For a Catholic nation, apparently we don’t understand our Religion and Faith, at all. Take this campaign made by the awesome folks at Ogilvy Philippines:
Ogilvy was not allowed to use the tag “Give Us This Day” on public billboards and has been asked to cease the campaign. The reason? It was Blasphemous.
Seriously?
MLQ3 recently praised this ad campaign in his post The Right Fight, The Wrong Time. He said:
“No one has pointed out what a remarkable image, and what a remarkable campaign, this was…”
he goes on to say:
“Here in one image, all the the things that people think matters to people (including themselves):
1. Faith and Hope
2. Perseverance of the Underdog
3. The will to win of the Champion
4. Community & Solidarity
5. Material Success & its Manifestations
People were given the option of adding their personal “prayers, wishes or dedications” for Pacquiao. In one fell swoop, popular instincts were marshaled and put on display:
1. The Community Spirit
2. Patriotic Feeling (versus Nationalist Chauvinism)
3. Racial Vindication
4. Individual Empowerment
5. Religion’s Role in Everyday Life”
Now, for the life of me, I couldn’t figure out why the tag “Give us this day” could be blasphemous. The Lord’s Prayer is etched in people’s minds so strongly that it is part of everyday life. And why shouldn’t it be, in this predominantly Catholic nation?
A quick google points us to this BBC post on religion and ethics. And it talks about the Lord’s Prayer:
Rivers of ink have been spilt over the exact meaning of “give us this day our daily bread”, because the word that’s used in the Greek is a very, very strange one that you hardly find anywhere else.
It probably means daily, it probably means the stuff we need to survive, but at least come people in the early church understood it to mean the bread we want for tomorrow or even the bread of tomorrow; “give us today tomorrow’s bread”.
And they thought that might mean “give us now a taste of the bread we shall eat in the Kingdom of God”: give us a foretaste of that great banquet and celebration where the universe is drawn together by Christ in the presence of God the Father.
And so that connects for a lot of Christians with Holy Communion. Of course, because Holy Communion is, at one level, bread for today, it’s very much our daily bread – the food we need to keep going – but it’s also a foretaste of the bread of heaven, a foretaste of enjoying the presence of Jesus in heaven at his table at his banquet, as the gospels put it.
So lots of meanings there, lots of layers. But I don’t think there’s one meaning that we just have to settle down with. The simple meaning keep us going, give us what we need is all we really need to go on. And yet as soon as we start unpicking that, we ask: well, what do we really need?
We don’t “live by bread alone” says Jesus himself, “but by every word coming from God’s mouth”.
We don’t live just by having our material needs fulfilled, we need something more: and one of the things more that we need is hope, hope for tomorrow.
And so perhaps that ghost of an idea, that shadow of an idea that this is also bread for tomorrow and tomorrow’s bread, can come in somewhere.
Now if the ad campaign had Anne Curtis in a seductive pose wearing only her birthday suit with the tag, “give us this day”, then it would neither be fit for an ad campaign nor public viewing and definitely not appropriate for the tag.
Not that any warm blooded male would mind such image.
There is nothing on this ad campaign that says it was blasphemous. In fact, it shows Pacquiao— and by extension, Filipinos’ religious devotion and how prayer and God is part of just about any Filipino endeavor, even prayer in public schools. It shows that we don’t live just by having our material needs fulfilled. We need something more.
As awesome as this campaign by Ogilvy is, apparently it will not qualify for a local creative award because of the cease order. It is vexing to waste such campaign. If I had to choose an ad campaign that depict the Filipino in all his fault and all his glory, at this particular junction in time, this would be it. For a Catholic nation, we ought to be proud of this rare and intelligent ad campaign. This campaign does not fall under the category of what should be censored. To think such image blasphemous is not only un-Filipino but only shows how myopic some people’s perspective is. The Filipino is far smarter than that, why do people insist on dumbing him down?
Popularity: 1% [?]
LOL @ Anne Curtis!
Manny Pacquiao is a great sportsman who has brought great honor to the country. But if we look at at all the importance that Malacanang is giving him,we should seriously consider giving him the highest honors that a grateful people can give him…the Presidency.
Blasphemy is not illegal. You will not go to jail for it in a REPUBLIC. Blasphemy is one of those ‘made up’ transgressions by religion. Anything can be blasphemous.
AJ, :D
The EQualizer, seriously, Pacquiao is a good sportsman but he shouldn’t go into politics. he can do a lot of good outside government.
It might not be blasphemous, but “Give us this day our daily bread” might’ve struck some as crass, like a great champion asking God to give him a lot of money.
How about:Ad maiorem Dei et Patria gloriam,
“For the greater glory of God and Country”
or something like that?
Come on, if he wants to be congressman, let him. Let’s not pre-judge the guy. Those boxing experts who didnt give him a chance against de la Hoya did and now theyre eating crow.
And who issued the ban on the ad? Mother of pearl!
DJB, good point but in a democracy, imho, sometimes, people’s sensibilities need to be ruffled.
the ad only said “give us this day”. open ended but it evokes the prayer in people’s mind, of course.
Sadly. “Ad maiorem Dei et Patria gloriam” wouldn’t have made sense to 99.9% of the population. we got to get more people to read.
of course it is beside the point that the whole match between Pacquiao and de la Hoya stank of a money making scheme.
The Philippines is not a Catholic nation, silly.
nash. true. what vexed me is how myopic some people’s view is of the whole thing. why couldn’t the ad be left on its own. i’m sure i’ll irk some people. it’ll ruffle some feathers but is the ad really that bad? is it really so damaging that people could be left to decide on their own free will if it was good or bad?
Jeg: Advertising Standards Council
Jeg: Advertising Standards Council
Ah. So it wasnt the government. Thanks, cocoy.
joma, it is predominantly Catholic.
Yeah. Lots of Catholic pesos out there that Nike wants to attract.
Haha. Good point Jeg. I guess MP’s ad revenue will dwarf even his box office take. With ad firm giants like Ogilvy Mathers getting into the act, we are seeing the Big Time. I bet they could fight the “blasphemy” crap all the way to the SCoRP and win.
WTF. The phrase “Give us this day” contain four of the most common English words. No religion owns it!
Predominantly, yes.
djb, good point. :D
We worried a lot about small stuff. Others in one post are quarelling over the errors in the textbooks. Science and math books could hardly be faked, history books is written by the victors, social science books can be highly opinionated. That’s allright with me, but when when try to comb textbooks for errors in syntax and grammar, I said, who cares, where infants die of malnutrition and teenagagers have to scavenge for food, our fractured english or tagalog do not deserve much attention and waste of digital space.
A shoot-out in Paranaque occured last night and innocent civilians died, including a father and her 7 yeard old daughter.
No one has addressed the horror of this violence on the streets from any pundit in this blog, while other countries would be up in arms over such maniacal irresponsibility and total disregards over human lives.
Here is a greek story:
ATHENS, Greece – Hundreds of teenage protesters pelted police with rocks and scuffled with officers in front of Parliament Tuesday before the funeral of a boy who was shot by police.
The death of 15-year-old Alexandros Grigoropoulos on Saturday led to the worst rioting in Greece in decades, with masked youths rampaging across several cities.
i think it’s a wee bit disengenious not to see why this image would be considered blasphemous. he’s in a christ-like, messiah-like pose, and it is a prayer to god to “give us this day,” a victory, for our brown messiah. pacquiao has replaced rizal as unamuno’s “filipino christ.”
jcc, i think this entry will give an insight into why the shooutout’s so damned disturbing:
http://mikeinmanila.info/?p=504
this is their latest mayhem, and nothing’s come of the other grisly shootouts, rcbc, up, etc. and what’s worse, if the report’s an indication, if you’re a witness they might just go after you.
meanwhile people are traumatized:
http://archie-santiago-delara.blog.friendster.com/2008/12/shootout-in-paranaque-december-5-2008/
and it’s not just metro manila.
http://www.iloiloviews.com/achievement-or-major-blunder.html
but then again, the cops covered up lozada’s kidnapping, no one ever resigns over anything, taking a cue from the president… so what’s anyone to do but silently grieve for the father and his daughter?
Blasphemous? Nah!
I’ve seen film clips with PacMan saying his prayers in that kneeling position with arms outstretched.
But using a phrase in the Lords’ Prayer as that is indeed Trying Hard and in Poor Taste.
Nike Didn’t Do It. Just Didn’t Get It.
who put words to pacquiao’s mouth? and to people’s mouth? Ogilvy Philippines are a bunch of weirdo’s. There are plenty of advertising out there that is more suited for our culture. This is an issue of organizational behavior , in this case, a corporation’s behavior do not conform to the norm or standards of our society. This concept may not exist at all in the Philippines.
This ad do not belong to Philippines. It’s an ad suited for the talibans, an extremist or outside the norm. There’s always fun advertising out there. The people will only care about winning. The ad must go down. It’s not blasphemy but it’s CHEAP
can someone explain in few words why this ads is controversial (at least here)? please?
it is about sports. the ad should be more appropriate for the physical body,physical will, skills of execution, system of training and mental endurance. This ad has not addressed the real talent of Pacquaio. It is actually an insult.
what if Pacquiao has lost the game? would the ad be useful after the game? NO. this ad has the same meaning : like Juan tamad is waiting for the fruit to fall unto his face. Luck is not the foundation of Pacquaio skills. He won because he is really that good. Why “Give us this day”? It’s not an AD of confidence. It is an AD for the hopeful with no hope.
It’s Cheap :)
Who said this was blasphemous? Who complained? How? through the courts? thanks!
The real talent of Pacquiao is Speed and Power without fear. The AD should be based from his true talent. But I’m not Ogilvy , so be it.
joma, this is my take. it’s controversial because it associates the “Lord’s Prayer” with a sport in which two individuals try to blow each others brains out for money and/or adulation (mostly for money)- an act of cruelty of man against man that runs counter to the message of peace and love in the prayer. i think for pacman to say his prayers privately before a fight, it’s o.k. – it’s his own faith and whether or not God will hear his prayer, it’s nobody else’ concern. but for an enterprising advertising company to EXPLOIT the image for it’s own business purposes in a way that is offensive to the sensibilities of Christians is, to me, blasphemous.
it may not be blasphemous, or even controversial, for avowed atheists (many in this blog), but the philippines is predominantly a Christian/Catholic country to which the Lord’s Prayer is part and parcel of its spiritual life.
Ah, ok. advertising standards council… but still i wonder who complained? (and made the case it was blasphemous…) not the council itself, but some one in it? a third party?
Gabby,
If a third party is complaining, it’s a way that advertising company can improve their products and advertising strategy. Without the customers or other third parties feedback, this company will continue its behavior to use AD inappropriately.
When firms conduct unethical business ( outside the norm) , the barrier to entry of other firms to enter the market in the Advertising Industry will be easier for initial positioning of its products and strategy, thus will compete and satisfy the customers and the other third parties. The ripple effect of constant complain may be advantageous for a new set of employment.
Another opportunity for a pinoy entrepreneur.
Gabby,
what I’m saying is, let them complain and let me complain. how’s that? :)
Thanks leytenian and Bencard. I see from your explanation why its not tasteful, controversial or even blasphemous – whatever that means.
But when I look at it, the first thing that come to my mind is MP asking God to help him (on that day), I may not agree but that is his personal choice.
And MP (representing the majority of Pinoy in his quest for glory) did what is expected – to pray and Ogilvy captured that moment beautifully.
In my opinion, the Ads is a success despite being banned. Of course, other people differs and thats the beauty of creative advertising – it makes people spurt their mind.
joma, if you don’t see it as “controversial” from my explanation, what then are you thanking me for? suit yourself. you like the ad, so be it. after all, a pornographic ad can also be a “success” if it stirs prurient interests, or “beautiful” by some people’s standard.
Even if it isn’t blasphemous to some people it is insensitive considering his opponent is Catholic too.
Joma,
You mean MP wanted the AD that way or the Advertising company created the CHEAP AD for Manny?
If Manny wanted the AD that way then it should be “Give ME this Day”. Did you get the point? Why us? :)
@bencard
off topic, but just to clarify:
i am a catholic, and i was interested in what you said about prayer. portraying prayer in media can be blasphemous depending ON WHO PRAYS and FOR WHAT. is this a fair characterization?
so if there is a murderer on death row seen praying, this is blasphemous (with give me my daily bread as caption) [this is an example of WHO PRAYS]
so if a person is praying to win the lotto, this is blasphemous?
also, is it coz its a commerical? (its not a commercial in the strictest sense — i’m not clear what its selling… since its not a product, and the fight can be seen for free)
so if it were a movie/TV show, it wouldn’t be blasphemous?
thanks…
my confusion, is that i thought prayer is for everyone, and for anything.
The cese and desist order was issued for violation of Art. I, sec. 3 of the ASC Code The section provides that:
“Advertisements must respect religious beliefs, and be sensitive to the diverse religions, mores, culture, traditions, characteristics, historical background and identity of the various Filipino communities and uphold traditional Filipino family and social values.”
i agree with mlq3:
and he was just advertising a pair of shoes, Nike.
without the image, the use of the “give us this day” is not blasphemous.
it was even used as a movie title.
CBCP is just protecting its intellectual property rights to “give us this day” despite public-domain and expiration of patents.
@ Cat
ah, thanks! so this is self-regulation of content…
hey bencard and leytenian,
at the start, i have no idea of what the fuss is all about. i thank both of you for taking your time to present your take.
beyond that, i shaped my opinion, thats all.
regarding leytenian’s questions, the answer is i dont know. it would be better to ask MP; maybe he does or dont.
again thanks.
A-ha!
Self-Regulation.
The crux of the matter here.
If asked to name ONE concept that could represent as much of what is the anti-theses of Being Pinoy, self-regulation would be it!
Left to our own devices we become an ineffectual mass of chaos that produces virtually no emergent outcomes of significant consequence.
Joma,
it’s ok and thank you too.
The Ca t,
in other words, This country is the equivalent of the Taliban, so constrained that it misses the entire point. it chooses to see things negatively in just about anything. It doesn’t look at something in a positive way.
i don’t see a christ-like figure. i see an ordinary man that in his moment of trial, he calls on his God to pray, for guidance, for deliverance. isn’t that what Filipino Catholics do all the time?
yes, the ad is suppose to focus on the shoes and all that. that’s part of the picture, isn’t it? the image is a powerful one without the tag. with the tag it draws upon the consciousness as to evoke the prayer. And that’s the power of the ad campaign because it draws upon cultural norm. It is *very* Filipino.
if people stopped to think— the tag didn’t finish a phrase in the prayer. if it did, it would have been “give us this day our daily bread”.
it did not.
the Fact we are thinking of the prayer speaks of how powerful it is. “give us this day” can be interpreted as praying for victory. no more, no less. a non catholic could do the same. Warriors in countless battlefields have done no less. give us this day by itself has no religious connotation.
As i mentioned in my post— if the image was a sexy actress it could me so many different things with the same tag it could mean many different things.
by banning it— this makes people less intelligent. YOU didn’t even notice it until it was mentioned. NOT ONE of YOU thought it was blasphemous until it was mentioned.
i disagree, benign0. Left to self regulation this nation becomes a conservative fundamentalist state that refuses to see beyond its provincial attitude. it refuses to challenge itself, to think, to explore, and more importantly to fail. This Philippine society refuses to discern and let freedom of expression stand and fall on its own merit.
Joe Louis, the “Brown Bomber” and Manny Pacquiao our very own ‘Brown Bomber’ who beat up the pretty white boy.
It was like Tiger Woods finally winning the Masters in Augusta, Georgia where a years earlier he would not even have been allowed to play there.
Wow the miserable toiling Indios have a real world champion to crow about. Erap and FPJ were make believe. This guy is for real. The male macho mentality is in ecstasy.
We have a true warrior….
Ads that initiate debate obviously are meant to do just that.
Nike’s ads were always meant to stimulate the mind..
Tiger becoming a champion in a white rich mans game, Joe Louis, Jackie Robinson, Curt Flood, Bill Russel all men who broke down doors for the Black Man in America…
There is nothing wrong with the ad. After all the guys who speak for the government have always said that GMA speaks to God and God speaks to her.
She is the anointed one. Forget about blasphemy as that word for me connotes genocide. What about insanity…
Now how to you get young people to read, write and count?
In the hood guys kill for Nike’s
Cocoy, imagine if it was a Muslim prayer or something like “His Holy War has come”
BrianB, i wouldn’t mind it at all.
is it any different from this:
or this?
the critique to the new yorker’s cover with Steve jobs and caption read: “iGod”
while we’re at it… the same thought that banned that ad campaign should also ban this COMIC BOOK which has been in print for what— 10 years now and actively sold in the Philippines.
It uses language from the Book of Revelation to tell a SUPERHERO Story. should we?
here’s a preview of the book.
What kind of Country is it turning into?
It’s all about the pose.
Move his arms slightly inward and we would not have this debate.
@BrianB: I think that’s taken out of context and is establishing a strawman for cocoy’s example. If it was a muslim prayer and it says “To Allah we pray victory” then it’s on the same page as that of the ad. Blasphemous? No. Inconsiderate of other people’s culture or beliefs? No. It’s a prayer for victory, for God to be by his side, nothing more, at least in the context of the ad.
Nice point cocoy, but do you honestly believ the ad wasn’t an actual prayer for Pacquiao to win?
Hmmm, fair enough. What you say above, cocoy, seems to fit the facts a bit better. ;)
Interestingly, all this reminds me of what I wrote way back in my book:
also here:
and here:
And to think so many of our “experts” continue to quibble about political trivialities when the really fundamental issues about Pinoy society lie right under our noses.
More cha-cha topics anyone? :D
@Mikey_Liling: I’m wondering about that too. Would changing the pose change our opinion of it, based only on the caption?
At his early dawn arrival today, Manny,if I heard him right, said he’ll stick to what he’s good at, boxing,and retire as a champion. That means BECOMING THE UNDISPUTED WORLD WELTERWEIGHT KING.
Chavit, Lito Atienza and other politicos trying hard to bask in Manny’s reflected glory to further their own fading careers will just have realize that Pacquiao knows what they’re bup to.
Politics will be Manny’s undoing.