Not just a grade of olive oil

All about a condom-covered Madonna — and not the one with the gappy front teeth who fancies the Kabbalah. From Reuters.

An advertisement for a statue of the Virgin Mary veiled in a condom has embarrassed the publishers of the U.S. Catholic magazine America, and prompted some heated comment on Catholic Web sites.

America, a weekly run by the Jesuit order of priests, said in a statement it was embarrassed and offended by the ad, which it said had been published unknowingly in its Dec. 5 edition.

The apparent prank by a London-based artist offered what he called the "Extra Virgin" statue for sale, "a stunning ... statue of the Virgin Mary standing atop a serpent wearing a delicate veil of latex…."

The problem came about because America's editors only saw the ad in black and white before it was published, and the condom was not as evident, according to the magazine's associate editor, Rev. James Martin….

Another issue may be Catholic priests' unfamiliarity with what condoms look like.