On Tuesday, TMZ published photos of Mel Gibson with his 14 month-old daughter, Lucia, that were taken at a function at his ultra-conservative Catholic Church. Mel’s church is based on a version of Catholicism that doesn’t recognize any changes to Catholicism post 1962, which is when the Vatican decided to allow for annulments of marriages. (Here’s a link to a good overview of their beliefs) So Mel getting separated and taking up with Lucia’s mom at the time, Oksana Grigorieva, was a huge scandal in his church, where the members have more conservative beliefs than typical Catholics. Under the doctrine of his own church, Mel was committing adultery and shouldn’t have even been taking communion. (He can probably get communion now, since the relationship is over, as long as he made a full confession.)
As a result of some of the fallout over his then-relationship with Oksana, Mel made a rambling speech at the church in June of last year threatening people not to talk about him. Radar quoted a source who said that Mel “got up on his stage — the altar — and went off. He tried to intimidate the parishioners by staring at everyone with his angry eyes. Mel even threatened to shut down the church if people kept gossiping about him.” Mel didn’t shut the church down back then, but we know how Mel’s relationship with Oksana turned out, and I would bet that a lot of parishioners are driving him crazy with variations of “told you so.”
Anyway Mel’s church posted a notice that it’s no longer offering mass pending further notice. TMZ reports that it’s due to those photos of Lucia that were taken on church property.
Mel Gibson’s mega church is putting the brakes on all congregational services because of a picture that was taken on church grounds this weekend and then passed on to TMZ.
Sources connected with the church tell us … Gibson was “extremely concerned about the invasion of privacy.” One source adds, “He is not just concerned that photos of his daughter were taken at the church, he is concerned for the privacy of his parishioners.”
Members of the Holy Family Chapel in Agoura, CA received an email notice from church honchos yesterday which read, “There will be no Masses here at Holy Family Chapel until further notice.”
Our sources tell us, however, that limited services will continue to be provided. In fact, a service was conducted yesterday — the Holy Day of Obligation — for long term parishioners.
[From TMZ]
You know that Gibson was ranting and raving over those photos for hours.
Last year Mel’s church started making new parisioners fill out applications to join, in order to weed out anyone who would tattle about Mel to the tabloids. It sounds like they’re now only holding mass for people they know and are shutting out the public as much as possible. It’s too bad that tax exempt status isn’t just reserved for public churches.
Lucia is really cute and she looks so happy and well adjusted. I hope that Mel has a nanny for the girl and that he’s not the one responsible for her care when he has custody.
Photos are from 2/4/10 and 2/23/10. Credit: WENN.com
I’ll never understand people who claim to have deep convictions, religious or other wise, and then violate those convictions with a mind set of complete immunity to the consequences they’d cast at others.
I suppose if @Kitty isn’t a fan of the reporting here, then she could go elsewhere and read other stories. We are all for being b*tches, here, but we are quick to get out the slut-shank when someone attacks CB or Kaiser.
whatever
i’m in no way defending gibson… i think he has done some really terrible things and they are not excusable. however, i get the shutting down the church because someone is selling pictures of your child that you probably didn’t even know were being taken. those pictures did not HURT gibson’s public image at all– if anything he seemed to be enjoying his daughter. so i doubt this has anything to do with his public image but rather that he doesn’t want private pictures of his daughter being sold for public consumption.
again, i don’t like the man, but i don’t condemn him for doing this.
meh, he keeps popping up no matter how ovah he is I guess my prayers aren’t working
“I’ll never understand people who claim to have deep convictions, religious or other wise, and then violate those convictions with a mind set of complete immunity to the consequences they’d cast at others”
Preach it Rita!
Wasn’t there some other nutjob who, when he felt that the the dogma of the Catholic church differed from his own personal doctrine decided to start his own religion? Yeah, he was a real party animal like Mel, loved multiple partners. But got tired of having to chop his wives heads off when he got tired of them so to compete with the Pope he founded the Anglican church so he could just divorce them.
I watched the trailer for his Beaver movie OMG. Now I’m beginning to think Jodie Foster might be a little crazy too.
@lem, I completely agree. Mel is one of those celebrities who has never paraded his family for the paparazzi, and to have people in your own community profiting off selling pictures of your kids is something every parent should be mad about – no matter what else he happens to have done.
sorry but i follow Gibson here!
@december:agreed with you
I darn well do condemn Mel for shutting down a CHURCH and taking away his parishoners’ ability to worship at a church that they (unlike at “real” Catholic churches) pay for. Paparazzi have been all over that church since Melgate started. It wasn’t necessarily a parishoner who took or sold a pic. It could have been anyone, including paparazzi (who no doubt have infiltrated his private church anyway).
@kity, where would you like to get your gossip information? How about YOU go get all the information for Kaiser and CB. Then they can write “interesting” stories for you.
Or you can shut up and rad, go somewhere else, or tart your own blog. either way, leave the our completely awesome writes alone. IK’m with SamiGirl, we generally don’t take attacks on our girls lying down.
@ Rita-WORD.
This is about the only thing he’s done that I think is half-way decent-keep your kid’s photos out of the rags.
Cosign with Samigirl & Obvious 😉
i apologize for the typos all, my new key board has a think against s, e l, w and i don’t catch it when it leaves them out every time! (space bar hates me too….time to go back to th store!)
Really? If you want hard hitting journalism, then go to The Times or something. I love this site- it’s a total escape and I love,love,love the snarky cattiness (reminds me of talking to my gay friends)- hence it’s called Celebitchy!
Nothing worse that a hypocritical religious zealot.
He looks like the epitome of evil in that first pic.
@KityCt34: Sounds like @Innocent was taken off the Lohan payroll and hired by the Gibson faction
The last line in this story is enough to make my blood feel cold.
Another twat who think’s he’s God.
If Mel can go ahead and shut down “his” church, the IRS should go ahead and tax him for every dollar he spent for that “church” in order to avoid having to pay taxes.
Is KityCt34 another name for flame-baiting troll?
KityCt34 needs to find another blog to read… now
In playing Trivial Pursuit the other day, I found out that Mel Gibson was People mag’s first Sexiest Man Alive.
Shudder & Reconsider.
he really isn’t aging well, is he? all that smoking, drinking and general douchiness has taken a toll.
Shutting down the church is the best thing that could happen to everyone!! A false faith [remember this isn’t a genuine “church” it’s a cult] that hurts other people doesn’t need to be in operation.
Go Nanea!
Mad Mel. I don’t understand how any of his fellow church members could have any respect for him or possibly want to share his faith, that allows him to do whatever he wants, but not others.
Mad Mel indeed, Mayor of Mindlessness.
Anyone who is a “member” of his church are the kind of people who followed that man to Africa many years ago who allowed their daughters to have sex with the man and who ALL drank poison and killed themselves with him. Anyone remember that?
The mentally deranged follows the mentally deranged.
I don’t think it truly has anything to do with keeping “privacy”: Mel’s paranoid, he’s an obsessive, dangerous, control freak. Mel’s term of keeping “privacy” is so his abuse is hidden, “swept under the rug” covered under PR/”privacy”. “The devoted father/family man” role [his finest performance].
Oh my heavens, Lucia may be the cutest celebrity baby. What a little doll.
Grig-whatever-oria’s credibility is shot? I don’t have to listen to anything that came out of her mouth to despise Gibson. Everything I reject him for came out of HIS OWN MOUTH.
And shutting down a church to all who need it so he can throw a tantrum is despicable.
He just can’t get any lower in my book.
Another thought: if he does this to his church don’t you think it’s safe to say this is what he’s done in his home to Robyn/kids for 28 yrs?
You really feel that child is safe with him?????
My last comment got in twice; I don’t know what happened.
Cute little girl; I hope she does get through this intact. But I am sure that Oksana requested supervised visitation for Psycho Dad.
I wonder how the parishioners feel about Mel’s tirades to Oksana? By any standard, his language was filthy, threatening and misogynistic.
They are probably either blithely unaware of what Mel said, or he kicks in big bucks to the church so nobody says anything to Mr. Celebrity.
SusieQ: A religion is just a cult that got really big. But, correct me if I’m wrong, both get tax exempt status. That’s the key for Mel, I’m pretty sure.
Is you serious Kity? As if Mel Gibson hasn’t done enough on his own to shoot down his own credibility? I think starting his own sedavecantist church rates among the highest. Think about what a church is supposed to be about. Helping others through God (or whatever you want to call a higher power or common belief). Making a church “private” is pretty despicable in my opinion. The word “Catholic” means universal, as in, for all people. Not just all people who pass a credit check and a personality profile or whatever.
@kity, glad you don’t like it, seems we don’t like you. I know I don’t like your misspelled Kity name. But i sure have enjoyed your cheap entertainment, love also how you ‘hate’ the site and what we say and do here, but couldn’t keep your mouth shut… tut-tut… who’s a superficial gossip now?
The church isn’t shut down. It is just shut down to people who aren’t long term parishoners to stop people from selling pictures of his daughter to the tabloids. Long term parishoners can still attend and did two days ago for the holy day. He has always tried to keep his kids out of the limelight and probably wants the same for this one. Can’t blame him for wanting to protect his privacy and keep the kids away from the paparazzi.
KityCt34 –
You remind me of Marion in Requiem for a Dream. The character in the book. Not the movie.
While I’m sure KityCt34 has long since stopped reading the replies to her comment, I just have to add my own.
@KityCt34- “Pull your head out of the sand and get acquainted with the facts,…”
Why don’t you pull your head out of your ass and find a gossip page that caters to your closed-minded uptight preferences?
As to Mel… While I believe he’s a complete nutjob with dangerously abusive tendencies, I can’t fault him for being upset that someone took pictures without his permission. It’s pretty low to use someone’s *church* as a means to further their own ends/violate their privacy, It’s completely disrespectful.
But as someone else mentioned, shutting down the entire church and preventing (all but handpicked) faithful members from attending… THAT is disrespectful. I wish my bank account was as big as his ego.
Seems to me that KityCt34 is Mel because nobody else would say that.
“Seems to me that KityCt34 is Mel because nobody else would say that.”
No enraged breathy demand was made to be blown, so probably safe to say it’s not Mel.
“The mentally deranged follows the mentally deranged.”
Exactly
I thought they closed the church down whenever he went to confession. That’s a lot of Hail Marys!!
What a ugly man!
It caused much mirth when Mel, as a married man, would pose with his wife and family for official photos, before popping seeking the services of Phillipine prostitutes. He liked ones who couldn’t speak English so they wouldn’t go running to the Hollywood press.
Is Oksana some sort of beard in Hollywood? She had TD’s baby when he was in his fifties, she her twenties, but TD doesn’t sound like the womanising type.
my dad likes justin bieber