Friday, August 12, 2005

Lutherans and Crucifixes

The BlogRev. Paul McCain has a couple of excellent posts on Lutheran use of the crucifix here and here. I guess I've been guilty of assuming a bigger Protestant bias against crucifixes than there was. Ironically, Pr. McCain approves of them a lot more than many Catholic bishops these days.

His point is that the crucifix is more than just a liturgical issue (do we have one in the church building or not?). It's iconic in the pure sense of the word: it shapes how we think about Jesus. Sure, the Nativity and the Madonna-and-Child themes in art are popular, but once we forget that they led to the crucifix, we fall into the Cardinal Glick trap.


Now we all know how the majority and the media in this country view the Catholic church. They think of us as a passe, archaic institution. People find the Bible obtuse...even hokey. Now in an effort to disprove all that the church has appointed this year as a time of renewal...both of faith and of style. For example, the crucifix. While it has been a time honored symbol of our faith, Holy Mother Church has decided to retire this highly recognizable, yet wholly depressing image of our Lord crucified. Christ didn't come to Earth to give us the willies...He came to help us out. He was a booster! And it is with that take on our Lord in mind that we've come up with a new, more inspiring sigil. So it is with great pleasure that I present you with the first of many revamps the 'Catholicism WOW!' campaign will unveil over the next year. I give you...The Buddy Christ! Now that's not the sanctioned term we're using for the symbol, just something we've been kicking around the office, but look at it. Doesn't it...pop? Buddy Christ..."

"Greater love hath no man than this, that a man boost his buds and help them out"? Nope, doesn't scan. In fact, it gives me the willies.

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