Father Timothy Lipscomb, vicar of Preston, said: “I have a great deal of sympathy for people who have lost their jobs, but an image cutting a symbol of Jesus in half isn’t the best way to go about things. It is very macabre.
“The emblem of the lamb is one of peace. I think the group needs to be careful not to alienate the people they seek to represent.”
Catholic priest Father Bernard Walker, of St Wilfrid’s Church in Preston, said: “In my opinion it is totally tasteless and insulting"
With full respect to these august theologians, they are wrong, even in respect of Christian iconography.“The image of the lamb is one of the main images of Christianity, and should not be treated in this way.”
Venture into any Christian Church, and you will see pictures and sculptures of saints, and of Christ himself suffering grevious tortures and suffering, their walls are a gorefest that rivals games like 'Doom'.
| Preston's Churchmen find this image offensive to Christians |
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| Christian Image of Christ on The Cross |
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| This image of a lamb pouring its own blood into a chalice appears in the apse of St. Josef Church in Sehne-Bolzum, Germany |
At a time when some people with disabilities are so worried about government cuts that they are threatening suicide, it seems perverse that our churchmen are more concerned about a cartoon lamb, than about the suffering of real people. Time for them to get off the fence and join the campaign against the cuts being made by our government and our councils.
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2 comments:
As a Christian I think you are quite right to say there is a long tradition of blood and pain in our faith. After all the image of the Lamb of God is not so much one of peace but a reference to Jesus the Messaih who brings us peace by the shedding of his blood as sacrific on the cross, and who brings new life and real hope to all who trust in him as he too rose from the grave.
Preston Council have long misused that logo without having any understanding of its true meaning.
I fear though that the anti -cuts campaign which I support as an issue of justice and because of the impact on the poor may have trivialised the image, also without understanding its true significance
Thanks for those points Greg, as someone who has truly devoted their lives to working with the poorest and most disadvantaged people, and someone who has spoken on Preston Against Cuts rallies, I think people will listen to your opinion particularly closely.
I'm sure Preston Against Cuts have no intention of 'trivialising' the image. The cuts are deadly serious, and the campaign against them is serious. Real peoples lives are at stake, and the cuts will cause real suffering. This is what the Preston Against Cuts logo was intended to convey.
It certainly was not intended as an insult to Christ, who would be suffering alongside the poor.
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