London, November 13, 2024.
Popular British online retailer Debenhams (Debenhams) has suspended the sale of the sacrilegious "Gay in the Nursery" Christmas sweater due to negative reaction from Christians in the United Kingdom. The marketplace recalled the product, produced by alternative clothing brand Grindstore, after Christian leaders and advocacy groups called it "offensive" and called for a boycott, the Christian Post website reported.
The purple sweater, emblazoned with a rainbow LGBT flag [the movement is banned in Russia], was on sale at Debenhams' online store for £38.99. It also featured the slogan "Gay in the manger", which critics deemed a mockery of Christianity.
Debenhams has also reportedly removed other Christian-themed merchandise from sale, including Ah-men greetings cards and a Bad Religion print T-shirt featuring the Savior on a motorcycle.
Human rights organization Christian Concern has also spoken out against the sacrilegious sweater, calling for a complete boycott of the Grindstore brand, with Christian Concern CEO Andrea Williams saying the manufacturer's products are offensive to Christians.
"It is disgraceful that Debenhams Marketplace sold this sweater. A public apology should now follow," Christian human rights organizations wrote on social media X.
Among those who criticized Debenhams and Grindstore, demanding equal and respectful treatment of all faiths, was Pastor Ricky Doolan of Spirit Embassy Church in London.
"The big question is, if you're going to mock people's faith, why only do it to Christianity? What makes you feel that it's okay to do that to us? Unless you have gay t-shirts depicting Mohammed and Buddha, which we haven't seen yet?" the pastor wrote on social media X.
Later, rejoicing over the removal of Christian offensive merchandise from Grindstore, R. Doolan wrote:
"This is the RESULT! Grindstore removed from all the Jesus-related merchandise in their store. Well done, we are more united now than ever before!"
In turn, Debenhams responded to the Christians' outrage.
"We are aware that the product line featured in our Marketplace has raised some concerns... We are currently reviewing these products and have suspended their sale while we investigate," Debenhams said in a statement.
Norfolk County-based Grindstore, the company responsible for the sacrilegious sweater, also released a statement:
"As a small business, we are always open to feedback. We apologize - we have already removed the products in question.... We had no intention of offending anyone."
Public figures also commented on the case. For example, former Conservative MP Jacob Rees-Mogg criticized Debenhams, saying that "they wouldn't make such a mockery of Islam".
Recall that Debenhams, headquartered in London, was established back in 1778. Over time, it grew into a large a chain of department stores (more than 160 in the UK and Ireland and dozens more in other countries around the world) selling clothing, shoes, jewelry, furniture and other household goods. In 2021, Debenhams was bought by fashion brand Boohoo after closing almost all of its department stores and now operates only as an online retailer.
In 2017, bakery chain Greggs apologized for its calendar's depiction of a doughy sausage in a Christmas creche instead of the Christ Child, which also sparked outrage from Christians. Blasphemous products have also appeared for sale on other online retailers such as Amazon.
Source: https://www.christianpost.com
