Mary KennyWe hardly need reminding that in Italy, “la Mamma”, is a powerful figure, both in reality, and in symbol, image and metaphor. If you really want to upset an Italian, you insult his mother. The wildest Sicilian bandit has always retained the uttermost respect for “la Mamma”.
There is even a civilised Italian tradition that pregnant or nursing women who commit crimes do not go to prison.
And I think when Dominico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana condemned gay parenthood through surrogacy or IVF processes, they may have been prompted by the Italian reverence for traditional motherhood.
Designers
The prestigious fashion designers, who are themselves gay, said they opposed gay adoption: “the only family is the traditional one… no chemical offspring and rented uterus… you are born to a mother and a father – or at least that’s how it should be.”
They were furiously denounced by Elton John and David Furnish, who called for a boycott on the Dolce and Gabbana designer label.
The Italian men spoke from the heart, and maybe from a respect for their own mothers. Where they erred, perhaps, was in using the words “chemical offspring”.
Words should be picked carefully here. One should never seem to condemn the child – it’s the process of surrogacy that is so wrong.
But bravo to D&G.
Laying Richard III to rest
On Sunday next, Archbishop Vincent Nichols of Westminster will conduct a service of Compline at Leicester Cathedral. This will be part of the burial rites of the last Plantagenet king of England, Richard III, who is finally being laid to rest after 530 years.
Richard died in 1485 at the Battle of Bosworth Field, and thus ended the famous Wars of the Roses. His passing opened the way for the subsequent reigns of the Tudors.
Being pre-Reformation, Richard would have been a Catholic, and the Leicester carpark where he had reposed was previously a monastery – Greyfriars – which would have been, like so many monasteries, abolished by Tudor King Henry VIII, in his grab for Church lands.
But Richard’s final committal will have an ecumenical flavour: Archbishop Nichols will hand over to the Anglican Dean of Leicester, David Monteith. The coffin will lie in state until March 26, when the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Justin Welby, will conduct the service of re-internment.
It is accepted that Shakespeare – spin-doctoring for the Tudors – blackened Richard III’s name and reputation, but Leicester itself has always stood by the Plantagenet king.
For me, not just Shakespeare, but Laurence Olivier’s portrayal has unforgettably stamped the character of the king – still available as a movie, and powerful stuff.
Countries competing for Irish emigrants
Emigration is sad but, if given the choice between Canada and Australia, which might have the greater pull?
Canada is much nearer to home – a hop across the Atlantic is nothing – whereas Australia has always suffered from what one historian called “the tyranny of distance”.
Yet Canada has a vile climate – eight months of winter – while life in Oz can often be lived between the beach and the barbecue.
Then Canada has an enchanting French culture in Quebec, which was traditionally tres Catholique.
But Australia has terrific sporting opportunities, and the Aussies, bless them, have a great sense of humour, whereas the Canuks are a bit earnest and shy.
It’s flattering that these British Commonwealth countries are competing for Irish migrants. Canada says they’re proving the more attractive because their application process is more flexible and there are fewer barriers to finding the right job.
And the positive side of modern emigration is that it doesn’t necessarily have to be forever, despite any ‘tyranny of distance’.