The obliviousness of elite opinion on this issue is astonishing. Transgression aimed at Christian believers may be a walk in the park to the Times , but the paper clearly doesn't feel that way when the transgression is aimed at groups it cares more about. This is known as a double standard. The sensitivity industry is booming, but its product is not yet available to all. The Establishment needs to do a bit more thinking about civility and transgression.
Believers can expect open and honest argument about their doctrines and social teachings.
But it is not civil to attack a religion by trying to degrade its symbols. This includes political demonstrations with bearded guys dressed as nuns or silly-looking Jesus figures or bishops. And it includes all the demeaning imagery of the Virgin Mary sweeping the art world. The usual term for this kind of politics is propaganda. And nasty propaganda ought to be denounced, even when it's gussied up as art.