It was 1965, and the sexual so-called revolution was almost on the horizon. Also, before the so-called War on Christmas, a little controversy was stirred up in year 4 of the US Post Office’s Christmas series.
It wasn’t the figure which followed the simple Christmas decorations of the past three years. It wasn’t the addition of gold to traditional red and green. It wasn’t the path of creativity: an 1840’s weather vane depicted on a 1937 painting placed on a postage stamp. No copyrights; all good.
The postmaster general announced this figure as Gabriel, but the figure on the church steeple in Massachusetts appears undeniably female. You can read about the controversy. Another website listed it as one of the top eleven post office controversies in US history.
Today, it might be all over social media. On the other hand, girls play angels in Christmas pageants all the time. Nobody seems concerned about the theology of angels, what they might be, and who gets to portray them.
Catholic Sensibility 