As the Vatican unveils its strange new anime girl mascot, we must ask: Isn’t this a great sin?

One of the sentences I never thought of writing in my life: The Vatican introduced the world to the anime girl mascot.

No, don’t worry, you’re not losing it, you read that right! The Vatican has an anime girl mascot. According to the information announced yesterday Catholic News AgencyLuce is a girl who wears a yellow raincoat and has the big blue eyes and blue hair you see everywhere in anime. Its name means light in Italian, and its presence is apparently to help attract a younger audience. Archbishop Fisichella explained that the mascot was inspired by the Church’s desire to “inhabit the popular culture so beloved by our youth.” I mean, hey, anime is a really popular thing these days, so you can’t say the Church doesn’t know where to look when it comes to finding things to get kids excited about religion.

Luce was designed by Simone Legno, Italian co-founder of tokidoki, a pop culture brand heavily inspired by Japan; You’ve probably seen his art on bags, stickers, and the like. Legno didn’t just create a mascot either; Luce has a lot of friends like Fe, Xin and Sky, who each have their own colorful jackets. Luce’s only concern is that she hopes to guide young travelers towards hope and faith with her dog Santino and thus her little walking stick. Legno said he hopes “Luce represents the feelings that resonate in the hearts of younger generations.”

The whole thing is extremely strange, but who knows if it will actually work? I mean, there’s a lot of religious symbolism in anime, just look at Neon Genesis Evangelion (a series that probably isn’t the best example since all the cross-imagery is technically a reference to Ultrama rather than Christianity). Also, is this really considered a sin? Maybe anime figures etc. gluttony to promote consumerism in relation to? Either way, I’m counting down the seconds until someone says Luce is the best girl.