Vatican Mourns Taylor As 'Last Diva Of Cinema'

By Francis X. Rocca
Religion News Service

VATICAN CITY (RNS) The Vatican's official newspaper eulogized actress Elizabeth Taylor as the "last remaining star in the firmament of old Hollywood," and praised her contributions on AIDS and other charitable causes.

"The curtain falls on the violet eyes of Hollywood" read the headline over Taylor's obituary in the Friday (March 25) edition of L'Osservatore Romano.

Lauding her as a "great actress who became too soon an icon of the star system," the article noted that Taylor's career, which began in childhood, was later marked by an "impressive series of health problems and accidents on the set."

Author Emilio Ranzato lamented Taylor's turbulent private life, including her eight marriages and "abuse and addictions," as well as poor artistic choices later in her career. But he wrote that Taylor managed to "redeem herself thanks to an ever more decisive commitment to charity work, often in tandem with her friend Michael Jackson."

"In recent years her great contribution to the struggle against AIDS would win her important prizes and honors, but above all a newfound energy," Ranzato wrote. That success allowed Taylor "to be stronger despite poor health, and despite the label of living legend that always weighed on her shoulders."

Comments

[cranberrysauce]

10:21 PM on 04/06/2011

This is truly nuts. A faith that calls itself "Christian"--that in fact declares itself to be THE ONLY Christian Church calls a woman who basically denied Jesus as who he says he is, the Messiah, in order to embrace another religion (Judaism) so she could marry the guy (Eddie Fisher) who she was committing adultery with. Lets see, she commited adutlery with with Mike Todd, Eddie Fisher and Richard Burton, and denied Jesus. And the Vatican now says she 'redeemed' herself by her Aids charities??! You cannot 'redeem' yourself through good works, Jesus is your redeemer, you get redeemed by HIM through accepting him.You can't enter heaven and denying Jesus, according to the Bible. Does the Catholic headquaters (or any of it for that matter) have a clue what the Bible says on these matters? Evidently not. Theyre as star struck as unbelievers

[New Yorker]

11:21 AM on 03/27/2011

As Saint Peter said in The Acts of The Apostles, " In Truth I see that all are acceptable to God who Fear Him, and act uprightly." Never be stupid enough to underestimate The Wisdom, Power, Goodness and Mercy of Almighty God. God's grace transformed Mz. Taylor into the new person she became, that the Vatican very rightly praises and mourns.

[Hysterian68]

11:56 PM on 03/27/2011

The Vatican was notorious for attacking Ms. Taylor for her collection of husbands and rarely ever credited her collection of poor souls dying of AIDS and who happened to be gay. Still, hypocrisy pours forth from the Beast of Babylon.

[Hysterian68]

12:27 AM on 03/28/2011

God's grace transforme­d Mz. Taylor into the new person she became, that the Vatican very rightly praises and mourns.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Now we await that same grace for the child seducers and lying prelates trying to protect them operating out of that same Vatican.

[pinkibus]

01:33 AM on 03/27/2011

And here I thought she was Jewish and so not one who will get to heaven.

[yehyehgrace]

07:15 PM on 03/26/2011

Lauren Bacall doesn't count????

[coblstone]

02:12 AM on 03/27/2011

thankyou

[Plainthinker]

06:21 PM on 03/25/2011

There must be no limit to how many divorces one can have, as long as you're not seeking Catholic communion. Or maybe no limit only applies to cinema divas.

[Forester]

06:35 PM on 03/25/2011

Just so you know, Taylor had converted to Judaism when she married Eddie Fischer, and she was very publicly cheating on him with Richard Burton during the filming of Cleopatra. (Liz had stolen Eddie from his wife Debbie Fischer earlier). Burton was married, and the Vatican (and press) was more incensed by her "home wrecking" than her own personal faith. Hope that helps.

[Hysterian68]

12:28 AM on 03/28/2011

Have no fear, Ms. Taylor's marriages were all perfectly legal. As for Catholic communion, that is perhaps the farthest thing she ever had in mind.

[Forester]

06:12 PM on 03/25/2011

I guess the Vatican has forgotten their public condemnation of Liz during the filming of Cleopatra. There were d eath threats and the police had to be used to control all the extras who were worked up by their cath olic priests. This was all because of her public marital infidelity with married costar Richard Burton.

[John Ramsey001]

06:34 PM on 03/25/2011

Like I said: Liberals have no morals and if it feels go do it.

[Forester]

06:40 PM on 03/25/2011

Taylor was married to conservative repub senator from VA. She also played a direct role in saving thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of people dying from AIDS. But you would probably consider that a bad thing.

[DonJM]

12:57 AM on 03/26/2011

Yeah, that's what I think every time I hear Newt Gingrich telling everyone else how to live their lives.

[Hysterian68]

12:00 AM on 03/28/2011

Yes, the same Catholic priests in Rome who today are notorious for operating underground cat houses for gay, male prostitutes. The hypocrisy oozing from the Church of Rome has a stench Heaven wouldn't be able to bear.

[LMPE]

04:45 PM on 03/25/2011

The Vatican tries to stay relevant.

[ThinkCreeps]

05:44 PM on 03/26/2011

Looks like they've made it to the 1950's.

[Hysterian68]

12:05 AM on 03/28/2011

The Vatican tries to stay relevant.
---------------------------------------------------------
In that effort, it has been an abysmal failure for 1700 years. Nice floor shows, pretty buildings, but all covering rot and decay.

[GeorgieMark]

02:33 PM on 03/25/2011

Newsweek run a special on Elizabeth Taylor and her turbulent(or tumultuous, take your pick) life, there in a corner somewhere after her 6th divorce was a Vatican statement criticising her for being a quote "vagrant wife"!

How times have changed!

[Hysterian68]

12:02 AM on 03/28/2011

Miss Taylor will have a following long after Benny16 and his Court of Dunces have wrecked their ship upon the shoals. Taylor rises, as Benny sinks. A fitting end to a boatload of hypocrites and child seducers.

[GeorgieMark]

02:52 PM on 03/28/2011

I wouldn't draw any parallels between Liz Taylor and Benny 16 (I loved it the moment I saw it, Kudos sir/madame).

Whether one liked her or not, Taylor was authentic, I don't think she tried to hide her true colours and there is some merit in that. The same can't be said about an apparatus that was built on a lie and an apparatus that continues to lie while wearing a holier-than-thou mask.

[TheWM]

01:11 PM on 03/25/2011

Anybody else remember when "diva" referred only to a certain type of female opera singer? No? Just me? Okay.

[Hysterian68]

12:07 AM on 03/28/2011

Yes, Sophie Tucker was a diva too, and Texas Guignan in the 20s. The most illustrious is Mae West, of course.

[Maggie Van Ostrand]

12:45 PM on 03/28/2011

Amazing 180, considering it was the Vatican that verbally ripped her to shreds over her affair with Burton.

[dre31]

12:26 PM on 03/25/2011

She was a remarkable person. The diva of cinema she was. no one has to validate that.

[Hysterian68]

12:08 AM on 03/28/2011

and she was amazing beautiful in real life too. I saw her in a New York restaurant many years ago. Her eyes were like sparkling sapphires with skin like beeswax with raven's black hair. Perfectly gorgeous in every way.

[LintLass]

12:22 PM on 03/25/2011

They got a lot of nerve calling *anyone* a 'diva,' particularly this month. :)

[revamk]

12:11 PM on 03/25/2011

I'm sure if Liz could read this, she'd think it was hilarious! Rest in Peace, dear Liz! We loved you!

[ThinkCreeps]

08:45 AM on 03/26/2011

She can look down from heaven and console herself that no-one will remember ratzinger five minutes after his death. Futhermore, since he'll definitely be in the down elevator at the end of his life, she'll not have to meet him upstairs.

[Hysterian68]

12:10 AM on 03/28/2011

Yes we did and she will live in the hearts and minds of her fans forever. RIP Elizabeth!!

[TumTiTum]

12:04 PM on 03/25/2011

There was a time when she was loudly and publicly denounced by the Vatican.
What a life!

[happylonersarah]

12:03 PM on 03/25/2011

The Vatican praising a convert to Judaism? Shocking!
Praising her on her work on AIDS? Hypocritical! How about they stop demonizing condoms? Or how bout the Vatican donating some of it's millions towards a cure? Or the hungry? The poor?

[MirrorMonkey]

05:45 PM on 03/25/2011

Because everyone knows that the Catholic Church has never opened a school, or an orphanage, or a hospital, or a homeless shelter, or an AIDS hospice anywhere at any time, and all those around the world that people would name are simply figments of their imagination. There are also no nuns, or priests, or brothers, or dedicated Catholic laypeople serving the sick, the poor, the hungry, the homeless, or the abandoned anywhere in the world. On the other hand, your own dedication to corporal works of mercy is SO well known, and you have accomplished SO much for others all by yourself, right, happylonersarah?

[happylonersarah]

07:08 PM on 03/25/2011

Are there Catholics that do good works? I never said otherwise. In every religion there are. However the Vatican is a cesspool of hypocrisy. At the begining of the AIDS epidemec they condemned the disease as god's punishment to the homosexuals. They STILL ban condoms or try too. Have you ever been to the Vatican? Lol. See the money they spend on artwork, limos, buildings, statues etc. Oh and let's not forget all the millions spent on sexual scandals, victims, the movement of priests accused of child molestation. As for me? I don't need to have a title or the backing of a corrupt Vatican to do something good. I stand by my comment.

[John Ramsey001]

06:35 PM on 03/25/2011

What an IDIOTA!

[happylonersarah]

07:49 PM on 03/25/2011

Name calling huh? How very Jesus like of you.

[bholly72]

10:50 AM on 03/25/2011

Actually, she is not the last. Sophia.

[Aleks Hunter]

12:00 PM on 03/25/2011

Amen!

[LMPE]

04:44 PM on 03/25/2011

I'd also include Catherine Deneuve.

[3fingerbrown]

08:48 AM on 03/26/2011

I guess the Pope didn't watch the Oscars this year--What about Kirk Douglas, Papa?