LGBTQ+ Dupes the Church Again

A new viral meme is making its rounds. The centerpiece of the meme is the Vatican’s mascot for the Jubilee Year, Luce. Suppose you are not familiar with this abomination.

 In that case, it is a cartoon anime figure of an androgynous figure with blue hair wearing a hooded yellow raincoat, a rainbow rosary, and muddied green boots. In its hand is a two-pronged staff, and the figure is sometimes shown together with its little friends – a two-toned puppy dog sporting a kerchief, a blue-haired baseball-clad angel wearing only a diaper, and a dove holding an olive branch.  There are other humanlike figures in this gang named Fe, Xin, and Sky.

The question any serious, mature Catholic is asking is, “Why?” Why is the Vatican, which is home to some of the world’s greatest works of art, promoting this childish and openly LGBT adjacent image as a mascot for the Jubilee Year?

When it was unveiled, Cardinal Zen of Hong Kong remarked, “Does it make sense to have a mascot for the Jubilee? Or would it not have been better to choose a Patron Saint?” Zen also added, “But isn’t the Jubilee already a great fortune in itself? It commemorates the birth of the Savior. In order for the fruits of this year of grace to be more abundant, wouldn’t it have been better to choose a heavenly Patron? 

Cardinal Zen’s comments are echoed by anyone who is physically or psychologically over the age of about twelve. They are the comments of a grown man who understands the seriousness of what the Jubilee Year stands for and the due reverence it deserves.

To further demonstrate the scandal of this whole thing, the company that owns the rights to these figures is called Tokidoki. The co-founder of Tokidoki is an Italian artist named Simone Legno, who is responsible for the artwork. In the past, Tokidoki has created “Pride” month merchandise and has also partnered with a British company called Lovehoney that produces adult sex toys. Again, the question is, “Why?” Why wasn’t this artist, his company, and his shady business connections vetted before making a deal with the Vatican?

So, it’s no wonder his artwork has become a sacrilegious meme.  All over the internet are photoshopped pictures of this ridiculous mascot. There is one of Pope Francis holding up ‘Luce’ (instead of the Eucharist) at the moment of consecration; another featuring ‘Luce’ with a Roman collar with the caption “Visionary”; and yet another of Jesus cradling ‘Luce” with the caption “Comfy.” The image has even been turned into a cryptocurrency.

John Henry Westen from LifeSite News sums it up eloquently:

“The faithful do not need cartoon mascots. We need the truth. We need reverence. We need the sacred. The Vatican must return to its true mission: saving souls, not selling out to pop culture. Until that happens, we must continue to be voices crying out in the wilderness, calling for the restoration of true Catholicism. And as we have seen so often, secular culture is downstream from the Church, and when the Church’s leadership loses it, secular culture follows – but at an accelerated pace of evil.”

I weep for the utter joke that our Church has become. Instead of our leaders inspiring people to follow the Truth of Jesus Christ, we get this absurd LGBT anime mascot that has been marketed like a commercial toy. St. Paul admonishes this behavior in Corinthians 13:11, writing, “When I was a child, I used to talk as a child, think as a child, reason as a child; when I became a man, I put aside childish things.” 

I don’t doubt that the mascot deserves to be mocked in memes, but not at the expense of offending or blaspheming our Lord and Savior.  This latest humiliation comes directly to us from weak, effeminate men either bowing to the world to make a buck or purposely trying to destroy the church from within. Either scenario is heartbreaking.

The Church is not a sports team, a secular institution, or a humanistic influencer that needs a mascot to accompany its message. She is the Body of Christ and the means by which souls are saved. That speaks for itself!