Another clash of the art world and the religious reich is going down in the East Village. The AP reports that a "Roman Catholic watchdog group is protesting a student art exhibition that includes vulgar depictions of religious symbols including a crucifix and rosary." Just how does one depict a rosary as vulgar? There are ways:The target of the protest is a series of paintings by Felipe Baeza. One of them depicts a man with......

The Equinox fitness club chain will soon be bringing a controversial ad campaign to New York City that features nuns sketching a male nude model. The ads are currently on display only in Boston, but will soon be shown in other cities, including NYC. The Boston Archdiocese feels that the ads are a slam against the Church and the Catholic faith. Keira McCaffrey of New York's Catholic League expressed less outrage than disdain. "It's......

Bill Donohue, president of the Catholic League – a group that exists to promote Bill Donohue, er, prevent “virulent anti-Catholicism” – is leading a protest against Jerry Springer: The Opera, which will be performed at Carnegie Hall on January 29th and 30th and stars Harvey Keitel as Springer. The show chronicles Jerry Springer’s adventures in hell, where he's forced to host an outrageous talk show whose guests include Adam and Eve, Mary, Jesus, and, as......

The holiday-time movie releases are starting to pile up with their usual feverish frequency. Some have Christmas themes, like the widely reviled Vince Vaughn vehicle Fred Claus that’s already roadkill on the lost highway of cinema history; others, like Ridley Scott’s American Gangster, are timed to make an impression as close to Academy Award-voting season as possible. Here are some of the biggest gorillas set to dominate New York’s screens in the next six......

Oh, Catholic League - it isn't even Halloween and you're getting ready for Christmas already! The Sun reports that the Catholic League sent a letter to Schools Chancellor Joel Klein questioning why nativity scenes cannot be displayed in schools. Christmas trees are allowed, as are menorahs and symbols for Ramadan. But the Department of Education does not allow actual images of "religious figures or deities." The DOE e-mail to the Sun read, "Our holiday policy......

This week, Phillyist saw the waters of a landmark fountain run red for a Showtime marketing stunt, the Phils pull ahead, and some serious nostalgia. They also got a chance to review an awesome tribute album, reminded folks to see the King, and appreciated their beautiful skyline. Chicagoist knows what it's like to like the Cubs. But naming your kid Wrigley Fields? At least they can breathe a little easier now that Grossman's out and......

Mayor Bloomberg, Schools Chancellor Klein, City Council Speaker Quinn, and other city and school officials celebrated the first day of school yesterday with an appearance at P.S. 53 in the Bronx. P.S. 53 was selected because it will be receiving almost a half million dollars more in funding, due to Bloomberg's "fair student funding reforms." The Mayor happily said, "We are becoming the poster child for what you should do with a school system that's......

Aha! The Sun has some feedback from a number of organizations about the Manhattan Mini Storage billboard that proclaims "Your closet space is shrinking as fast as her right to choose" with a big hanger in the image. The ad, which on the storage company's West Side highway space, has been generating much controversy. Naturally, the Catholic League for Religious and Ciivl Rights is outraged: William Donohue told the Sun it was "insulting and highly......

A midtown hotel got an earful from the Catholic Church this week when the contents of a planned art exhibit became public. Artist Cosimo Cavallaro was scheduled to display his piece "My Sweet Lord" at the Roger Smith Hotel on 47th St. and Lexington Avenue before New York's archbishop objected. The sculpture was a six-foot-tall representation of a naked Jesus, made out of chocolate. The Catholic League's President, Bill Donohue, is not a fan of......

A six-foot tall chocolate sculpture of Jesus which will be displayed at a Midtown hotel next week is stirring up controversy. Catholics are calling Cosimo Cavallaro's "My Sweet Lord" an "all-out war on Christianity." The sculpture is supposed to be installed in a window at the Roger Smith Hotel's gallery, The Lab, on East 47th Street and Lexington Avenue. Cavallaro claims that the Easter-timing was a coincidence, and besides, this isn't his first chocolate......

Yesterday, the Department of Health handed out the new NYC Condom all over town (video, too), excitedly pointing out that NYC is the first city to brand its own condom! Woo! Health Commissioner Thomas Frieden explained the move towards a branded condom, "Branding condoms is a great way to encourage their use. You know it's good quality, and you know it's a name you can trust." Frieden was also punny, saying, "We are unveiling,......