Church heads angry

Press, 9 December 1976, Page 28

Church heads angry

From JOHN ROSS, London correspondent of “The Press” London A Christmas credit-card campaign in Britain reflects no credit whatever on its sponsors, according to irate Church leaders, A cartoon advertisement for Access credit cards shows three “wise men” discussing with their camels (each bearing a credit card) what they will buy for the baby Jesus. All three agree, after prompting from the camels, that credit cards make paying for Christmas much easier. Church leaders, however, are angry at what they regard as commercialisation of the worst kind. The Bishop of Kingston (the Rt Rev. Hugh Montefiore) said: "it is a free country and they can

print what they like — but it is in very poor taste to suggest that presents were bought for Jesus on the never-never.”

The Bishop of Southwark (the Rt Rev. Dr Mervyn Stockwood) described the advertising campaign as s *vulgar,” and said: “I can only hope that the Access authorities will withdraw the advertisement. It is not only offensive to Christians, but one would not expect to find it even in an unChristian Marxist State.” He said he hoped Christians who felt strongly about it would return their Access cards unless the advertisement was immediately withdrawn. The Dean of Guildford (the Very Rev. Anthony Bridge) said it was “commercialism of the most extreme and offensive kind.” The New Zealand-born

Dean of St Paul’s Cathedral (the Very Rev. Martin Sullivan) said he felt the adertisement was unimaginative, in bad taste, and that it would cause offence to many devout people, including customers of the member banks which make up the Access group. “If it had been associated in any way with St Paul’s I would have had it withdrawn,” he said. Access, however, was unrepentant. “So far,” said a spokesman, “we have had three letters objecting to the advertisement — a strong one from a fund* amentalist Christian, a milder one from a woman who was vaguely offended but thought it was a good advertisement, and a third from a man who complained that the Access cards shown each have the same name and number on them.”