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Pachamama Argentina 1

Blasphemous parody of the Hail Mary in Argentina

To prepare its audience to celebrate the pagan day of Pachamama on August 1, Caritas of the Diocese of Venado Tuerto, Argentina, posted on its Facebook page the invitation above to join together to say a prayer, which is a vague but blasphemous parody of the Hail Mary, written by Marta Juarez and endorsed by that diocesan organ. Caritas coordinates and organizes the Church's charitable pastoral work and promotes social justice and global ecology.

The full posting reads:

August 1

Day of Pachamama, Mother Earth.

Prayer to Pachamama

Hail Pachamama,
Sweet source of our life
Be always venerated.

Blessed are the fruits of your womb
Our daily bread
Blessed may you be today and always.

Look with compassion
Holy Mother, at the human savagery
That, moved by greed, is destroying you.

Blessed be your clemency
Pachamama, my Land
Pillaged by madness.

You are the source of life and joy,
Pachamama, holy earth
Holy Mother, Virgin Mary.

We encourage you to say this prayer in community
to celebrate this day.

Caritas - Argentina - Diocese of Venado Tuerto


Preceding this ad, the local Caritas posted on its Facebook page the following explanation – see blue box below:

Pachamama is a symbol of fecundity, the earth and the sacredness of life. It is a myth charged with spiritual meaning that can be taken advantage of. Some religious feasts have a sacred significance and are spaces of meeting and fraternity. These are the new paths for the church and for the achievement of an integral ecology. H.F. [Holy Father] Francis.

Given both the blasphemous character of the parody and the encouragement to worship a pagan idol, strong indignation was manifested by many Catholics on the social media. This reaction caused the Diocese to excuse itself, saying that Caritas took this initiative without asking permission. In response, the latter issued a very weak apology – see red box second row below – which we reproduce and translate.

The apology, indeed, did not address the blasphemous character of the parody. It only tried to calm the indignant readers by saying Caritas did not intent to offend them. Regarding the subject matter, idolatry, it triumphantly justified itself for promoting Pachamama by quoting two excerpts from Querida Amazonia by Francis.

In other words, it was not a real apology. It was as if the authors were saying: "Sorry, out-of-date Catholics, for hurting your feelings. Tomorrow you will understand that we and Francis were right."

Pachamama Argentina 2

Pachamama Argentina 3
Photos from the Internet
On August 3 Cáritas Venado Tuerto posted on its Facebook:

“We want to apologize to those who felt offended by our post about Pachamama. Our intention was to communicate our communion with Francis who in the Apostolic Exhortation Querida Amazonia says to us:

‘It is possible to take up an indigenous symbol in some way, without necessarily labeling it as idolatry. A myth charged with spiritual meaning can be used to advantage and not always be considered a pagan error. Some religious feasts have a sacred meaning and are spaces for gathering and fraternity, albeit in need of a slow process of purification or maturation. A missionary of souls tries to discover which legitimate concerns seek an outlet in religious expressions …’ (79).

‘Such a spirituality will doubtless be centered on the one God and Lord, but at the same time capable of entering into contact with the daily needs of people who seek a dignified life…’ (80)”


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Posted August 15, 2021
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Our Lady of La Salette,
 restore the Holy Church.