Catholic Groups Responding To Doritos As Eucharist

[Kathianne]

https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/4928692-whitmer-dorito-eucharist-criticism/


Catholic League blasts Whitmer for mocking Eucharistby Caroline Vakil - 10/11/24 11:10 AM ET


Unmute
Current Time
0:04
/
Duration
1:00


Captions




Fullscreen


Play


Share
The Catholic League criticized Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D) on Friday for posting a video showing her feeding a Dorito to a podcaster, with the group accusing her of mocking the Eucharist.


“Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer insulted Catholics nationwide when she intentionally ridiculed the Eucharist in a video,” Bill Donohue, president of the Catholic League, wrote in a statement.


“There is no way to understand this stunt other than as an expression of vintage anti-Catholic bigotry. Whitmer’s team, and her allies in the media, are trying to distort what she did,” he said.


Podcaster Liz Plank posted a video on her Instagram showing herself kneeling and being fed a Dorito. The camera turns to Whitmer who offers the camera a serious expression while wearing Harris-Walz campaign gear.


The song “Dilemma,” by Nelly and Kelly Rowland, plays in the background. Videos showing a similar dynamic of people being fed have been popular on TikTok.


“If he won’t, Gretchen Whitmer will,” Plank wrote in a corresponding post that connected the video to legislation known as the CHIPS Act that is meant to boost the U.S. semiconductor sector.


“Chips aren’t just delicious, the CHIPS Act is a game-changer for U.S. tech and manufacturing, boosting domestic production of semiconductors to reduce reliance on foreign suppliers! Donald Trump would put that at risk,” Plank wrote.


Donohue derided the idea that the post was meant to be in support of semiconductor legislation signed into law by President Biden.


“There are indeed many clips of people feeding each other on social media, but there is no reference to the CHIPS Act, nor are they eating chips. The typical video on Tik Tok shows one person sitting at a table, often in a restaurant, being fed—usually with a fork or spoon—by a friend,” he argued.


“None of them are kneeling. None of them are receiving food on the tongue,” he added. “What Whitmer did was to deride Holy Communion. There is no wiggle room for her to deny the obvious.”


Helene Hare, a spokeswoman for Whitmer’s Fight Like Hell PAC, responded to Catholic League’s criticism noting in a statement that “the governor’s social media is well known for infusing her communications with pop culture.”

[Kathianne]

Another take:

https://hotair.com/ed-morrissey/2024/10/11/which-fresh-hell-is-this-n3795681


Which Fresh Hell Is This?Ed Morrissey 2:00 PM | October 11, 2024



AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite
Even on vacation, some topics just demand attention. And the weirdest video by a sitting governor ever definitely qualifies.


Yesterday, I caught up with this strange promotion by Gretchen Whitmer, in which she feeds a Dorito to an apparent acolyte, to send a message to voters. David covered this yesterday, but it's just too strange to let slide without weighing in myself. As best as I can suss out, the intention behind this video was to call attention to the CHIPS Act by, er ... role-playing subservience/idolatry to a chief executive.


And that's the cleanest interpretation I can imagine about this scene:




Liz Plank, who played the role of adoring acolyte in this bizarre play, attempted to explain it:


“If he won’t, Gretchen Whitmer will,” the influencer wrote with the video on Instagram. “Chips aren’t just delicious, the CHIPS Act is a game-changer for U.S. tech and manufacturing, boosting domestic production of semiconductors to reduce reliance on foreign suppliers! Donald Trump would put that at risk.”


Forget the specific policy and just reflect on the 'argument' presented in this mini-psychodrama ... heavy on the psycho. Plank apparently wants voters to simply swallow what Whitmer is handing out on sheer adoration and loyalty. This isn't an intellectual argument for the CHIPS Act, or even for Whitmer's continued governance. This is an invitation to join a cult, brought to you by their idol, or at least one of them. Call them Gretchenologists, or perhaps Kamalites.


So much for the ongoing "republic vs democracy" debate. The Left wants to transform us into a secular theocracy. Don't ask questions, don't talk about issues -- just swallow what you're given and be grateful for it!


And say ... isn't that exactly what Team Kamala demands of voters in this cycle? Don't ask her questions, don't expect answers ... just worship The Vibe!


Remind me again which party claims to be protecting democracy and self-governance?


For me, that is the truly creepy aspect of this video, especially with Whitmer's participation in that message. Elected officials are servants, not high priests and priestesses of the Ruling Elite. Whitmer clearly sees herself as the latter rather than the former. And that is a real threat to democracy.


Of course, the other controversy of this video among its many critics was just what Plank and Whitmer used as a basis for this imagery. On Twitter, my first impression of this was that it mocked the Catholic Eucharist, where the faithful receive the body of Christ from the priest. Communion rails are relatively rare these days, but a number of Catholics still receive communion on the tongue rather than in the hand, and some of those kneel to receive it. For tens of millions of Catholics -- not to mention Lutherans and Orthodox and other ecclesial communities that have some belief in the True Presence in the Eucharist -- this looks like mockery of our faith and our practices by secular idolators.


Others rushed to defend against that interpretation by claiming -- I kid you not -- that it was only a fetish milieu from Tik-Tok and BDSM porn. Well, that's certainly a relief! The sitting governor of Michigan likes to create weird porn-influenced videos for self-promotion and promotion of Democrats and their agenda. I can't express how much better I feel as a voter and a Catholic to know that. Not to mention how much better I feel that a governor marinates in the tweeny stew of TikTok, where Beijing has its fingers firmly inserted to influence content and messaging.


Great defense, everyone!


Basically, we're left with three versions of Hell from which to choose an explanation:


Whitmer and Plank want to create a cult by which Whitmer and Kamala Harris are high priestesses and everyone else is subservient to them
Whitmer and Plank are attacking Catholics and Christians in order to promote Kamala Harris and the radical queer agenda
Whitmer and Plank are big fans of submissive porn themes and think they should apply to politics
So which fresh Hell is this?


Note: These are not mutually exclusive options, either.


Addendum: For the proper attitude toward public officials, might I recommend Psalm 146 verse 3. It's still the best advice for citizens in a true democratic republic to resist the establishment of tyrants. Of course, it helps to have faith in something other than Uncle Sugar first.

[Gunny]

People with low self esteem have to try and elevate themselves by putting others down. People with little sense of self-worth have to seek affirmation from the pack of haters they run with. All she has reaffirmed is that she is the same loser today she was yesterday.

[Kathianne]

The governor is beyond tone deaf, this is all very reminiscent of the Last Supper brouhaha at Olympics opening.

https://hotair.com/ed-morrissey/2024/10/11/whitmer-im-sorry-you-failed-to-appreciate-my-genius-catholics-n3795705


Whitmer: I'm Sorry You Failed to Appreciate My Genius, CatholicsEd Morrissey 7:45 PM | October 11, 2024



AP Photo/Erin Hooley
At least Gretchen Whitmer got one political tradition right this week: the non-apology apology.


After participating in a weird submissive-porn version of Catholic communion, or just a demonstration of how Kamalites operate, the governor of Michigan has gotten a deluge of outrage and criticism. Catholic bishops in all seven dioceses in the state issued a statement demanding an explanation and apology for Whitmer's campaign video for Kamala Harris and its "offensive impact" in mocking the Eucharist. Clearly, the bishops recognized the imagery Whitmer and Liz Plank used, since they see it every day in their own parishes:


The Bishops of Michigan have expressed their “profound disappointment and offense taken” with Governor Gretchen Whitmer for posting a video skit on social media showing the state's Governor feeding a Dorito corn chip to a kneeling podcaster in a manner that is widely being perceived as a mockery of the Holy Eucharist.


“The skit goes further than the viral online trend that inspired it, specifically imitating the posture and gestures of Catholics receiving the Holy Eucharist, in which we believe that Jesus Christ is truly present,” said Paul A. Long, President and CEO of the Michigan Catholic Conference which represents the seven dioceses of the state, October 11.


“It is not just distasteful or ‘strange;’ it is an all-too-familiar example of an elected official mocking religious persons and their practices. While dialogue on this issue with the governor’s office is appreciated, whether or not insulting Catholics and the Eucharist was the intent, it has had an offensive impact.”


Indeed, although as I wrote earlier, that's not all the video did, either. Whitmer role-played a priestess in a cult setting rather than make an argument for her preferred policy. Even without the trappings of Catholic practice, the video makes progressives and Democrats into a cult and its elected officials as idols to be worshipped, as Plank clearly demonstrated, rather than public officials to be held accountable.


Plus, if you believe the other interpretation, Whitmer and Plank used a submissive-porn motif to model what the two apparently believe is the proper relationship between elites and the masses. That's "masses" with a small-M, of course. YMMV, but all of these interpretations could apply simultaneously ... and probably do. (Read my earlier argument on all three.)


The Diocese of Lansing graciously posted Whitmer's response to the deluge of criticism, as well as the statement from the Catholic bishops of her state. Rather than issuing a mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa, Whitmer instead insists that she didn't have any ill intent in making this video with Plank. She only apologizes that her argument got misconstrued:


“Over 25 years in public service, I would never do something to denigrate someone's faith. I’ve used my platform to stand up for people’s right to hold and practice their personal religious beliefs. My team has spoken to the Michigan Catholic Conference. What was supposed to be a video about the importance of the CHIPS Act to Michigan jobs, has been construed as something it was never intended to be, and I apologize for that.”


Exactly how does placing a Dorito on Plank's tongue while she kneels before Whitmer present an argument about the importance of the CHIPS Act? How in fact is this a policy argument at all? The video looks more like a prelude to a WHIPS Act. To the extent it argues anything at all, it argues for submission to elected officials in the manner of idolatry, transforming Whitmer into some sort of goddess-queen to be obeyed, not a public servant with a duty for accountability.


We can skip the offense to my fellow Catholics. Anyone who believes in self-governance should have been offended by Whitmer's video. And the high-handedness of this bizarre scene continues with this non-apology, which seeks to transfer the onus of offense from Whitmer to her constituents. It's a classic example of an "I'm sorry you couldn't grasp my genius" statement that politicians use when they need an apology for PR purposes but resent like hell the idea that they actually erred in the slightest.


In other words, it's yet another manifestation of Whitmer's egotistic elitism. We apparently should all kneel and consume this statement in the same way that Plank received her Blessed Whitmer Dorito.


So how should Whitmer apologize? She should start by acknowledging that the entire video was offensive on several levels, and had little to say about the CHIPS Act in the first place. A simple "hoo boy did I screw up" would be a good start.


If Whitmer wants to know what a real apology looks like, perhaps she and her team could look to this hilarious cinematic example from A Fish Called Wanda. It wasn't sincere in the film either, but at least it sounded good enough.



https://youtu.be/KniUNdVZvH4?si=OsVWR0Q2Bzr0t4EU

[Gunny]

Yep. Double fail, with a lame non-apology as the cherry on top:rolleyes: