Helena Dalli, the European Union's commissioner for equality, announced on Tuesday that a communication manual that encouraged the use of the phrase ''holiday period'' instead of ''Christmas period'' would be withdrawn, according to Vatican News (VN).
The retraction came after several parties, including Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican secretary of state, denounced the manual.
''Europe owes its existence and its identity to many influences, but we certainly cannot forget that one of the main influences, if not the main one, was Christianity itself,'' Parolin told VN. ''Therefore, destroying the difference and destroying the roots means precisely to destroy the person.''
The document, ''#UnionOfEquality: European Commission Guidelines for Inclusive Communication,'' also recommended that names typical to a specific religion such as ''Mary'' and ''John'' should not be used anymore.
''My initiative to draft guidelines as an internal document for communication by Commission staff in their duties was intended to achieve an important aim: to illustrate the diversity of European culture and showcase the inclusive nature of the European Commission towards all walks of life and beliefs of European citizens,'' Dalli said, as translated by Breitbart.
Dalli has also promoted the elimination of the expression ''husband and wife'' in marriage ceremonies in favor of ''I declare you spouses,'' while urging that ''father'' and ''mother'' be replaced by ''parent 1'' and ''parent 2'' on birth certificates and official documents, Famiglia Cristiana reported on Wednesday.
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