Porsche has apologized for removing a famous statue of Jesus Christ from its new ad celebrating the 60th anniversary of the luxury car company’s 911 model.
In a two-and-a-half-minute ad released last week, vintage and contemporary models of Porsche’s signature car are seen driving through various seaside and urban landscapes.
In one section of the ad, 43 seconds in, a 911 speeds by the River Tagus in Lisbon, Portugal, past the location of the famous Christ the King (Cristo Rei) statue.
However, some people on social media noticed that the statue had been removed from its pedestal in the original ad.
“Hey, Porsche, why did you erase the statue of Jesus Christ from your video filmed in Lisbon?” one user asked on X, formerly Twitter.
Hey, @Porsche , why did you erase the statue of Jesus Christ from your video filmed in Lisbon? pic.twitter.com/VxcfUBrN8D
— Alex B. (@maisumcarneiro) August 5, 2023
The same user posted the original video the next day, proving that the statue was removed.
They have now made the video private on YouTube.
I’ll just leave it here.
I don’t think @elonmusk will cave to censorship on this platform. pic.twitter.com/abNLNJAler— Alex B. (@maisumcarneiro) August 6, 2023
Other users who noticed the removal questioned if Porsche had “gone woke” like other well-known franchises.
“Looks like Porsche doesn’t want Christians buying their cars,” one person wrote.
“Well, guess if Porsche can edit Jesus out of their video ‘celebrating’ 60 years — we can all edit them out of our memories. Apparently, Porsche doesn’t care about Christians,” another user commented.
“The lack of self-awareness, a company born in Europe with its Judeo-Christian roots and values, pretending to hold dear its origins while erasing one of its most important symbols. Even I, as an atheist, find this to be disconcerting,” one user tweeted.
1:57 “Never forget where you come from”
The lack of self-awareness, a company born in Europe with its Judeo-Christian roots and values, pretending to hold dear its origins while erasing one of its most important symbols.
Even I as an atheist find this to be disconcerting. pic.twitter.com/3HLTCHK0em— stemel (@stemel) August 6, 2023
In response to the criticisms, Porsche issued an apology “for any offense caused” on its YouTube, The Christian Post reported.
“A message to our community: in a previously-uploaded version of the 911 S/T launch film, a landmark was removed. This was a mistake, and we apologize for any offense caused. Your comments on this video were appreciated.”
The car company has since uploaded an updated version of the ad that includes the statue.
Christ the King, the largest statue in Portugal, dates back to the 1950s and takes inspiration from the Brazil-based landmark, Christ The Redeemer. The Christ the King statue was blessed by Portuguese Catholic bishops when it was first erected after World War II.
Photo courtesy: ©Getty Images/Gradyreese, this is a stock image.
Video courtesy: ©Porsche
Milton Quintanilla is a freelance writer and content creator. He is a contributing writer for Christian Headlines and the host of the For Your Soul Podcast, a podcast devoted to sound doctrine and biblical truth. He holds a Masters of Divinity from Alliance Theological Seminary.
