The Podcast’ further remarkable details about what she experienced within the organisation.

https://www.rte.ie/radio/podcasts/22377631-unveiling-opus-dei-ann-marie-allen-speaks-out/
 
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