Vibe.com, August 7th, 2006
The fourth stop on the European leg of Madonna’s world tour, Confessions, will commence with the pop legend hooked to a 20-foot disco cross wearing a crown of fake thorns. The concert’s venue Olympic Stadium sits about two miles in distance of the Vatican.
"To crucify yourself in the city of the pope and the martyrs is an act of open hostility," said Cardinal Ersilio Tonini on Wednesday, according to La Stampa daily. "It's a scandal created on purpose by astute merchants to attract publicity."
A recurring metaphor for music’s most controversial voices this year, the February cover of Rolling Stone magazine bore Kanye West blood-streaked in a crown of thorns--an image symbolic of the public’s delight in the MC’s persecution over his brazen tongue.
"If I was more complacent and I let things slide, my life would be easier, but you all wouldn't be as entertained," West told Rolling Stone. "My misery is your pleasure."
Yet in response to calls of excommunication by the Catholic Church, Liz Rosenberg, Madonna’s spokeswoman, told the Associated Press, "Madonna does not think Jesus would be mad at her, as his teaching of loving thy neighbor and tolerance is Madonna's message as well. The context of Madonna's performance on the crucifix is not negative nor disrespectful toward the church."
Meanwhile the material girl has plans to show her humanity in other ways by raising $3 million for programs supporting orphans in the African country of Malawi. Madonna will donate another $1 million to fund a telling documentary on the AIDS dismantled region and the orphans left in wake of the disease.
In addition to this, Madonna has joined third-world economic leader Jeffrey Sachs, assisting in healthcare, agriculture and economic programs in aid of a Malawi village. The singer also discussed plans with former President Bill Clinton to provide the town with affordable medicines.
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