U.S. atheists are fighting a proposed postal stamp honoring Blessed Teresa of Calcutta, known as Mother Teresa. Thousands of Catholics are pushing back against what they see as religious discrimination. CatholicVoteAction.org issued a press release Tuesday calling for Americans to join the nearly 78,000 signatories of a petition supporting the Mother Teresa stamp.
The petition, addressed to U.S. Postmaster General Jack Potter, affirmed, “We are shocked and saddened by reports that atheist groups are now mobilizing to stop the [U.S. Postal Service] from issuing a new stamp honoring Mother Teresa.” It urged Potter to “stand by your decision to issue the stamp on Aug. 26, and to reject the bigoted attacks aimed at trashing this faith-filled nun who spent her life caring for the poor and needy of our world.”
Brian Burch, president of the action group, stated, “We want the postmaster general to know that millions of Americans support their decision to issue a new stamp honoring Mother Teresa. While we are pleased that Postmaster General Potter has defended the decision thus far,” he said, “we will continue to push back against those seeking to denigrate this faith-filled nun.”
Burch noted that the postal service policy prohibits stamps that “honor religious institutions or individuals whose principal achievements are associated with religious undertakings or beliefs.” However, he asserted that this policy should not exclude religious people who are also famous for their contributions to the world.
The action group noted that other religious figures have been honored by commemorative stamps in the past, such as John Witherspoon in 1976, Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr., in 1979 and 1999, Martin Luther in 1983, and Father Edward Flanagan in 1986.
CHICAGO, FEB. 17, 2010