CNS STORY: Catholic group ends eBay boycott after auction site changes policy

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CNS Story:

EBAY-CHANGE May-5-2005 (530 words) Follow-up. xxxn

Catholic group ends eBay boycott after auction site changes policy

By Catholic News Service

WASHINGTON (CNS) -- Catholic groups called off their boycott of eBay once they received word from the Internet auction site May 1 that the site would no longer allow consecrated hosts or other sacred objects to be sold.

"We're glad that the concerted efforts of so many individuals and groups, including the league, have led to this positive change in eBay's policies," said Phil Horgan, president of the Catholic Civil Rights League in Ottawa.

Catholics had been urged to boycott the site after it allowed an Iowa man to try to sell shortly after Pope John Paul II's death a Communion host reportedly consecrated by him. The host was later withdrawn by the seller, no money exchanged hands and the host was properly disposed of according to church law. But groups urging the boycott insisted that eBay should never have allowed the auction of an item that is sacred to Catholics.

A Web site devoted to the initial boycott, www.boycottebay.org, was updated May 3 telling Catholics the boycott was over. The updated site credited eBay for changing its policies and officially stating "that, under its existing policies, sales of the Eucharist, as well as other unspecified holy objects of Catholics and other religious faiths, will not be permitted."

The Web site also posted a letter from eBay's community watch team sent May 1 to those who protested the auction of the consecrated host.

The letter stated that the auction site strives to "respect the diverse perspectives of our sellers" and has policies in place to remove listings for illegal items as well as highly offensive listings that promote hate or intolerance.

"We understand that the listing of the Eucharist was highly upsetting to Catholic members of the eBay community and Catholics globally," the letter said. It added that once the auction item came to the attention of eBay officials they sought advice from Catholics and members of other religions about items that "might also be highly sacred and inappropriate for sale."

"As a result of this dialogue," the letter continued, "we have concluded that sales of the Eucharist and similar highly sacred items are not appropriate on eBay. We have, therefore, broadened our policies and will remove those types of listings should they appear on the site in the future."

The letter encouraged people to notify eBay of violations to the updated policy or to directly communicate with the seller of an item if they find its sale offensive.

The American Society for the Defense of Tradition, Family and Property, a Catholic organization based in Hanover, Pa., had also called for the eBay boycott and issued an alert urging its 30,000 e-mail subscribers to submit their protest to the auction site.

But after the new policy was announced the group praised eBay.

"Once again, protests have been proven effective," the Catholic group said on its Web site.

But the Catholic Civil Rights League also urged its members to make sure eBay sticks to its new policy. "Because most of the posting processes are automated, we join eBay in encouraging all users to be vigilant about enforcing it," the group said.

END

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