Church's anti-war paintings draw fire
An Episcopal church in Norwalk, Connecticut is drawing heat over their new stations of the cross invoking 9-11
by SperoÊNews
Angry e-mailers and callers to Saint Paul's Episcopal church in Norwalk, Connecticut have repeatedly invoked 9-11 in response to articles about their new stations of the cross. Conservative Christians have denounced the paintings as a political statement inappropriate for a house of worship.
"They are not a political statement, but a theological statement about suffering in the world," responded Rev. Nicholas Lang, rector of Saint Paul's. "The reality is that war, no matter why it is being fought, has got to be viewed as tragic."
The paintings were commissioned by Saint Paul's in March 2004, from New York City artist Gwyneth Leech.
"I was asked to combine the traditional stations iconography with elements of the world we live in. This brief eventually led to my vision of Christ as a prisoner of war, and as a hostage tortured by insurgents. The crowds are refugees. The people weeping at the foot of the cross are grieving Iraqis and Americans who have lost family members to bombs and to violence," Leech said.
At Saint Paul's the congregation has embraced the new stations of the cross, dedicated in Lent of 2005.
"They were startling, but they were very moving," said Ann Watkins, a longtime parishioner. However, among those who have served in the military there has been a difference of opinion about the images of soldiers carrying rifles along streets girded with barbed-wire and references to the abuse of prisoners at Abu Ghraib.
"My understanding of the teachings of Jesus is that we might want to love and forgive others rather than kill them," wrote David Gilroy in a recent letter published in the Hartford Courant, responding to an article about the paintings at St. Paul's. "Of course this is still a radical notion after 2,000 years, and many among us are not happy with the concept.
"However, to imply that an anti-war statement could be inappropriate in a place dedicated to the teachings of Jesus implies what must be a willful denial of what Jesus actually taught. Either that or maybe there was more than one Jesus."
The stations of the cross are now on permanent display at Saint Paul's, which is open to the public seven days a week.
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