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The episode was hilarious, as are almost all the other episodes of South Park, the only difference being how secure (or not) some are about their own beliefs.

I'm Catholic, but I don't equate statue-worshipping with respect for the Virgin Mary

Even the Bible is pretty brutal with people attributing miracles to statues. For instance, Isaiah 44 calls them stupid:

18 Such stupidity and ignorance! Their eyes are closed, and they cannot see. Their minds are shut, and they cannot think.
19 The person who made the idol never stops to reflect, "Why, it's just a block of wood! I burned half of it for heat and used it to bake my bread and roast my meat. How can the rest of it be a god? Should I bow down to worship a chunk of wood?"
20 The poor, deluded fool feeds on ashes. He is trusting something that can give him no help at all. Yet he cannot bring himself to ask, "Is this thing, this idol that I'm holding in my hand, a lie?"

I doubt that the Virgin Mary or Jesus get offended when humorists poke fun at idol worshipping.