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Catholic school covers up ‘suggestive’ statue of saint giving boy a loaf of bread

A Catholic school has been forced to cover up a ‘potentially suggestive’ statue of a saint giving a boy a loaf of bread.

Blackfriars Priory school in Adelaide, Australia, has thrown a black shroud over the sculpture of St Martin de Porres just weeks after it was unveiled.

The statue depicts the saint handing a boy a stick of bread, but the positioning of the loaf led to complaints.

The statue, originally produced by a sculptor in Vietnam, will now be remodelled.

The school’s principal, Simon Cobiac, said the plans for the statue had been approved in May.

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‘But upon arrival the three-dimensional statue was deemed by the executive to be potentially suggestive,’ he said.

‘As a consequence, the statue was immediately covered and a local sculptor has been commissioned to re-design it.

‘The school apologises for any concerns and publicity generated by this matter and is taking action to substantially alter the statue.’

St Martin de Porres was known for helping the poor in Peru in the 16th century.

Locals took to an Adelaide Instagram page to complain about the statue.

One said: ‘Like who the hell designed, approved and erected it and no one thought about it?’

Another asked: ‘Was there seriously no one that looked at this before it was installed?’

However, one user commented: ‘He’s just giving the boy some bread.’