Catholic League Angered Over Chocolate Jesus, Bunny Rabbits Still Okay

[DeSwiss]

SOURCE: BBC News

Storm In US Over Chocolate Jesus
The sculpture is due to be exhibited in the run-up to Easter

Last Updated: Friday, 30 March 2007, 03:22 GMT 04:22 UK



A New York gallery has angered a US Catholic group with its decision to exhibit a milk chocolate sculpture of Jesus Christ. The six-foot (1.8m) sculpture, entitled "My Sweet Lord", depicts Jesus Christ naked on the cross.

Catholic League head Bill Donohue called it "one of the worst assaults on Christian sensibilities ever". The sculpture, by artist Cosimo Cavallaro, will be displayed from Monday at Manhattan's Lab Gallery.

The Catholic League, which describes itself as the nation's largest Catholic civil rights organisation, also criticised the timing of the exhibition. "The fact that they chose Holy Week shows this is calculated, and the timing is deliberate," Mr Donohue said.

He called for a boycott of the gallery and the hotel which houses it.

'Overwhelming response'

The gallery's creative director, Matt Semler, said the gallery was considering its options in the wake of angry e-mails and telephone calls.

"We're obviously surprised by the overwhelming response and offence people have taken," he said. "We are certainly in the process of trying to figure out what we're going to do next." Mr Semler said the timing of the exhibition was coincidental.

Mr Cavallaro, the Canadian-born artist, is known for using food ingredients in his art, on one occasion painting a hotel room in mozzarella cheese. He used 200 pounds (90 kg) of chocolate to make the sculpture which, unusually, depicts Jesus without a loincloth.

link: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/6509127.stm

*** - Well, apparently sculpting and then depicting a Jesus whose countenance is dark or even milk chocolate (which of course more closely resembles the original Jesus) is a REAL BIG no-no. And I can sort of understand their worry. I mean a lot of trouble was gone to over the past several centuries in order to establish the "Euroupeanized Jesus Version" in everyone's mind. And that is NOT to be messed with! I mean, when the Christians all get to heaven and the first thing they see is this "brown" Jesus, well, what is everyone going to think??? He's not the bellman there to collect your bags, cause you won't have any. Lordy, lordy this brown guy is my Savior?!?!?! It'll be nothing but confusion I tells ya!

So if any DUers get a Chocolate Jesus their Easter baskets this year, I'm expecting for them to send them to me. And I'll dispose of them properly. With dignity and respect, of course. ~DeSwiss

[MichaelHarris]

1. but

is he filled with marshmallow?

[DeSwiss]

6. Yes, marshmellow goodness!!! n/t

[charlie]

2. I was looking at that earlier today

The view from the front makes it obvious that it's a Snickers-sized hunk of chocolate that's making them flip out:

[DeSwiss]

9. Okay, so the calories are a little high....

...about double my norm. But hey, there's no trans fat!!!

YAY!!!

[Bitwit1234]

3. What give donohoe the right to tell people how they should portray Jesus

Do these type of people own Jesus, or God or Christianity. You know something, God and Jesus did not uphold the type of actions these people spew. They believed in helping thy neighbor. They believed in helping feed the needy and ministering to the sick. Republicans and this blow hard donohoe don't do any of these things.

They are sick sick sick. And all they want is to tell other people what to do.

[Sequoia]

7. and they think Muslims are crazy for their no-see-Mohamad rule.

[Why Syzygy]

19. Yeah . and that was about

their 'god', not their own 'sensibilities'. That line tells you who neo-christians consider god.

[terisan]

4. Chocolate Jesus...NO ! Plastic Jesus.....Yes! I am so confused......nt

[richabk]

5. But....but...

Don't we eat Jesus every time we take communion? I don't know about you, but I would
love a chocolate Jesus as opposed to those tasteless wafers...

[Donnachaidh]

8. why CAN'T I bite the head of Jesus?

Shut up O'Donohue -- I want to partake in the *body of Christ* :evilgrin:

[Donnachaidh]

10. I KNOW this will taste far better than any *host*

And it won't stick to the roof of my mouth. :evilgrin:

[Southsideirish]

11. This is grotesque and the kind of moronic stunt that give art and artists

a bad name. What is the point?

[annabanana]

12. This is exactly the kind of art that makes people think.

That is the point. Communion is the ingestion of Christ, right? Would it be ok if they consecrated this sculpture, broke it into little bits and served it with wine?

[Book Lover]

13. What do you think is moronic about it?

I would say to your point that this art strongly underlines the irony of celebrating the passion and resurrection of Jesus with chocolate bunnies.

[Evoman]

18. No, its boring, straight laced assholes who think think Thomas Kincaid is

the ultimate in great painters who make art and artists look bad.

[saltpoint]

22. Evoman, you must have nerves of steel to even MENTION Thoms

Kincaid without puking.

I can't stand that guy.

[eleny]

14. Is it anatomically correct?

[DeSwiss]

15. Yes, I believe it is...

...I think that's why the saturated fat is so high too. (see post #2 above). On the other hand, its got over 3,000 grams of fiber. So that's good, right?

Hmmmm.... anatomically-correct chocolate, eh? I don't know. Must be that "artistic license" we hear so much about....
:shrug:

[RC]

16. "My Sweet Lord" - - A milk chocolate sculpture of Jesus Christ.

Now that is funny!

[Evoman]

17. Goddamit...I'm trying to eat healthy, for no-gods sake.

Now if they could make some sort of Jesus out of lean chicken, broccoli, green onions and flax oil, maybe with some tumeric, curry and cayenne pepper mixed in, I could eat it. Or maybe a Whey isolate Jesus.

[varkam]

20. He has a PENIS!!!11!!

Jesus H. Tapdancing Christ theists get so bent out of shape when it comes to acknowledging basic facts about human anatomy. It's completely beyond me.

[Dorian Gray]

21. I know nothing of this except for one little headline I read earlier

I assumed that the controversy was over the idea that the chocolate sculpture trivialized Christ. But, then I saw that the sculpture was a nude (in the other thread there was a picture), which is most likely the source of the problem.

I don't really have an opinion because I've spent about all of two minutes reading the other thread this morning, and I know little about the sculpture.

[DeSwiss]

23. What I find interesting....

....concerning purported "persecution of Catholics" and "one of the worst assaults on Christian sensibilities ever," (quoted by: Bill Donohue, head of the Catholic League), are the little missives from God via Moses that say:

"Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth." (Exodus 20:4)

And then there's:

"Ye shall make you no idols nor graven image, neither rear you up a standing image, neither shall ye set up any image of stone in your land, to bow down unto it: for I am the LORD your God." (Leviticus 26:1)

And of course also:

"Lest ye corrupt yourselves, and make you a graven image, the similitude of any figure, the likeness of male or female." (Deuteronomy 4:16)

So why is the Vatican and almost every other Catholic Church damn-near filled to the rafters with idols, images and sculptures that God has said they weren't supposed to make? How is making a sculpture of Jesus from chocolate any more offensive under these Godly Laws than when it's made from marble, stone, or bronze? Its a violation of the credo, if believers they be. So according to the Bible, Jesus on a cross of made from chocolate is just as blasphemous as the ones Catholics wear around their necks (or any other Christian for that matter).

And clearly there are other passages from these ancient texts (particularly Leviticus and Deuteronomy) that are not only adhered to, but are now the subject of attempts to fashion them into secular laws. And we musn't forget that they're also making veiled threats of excommunication against elected officials, particularly here and in Italy (the rest of Europe just seems to ignore them), tasking them to cast aside their elective mandates and not "hide behind pluralism and compromise." (see: "Italian Bishops Spark Gay Vote Row" http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/europe/03/29/italy.gay.reut/index.html?eref=rss_latest)

Except that's what they were elected to do: achieve those purposes which are designed for the benefit of the common good -- for EVERYONE whether they be believers or not. And thus, once again they are violating another edict of Jesus' to "render unto Caesar that which is Caesar's." Can't these people get anything right?

So they'll lie, and/or ignore the parts of their Bible that serve their own ends and that are convenient to themselves. Then demand that everyone else view the world from their little hole in their little box. And we'd better not question it either.

AND THESE ARE THE PEOPLE WHO ARE OFFENDED??? HOW???

Offended, no. Offensive, yes. Once again, its the ol' "do as I say, not as I do" spiel. Boy am I sick and tired of these bastards and their shiat!!!!
:mad: