The Lead

Jonathan Bartley, in Ekklesia, notes that rants against Wallace and Gromit on UK Christmas stamps have begun to appear and the Archbishop of Canterbury has been asked to take action.

... the Daily Express [is] first out of the blocks carrying the expected rant against 'secular' Christmas stamps with the headline Royal Mail bans religion....

... apparently “church leaders are furious with Royal Mail bosses” because they are following their usual policy - which everyone except the tabloids and the odd parish priest seems to know - of alternating new editions of religiously themed stamps every other year.

Religiously themed stamps are of course on sale every year and always available. As the article itself makes clear, the Royal Mail have distributed tens of millions of the Madonna and Child stamps to go on sale alongside the Wallace and Gromit stamps.

According to the Daily Express:

... the Archbishop of Canterbury was being asked to take action, just two days before the stamps go on sale.

Comments (11)

Too bad my father no longer lives in London. He loves Wallace and Grommit and would snarf up these stamps in a heartbeat.

Posted by Lee Alison | November 2, 2010 3:18 PM

Asking the Archbishop of Canterbury to "take action, just two days before the stamps go on sale"... Who are they kidding?

Posted by TJ Hudson | November 2, 2010 3:33 PM

All I want to know is this: where can I get a sheet of these?

Posted by Andrew Gerns | November 2, 2010 3:48 PM

I definitely want some, particularly if they come with cheese. (Preferably the "moon kind" or at least Wensleydale)

Posted by Jeffrey L. Shy, M.D. | November 2, 2010 4:36 PM

Do they taste like cheese when you lick them?

Are there fingerprints on Wallace's jacket?

Would the same tabloids have protested if they were Halloween stamps with the WereRabbit on them?

My kids love W&G

[Editor's note: thanks for the comment. Please leave your full name next time.]

Posted by Historymysteryliturgy.wordpress.com | November 2, 2010 4:50 PM

If +Rowan says ANYTHING other than "I think these W&G stamps are really cute!" then he needs to resign.

At this stage of the game, the last thing the Church of England and the Anglican Communion need is to find yet another way to be jerks.

(Have we talked to the USPS about getting American versions of these stamps?)

Posted by Bill Moorhead | November 2, 2010 5:03 PM

Bill, in the US it would be that notorious couple, Bert and Ernie... Think of the turmoil that would raise!

I imagine the Archbishop would say something like: "I think we must, yes, really take a larger view of the whole postal system; its place in the global society. The stamps themselves are actually after all icons of the sensibilities of the larger culture, and it seems, I think I can say this, a valid reflection of the pluralism of that culture, the breadth of that culture and its embrace, to express these sensibilities in this, yes, this way.

Posted by tobias haller | November 2, 2010 5:58 PM

The Royal Mail Christmas stamps have always been a mix of secular and religious images. Usually, year and year about. There is nothing new in a non-Christian stamp at Christmas.

Posted by rosemary hannah | November 2, 2010 6:54 PM

Tobias -- Yes, I'm sure that's exactly what +Rowan would (will) say!

(I've been a Bert and Ernie fan for a very long time -- our daughters are now in their 30s, so you know how long it has been! -- but I enjoy Wallace & Gromit too!)

Rosemary -- the same is true in the US with USPS holiday stamps. Nothing to see here, folks. Please move along.

Posted by Bill Moorhead | November 2, 2010 11:48 PM

OMG! Tobias is channeling His Stuffiness. Spot on, too.

Posted by Lisa Fox | November 3, 2010 1:23 PM

Hmmm...Madonna and Child or Wallace and Gromit...decisions, decisions....

Posted by Tom Sramek, Jr. | November 3, 2010 1:28 PM

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