![\"\"](\"http:\/\/students.com.miami.edu\/reporting\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/Sweet-Jesus-Advertizements-photo-via-vigilantcitizen.com_.png\")
<\/a>Two Sweet Jesus advertisements (Photo courtesy of vigilantcitizen.com).<\/p><\/div>\n
The ice cream company has 19 locations in Canada.\u00a0 The company has a store at the Baltimore-Washington International Airport and is planning to open in other U.S. locations, such as the Mall of America in Minnesota, according to LifeSiteNews.<\/p>\n
In covering the controversy, the Christian Post <\/em>wrote an article condemning the ice cream chain and advocating for the cause of the petitioners.\u00a0Their article included multiple quotes from various petitions calling for a name change.<\/p>\n \u201cIf anything could qualify as \u2018hate speech,\u2019 this is it! . . . Even if this were some innocent faux-pas, it would still be unacceptable!\u00a0 However, this is anything but a mere mistake.\u00a0 Both in their promotional materials and menu selection, it is plain to see that [owners] Richmond and Todai have every intention of mocking Christ and Christianity,\u201d reads another petition on the Canadian site CitizenGo.<\/p>\n The Christian Post\u00a0<\/em>does not give equal coverage to both sides of the story. LifeSiteNews, another Christian news outlet, even launched its own petition condemning the company and demanding a name change. The end of the article includes contact information for the Sweet Jesus company founders.<\/p>\n \u201cFaithful Christians follow the Second Commandment about not taking the name of God in vain. This means that God\u2019s name should be used respectfully, as in prayer or in blessing.\u00a0Anything else is misusing his name.\u00a0Christians believe that Jesus is God and his name is holy.\u00a0 St. Paul in his letter to the Philippians put it this way: \u2018At the name of Jesus, every knee shall bow,\u2019\u201d wrote Dorothy Cummings McLean\u00a0and Pete Baklinski for LifeSiteNews.<\/p>\n \u201cI wonder what might have happened had the company been named \u2018Sweet Muhammad\u2019 and employed the same kind of plays on Islamic religious symbols as it does on Christian ones.\u00a0 Mohammed Mud Pie anyone?\u00a0 It would never have been tolerated.\u201d<\/p>\n Secular news outlets have given much more equal coverage of the story.\u00a0 The Toronto Star provided mainly facts in their article about who was opposing the ice cream chain and why.<\/p>\n \u201cThere are few things that feel more care-free than enjoying an ice cream cone, and Toronto-based chain Sweet Jesus servers up gigantic, Instagram-worthy soft serve cones \u2013 or blasphemy, depending on who you ask,\u201d wrote Jenna Moon for the Toronto Star<\/em>.<\/p>\n Along with several fiery quotes from petitioners against the company, the Toronto Star<\/em> article also included the disclaimer issued on the Sweet Jesus\u2019 company website.<\/p>\n \u201cOur name was created from the popular phrase that people use as an expression of enjoyment, surprise or disbelief.\u00a0 Our aim is not to offer commentary on anyone\u2019s religion or belief systems, our own organization is made up of amazing people that represent a wide range of cultural and religious beliefs.\u201d<\/p>\n CBC News, another Canadian news organization, wrote a short Web article that included many of the main quotes from the online petitions that the other stories have used.<\/p>\n Like the Toronto Star<\/em>, CBC gave a very factual and much more equal account of the controversy surrounding the company name and advertisements.\u00a0 CBC reached out to Richmond for a statement.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are conscious of the fact that, to some, our name can be off-putting,\u201d Richmond told CBC.\u00a0 \u201cThat fact is something we struggle with, because we sincerely do not wish to give offense or show disrespect in any way toward anyone\u2019s personal beliefs.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAfter a lot of thought, we have decided that we will not make a change. Sweet Jesus\u00a0is an honest reflection of our experiences and that of our customers and how they react when they try our product. In our experience, the majority of people understand that we\u2019re not trying to make a statement about religion.\u201d<\/p>\n The Huffington Post article about the petitions against Sweet Jesus focused on the variety of reasons the company was facing backlash.\u00a0 They included quotations from many online petitioners, religious groups and YouTubers that spoke out against the company.<\/p>\n Sweet Jesus ad poster (Photo courtesy of LifeSiteNews).<\/p><\/div>\n \u201cThe first S in the word Jesus is a lightning strike, reminiscent of the Nazi style used by the SS, and the T in \u2018SWEET\u2019 is often shown as an inverted Cross on the company\u2019s various products . . . We cannot remain silent while Our Lord is blasphemed,\u201d wrote the Christian site Return To Order.<\/p>\n The Huffington Post also mentioned some non-religious reasons the company is facing condemnation and controversy.<\/p>\n \u201cOthers took issue with one of Sweet Jesus\u2019 advertisements, because the child posing with ice cream running down her face looks similar to Jonben\u00e9t Ramsey, a child beauty pageant contestant who was murdered at age 6,\u201d wrote Emma Paling for the Huffington Post.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" By KATE JOHNSON Canadian ice cream chain \u201cSweet Jesus\u201d is being boycotted by Christians as it tries to expand across the United States. Some Christians claim the chain is blasphemous, uses the Lord\u2019s name in vain and mocks the Christian … Continue reading <\/a>