No Complaints About New Holiday Stamp

"When the U.S. Postal Service unveiled its new Christmas stamp Oct. 10 featuring an image of the Holy Family fleeing to Egypt, there was no uproar about religion in the public square, or in this case, rectangle," Carol Zimmermann reports on the Catholic News Service website.

Zimmerman quotes Roy Betts, a spokesman for the Postal Service, as saying, ""We didn't get a single phone call or email from anyone who took exception to the stamp. "And with the speed with which people can respond today, they would have if they wanted to."

Betts went on to say, "...one year the Postal Service inadvertently left out the image of its Eid stamp -- commemorating the Muslim festivals of Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha -- from a poster about its holiday stamps. The Postal Service heard about it, and then some, and within 24 hours, new posters were displayed that included all the holiday stamps."

The design of one of this year's holiday stamps (shown above) is a change from the portrayal of Madonna and child which have been featured on Christmas stamps for close to 50 years according to Zimmerman.

Zimmerman also points out an interesting side note... "In 1995, a Postal Service advisory committee voted to replace the traditional Madonna and Child stamp with a Victorian-era angel. This vote stirred such negative reaction that even then-President Bill Clinton got into the fray, prompting an immediate reversal."

To read the entire article, click here.