<p>Bloody Mary cartoon is attack on me, says Noelle

By Julia Holmes
Noelle Beckett has been to church every Sunday of her life.
Her Catholic faith is part of who she is, the 87-year-old says. So when someone insults her faith, they insult her.
"A person's faith should be important to everybody," she says, sitting in an armchair at her Tauranga home, surrounded by religious icons.
For this reason she has blacklisted TV3 and C4 and all products advertised by them over their decision to screen a controversial episode of the cartoon South Park.
The Bloody Mary episode is scheduled to appear on C4, a sister-channel of TV3 and owned by CanWest.
It depicts a statue of the Virgin Mary bleeding, which is taken to be a miracle until the Pope declares it is simply menstruation, at which point the statue starts spurting blood.
The episode has prompted New Zealand's Catholic bishops, in a letter to parishioners, to boycott C4 and also TV3's news and the products advertised on it.
It has also prompted the New Zealand arm of Family Life International, an anti- abortion organisation, to set up a website to try to stop the programme being screened.
The uproar follows weeks of violent global protest by Muslims over the publication of cartoons featuring Muhammad, the Prophet of Islam.
CanWest-owned TV Works chief operating officer Rick Friesen has defended the decision to air the episode, citing press freedom.
However, Mrs Beckett strongly disagrees.
"Freedom of the press does not exist outside standards of good taste and decency. It is not a licence to go overboard in attacking principles of religion or culture in insulting and tasteless programmes in such an inexcusable manner."
Her first reaction to the cartoon was: "Not again."
She wonders how this can happen in a "so-called tolerant society?"
"Some individuals have a very warped sense of humour but I wonder how they would react if they or their family were the butt of such degrading and disgusting irresponsibility in the name of comedy."
Mrs Beckett says she appreciates humour that is clever but this is neither clever nor funny.
"You've got to draw a line somewhere. You can't go overboard. Mary is the mother of Jesus and our faith tells us she remained a virgin ... that's what we feel. She is not God so we don't worship her but we honour her because of what she is."
Born in Devonport, Auckland, Mrs Beckett moved to the Western Bay in 1942.
She recalls how as a young woman her friends used to wait for her to go to church on a Sunday before spending the day together.
"Most of my friends were not Catholic but they always waited ... all my friends accepted I went to mass."
The mother of seven, grandmother of 20, great-grandmother of 25 and great-great-grandmother of two plans to write to CanWest to express her displeasure.
Brendan Schollum, principal of Catholic college Aquinas, will also be drafting a letter.
"It's offensive to Catholics and Christians and it should be offensive to decent people. I would be objecting if it was something offensive about handicapped people, for example. What's next? Will there be a programme that does that?"
He intends exploring the issue with his Year 11 religious issues class.
"The whole issue with Muslims came about because of people not understanding a bigger issue. They're taking advantage I think of a group that's not going to get up in arms in the way the Muslim community has. I'm very sad and angry that they intend to screen it regardless."
Prime Minister Helen Clark has labelled the cartoon "revolting" and says the issue will add poignancy to a speech she will give next month at an "interfaith dialogue" conference in the Philippines.
"From what I've heard of it, I'd consider it quite offensive personally but, if the network proceeds, they are going to have to deal with the public debate around it. As a woman, I find it offensive."