Beckham nativity outrages churches PT 2

I really don't know why there's so much outrage. Back in the Renaissance and the Middle Ages rich people paid for this to be done. There are plenty of pictures in museums in which the main Biblical characters are the portraits of rich patrons. I believe Catherine d'Medici has been portrayed as the Virgin Mary; I suspect that most of the famous works of art depicting the Holy Family are portraits of rich, egotistical, non-pious individuals. It's kind of ironic when you think about it. A rather poor family traveling gives birth to a kid in a stable and for generations thereafter the scene is mimicked by wealthy people for whatever reason. Did these people who posed for such paintings think that by holding still for hours on end really compared to the work of the truly devout who did the back-breaking work of building cathedrals or were punished as heretics because they stood up for the values of Christ instead of the values of the church and the wealthy?
The artists of these paintings surely saw the irony of their paintings; no artist could amass the wealth that their patrons owned. It must have been glaringly obvious that the wealthy were trying to buy their way to heaven via flattery. I wonder if one can detect a note of sarcasm painted into these paintings if one looks at the details? I know that I would've painted something sarcastic into such a painting; perhaps a look of wisdom in the face of the infant Jesus? Such a look could be regarded as an indicator of what he was to become; or, it could just as easily be discerned as a look of being aware that the wealthy were trying to bribe their way into heaven and even a poor painter could see through the supposed piety.
Anyhow, back to the article. I think Madame Tussaud's wax museum is making an important statement. In this day and age the athletes and entertainers take center stage. Teachers, spiritual leaders, the values of integrity and virtue all take a back seat to entertainment. Why then, should people be outraged to see a reflection of what has become the main purpose of keeping holidays? Holidays in the secular world exist because they are good for the economy. The people in this year's wax nativity are people in the world's circus who bring in a lot of cash year 'round. Why not pay tribute to them? We do it the rest of the year anyways.
I also think that having Shrub and Blair as two of the three wisemen says a lot. Our politicians are misguided, greedy, and wealthy. How apropos that men who are able to convince their masses to put them into the most important offices in the country should be the wise men...if these are our countries' wise men, what is that saying about how misguided our people are? I could continue this thread, but it's kind of depressing me to think about the state of the world right now. Somehow, I long to be alone in a monastary, tracing ancient steps and contemplating what Christmas meant long ago when people worshipped gods instead of their entertainers.