Tennis Player Agnieszka Radwanska Dropped by Catholic Youth Group Over Naked ESPN Spread

Plus, find out why Madonna and Miley Cyrus have both offended Christians in the past

By Rebecca Macatee Jul 16, 2013 6:12 PMTags
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Nudity was OK for Adam and Eve, but one Catholic youth group thinks the man upstairs would have a problem with Agnieszka Radwanska baring it all.

The 24-year-old tennis player from Poland got naked for the "Body Issue" of ESPN the Magazine. But Krucjata Mlodych (Youth Crusade), the religious organization she's campaigned for in the past, dropped her last week for what they described as "immoral behavior," per the AFP.

In 2011, Radwanska was part of the group's "I'm not ashamed of Jesus" commercial. In the clip, the Wimbledon semi-finalist stands in front of tennis balls that spell out "Jezus" (Jesus) and urges other Polish people to embrace their Christian faith.

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Radwanska isn't the first celeb to fall out of favor with the group, though. In July 2012, when Madonna performed a concert in Warsaw, Poland's capital and largest city, Krucjata Mlodych started an online campaign urging a boycott of her concert. The group claimed, per the BBC, to have more than 50,000 people who signed on to their Don't Go To See Madonna campaign.

They also had anti-Madonna Mass services and street prayer sessions and billboards promoting the pop star were defaced. The group accused Madonna of offending their faith, reportedly claiming her performances were "attacking the Catholic faith…offending Jesus Christ by burning crosses and wearing a crown of thorns."

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Even Miley Cyrus, who was raised a Southern Baptist, is no stranger to being accused of not doing right by J.C. and his Dad. "People are always looking for you to do something that is non-Christian," she told Parade in 2011. "But it's like, ‘Dude, Christians don't live in the dark.' I have to participate in life. If I wear something revealing, they go, ‘Well, that's not Christian.' And I'm like, ‘Yeah, I'm going to go to hell because I'm wearing a pair of really short white shorts.' Suddenly I'm a slut. That's so old-school."

"My faith is very important to me," she added. "But I don't necessarily define my faith by going to church every Sunday. Because now when I go to church, I feel like it's a show. There are always cameras outside. I am very spiritual in my own way. Let me make it clear, though—I am a Christian. Jesus is who saved me. He's what keeps me full and whole. But everyone is entitled to what they believe and what keeps them full. Hopefully, I can influence people and help them follow the same path I am on, but it is not my job to tell people what they are doing wrong."

Amen, sister.