Toy Charity Rejects Donation Of Talking Jesus Action Figures

LOS ANGELES — The Marine Reserves' Toys for Tots program have turned down a talking Jesus doll.

A suburban Los Angeles company offered to donate 4,000 of the foot-tall dolls, which quote Bible verses, for distribution to needy children this holiday season. The battery-powered Jesus is one of several dolls manufactured by a division of the Valencia-based Beverly Hills Teddy Bear Co., one2believe, based on Biblical figures. But the charity balked because of the dolls' religious nature.

Toys are donated to kids based on financial need, and "We don't know anything about their background, their religious affiliations," the vice president of Marine Toys for Tots Foundation, in Quantico, Va., Bill Grein, said.

As a government entity, Marines "don't profess one religion over another," Mr. Grein said yesterday. "We can't take a chance on sending a talking Jesus doll to a Jewish family or a Muslim family."

The director of business development for both companies, Michael La Roe, said the charity's decision left him "surprised and disappointed."

"The idea was for them to be three-dimensional teaching tools for kids," Mr. La Roe said. "I believe as a church-going person, anyone can benefit from hearing the words of the Bible."

According to the company's Web site, the button-activated, bearded Jesus, dressed in hand-sewn cloth outfits and sandals, recites Scripture such as "I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again" and "Love your neighbor as yourself." It has a $20 retail value.