...roundly denounced me for being much too cross and passionate about the people dying of AIDS, in the discussion on tonight's Channel 4 News, and said I wasn't behaving in a Christian way.
Well, I don't know about Christian, but I certainly lost my cool. Here are 22 million people across Africa dying of a deadly disease, and the Church points out that current policies are making things worse - and when we attempt a debate about it on British TV we get a complete block on any attempt at examining the Church's viewpoint.
Home to a battery of denunciations from people writing in to my blog saying how dreadful I was, how ashamed of me they are, how terribly I behaved. I expect they are mostly experienced broadcasters who regularly defend the Church, and the gravely ill, and know how to stay calm when doing so. It's v. nice of them to write so I've posted their comments (see below - but I daresay there'll be lots more...
16 comments:
You are a complete embarrassment to the Catholic Church. If there were a case to be made for the Holy Father's recent comments, your hostile and aggressive attitude on tonight's Channel 4 interview with Jon Snow well and truly undermined it.
A practising Catholic.
Dear Practising Catholic,
It's nice of you to write. I do sometimes accept anonymous comments, but you can see that yours looks rather horrid when it doesn't carry a name. Will you now put your name, so that I can know who you are?
best wishes
Joanna
I didn't think your mild anger was particularly worrying. Gosh, what would he say if he witnessed some of the heated arguments in the early church?
Of course it would have been better if you'd managed to say what needed to be said, but you are hardly the first person to deal badly with the media.
Jon Snow's smirking however really did clinch the deal for me and you came out looking better than him on that count.
Oh dear. I just read in your "about me" that you don't like narrow minded people. I believe that I am very narrow minded. At least that is what I have been told (and it is quite probable that my accusers are right). :) Also neither my dictionary nor I know what a pimm is (looked up pimms too). But I still enjoy all of your programs on EWTN and if I saw you lose your cool over this subject, I'm betting that I would stand up and cheer. Keep fighting the good fight.
Annie
Cheer up, Joanna. I didn't see the interview, but even if you did mess up the interview as interview, explosions of anger or sadness are hardly unjustifed by the matter under discussion.
Complete embarassments are not those who fail to be respectable or, for goodness' sake Mr or Mz practising Catholic, mess up a telly interview.
Can one be too passionate and angry about such a topic? I suppose indifferent and blase is so much more sophisticated?
Seriously, don't let the turkeys get you down.
Joanna-You were wonderful!I love it when people defend the faith!!We are not expected to do it perfectly!!You are passionate about what you believe.Dont be to hard on yourself!
Isn't it interesting that those who are most anti-Catholic or anti-Christians are the very ones telling Christians how to behave? I guess we must never exhibit righteous anger or exasperation, but we have to appear as little plaster saints!
Joanna, I was fortunate to see and hear the interview on ITV and I thought you did a good job. Your defence of the Pope was accurate and expressed the teaching of the RC church. If you had not been impeded by JS you would have done even better.
May God bless you
Alan
Joanna, I was fortunate to see and hear the interview on ITV and I thought you did a good job. Your defence of the Pope was accurate and expressed the teaching of the RC church. If you had not been impeded by JS you would have done even better.
May God bless you
Dear Joanna
Thank you for publicly defending the Church's policy on the Aids issue in Africa. I can't imagine they'd be many willing to undergo the Channel 4 treatment. So, as a fellow Catholic, thanks. Hopefully, your passion will get some people thinking.
Dear Joanna,
I just watched the interview on the internet. It saddened, but didn't surprise me, how biased the makers of this news programme are, together with many other media outlets. You coped remarkably well under the pressure of live television and the spurious questioning from Jon Snow. Thank you for all you do in proclaiming the teachings of Jesus Christ and His Church to the world. We must continue to pray and trust in the Lord.
God bless you,
Peter
i thought your performance was excellent..if anything it was John Snow who annoyed me with his sarky comments on Christian behaviour.What does he know about it ? He believes in killing babies by abortion .His clerical upbringing did nt do him any good ! Anthony
I just watched the video on youtube, I think the interview was unfair to you Joanna, you were constantly interrupted, cut off from speaking, the interviewer was trying to twist your words. He clearly did not want you to freely speak, if you raised your voice a bit it was only due to his constant interruptions. I saw you were only trying to speak over those interruptions, you were not out of control like Snow claimed you were. I feel blessed to know that their are Catholics like you who are defending family and life. The mainstream media is almost always hostile to any Catholic messenger. Also, would you please consider contacting or being interviewed by a Catholic news source, or do your own video blog on some topics? I would love to hear more about your research and reporting without interruptions from rude people like Jon Snow who hasn't a clue? Peace be with you and God bless! Signed Another Practicing Catholic. Patricia
Dear Joanna, well done for your brave interview. I actually thought you kept the head given the condescending attitude of Jon snow and msss sooo right on, i'm not giving money to any charity she would recommend. What an annoying word Jon Snow was using "fierce", wise up snow- your not as cool as your name would suggest. Stella Little
It's water under the bridge now, but I've been looking up this incident so when the smiley, 'nice Christian', woman comes to collect my Christian Aid envelope this week, I can tell her (politely) to 'bug off' and cite old Rachel Bagger's position, and why I don't support Christian Aid, especially as she gloated with good Protestant charity.
I heard somewhere that Luke Gormally didn't recommend television interviews when he was director of the Linacre Centre, and your example gave force to this eminent sense. More damage than good, I think. Bad luck!
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