'PISS CHRIST' Coming to New York City: Catholic League's Bill Donohue to Lead Protest

By Bill Donohue
9/25/2012
Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights (www.catholicleague.org/)

Never before have Americans learned how deeply offended our elites are by anti-religious fare. If only we could believe them. When have they ever condemned anti-Christian movies or art?

Serrano said that "Piss Christ" was "meant to question the whole notion of what is acceptable and unacceptable." There is not much to question: decent people know it is unacceptable. But in elite cultural circles, anti-Christian art is not only acceptable, it is laudatory. Just don't offend Muslims.

'Piss Christ' by Andres Serrano

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NEW YORK, NY (Catholic League) - Bill Donohue, the President of the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights comments as follows:

On September 27, the Edward Tyler Nahem gallery in mid-town Manhattan will host an exhibit, "Body and Spirit: Andres Serrano 1987-2012," that features Serrano's "Piss Christ" piece; it shows a crucifix submerged in a jar of his own urine. The exhibit ends October 26.

Serrano has said that "Piss Christ" was "meant to question the whole notion of what is acceptable and unacceptable." There is not much to question: decent people know it is unacceptable.

But in elite cultural circles, anti-Christian art is not only acceptable, it is laudatory. Just don't offend Muslims. To wit: this week a disrespectful French cartoon of Muhammad was not shown on any of the network or cable TV news shows.

In 2006, when the Danish cartoons that angered Muslims appeared, not only were they not shown on the networks or cable, newspapers all across the nation refused to do so. In fact, the leading newspapers echoed the position of the New York Times: it said it was wrong to publish "gratuitous assaults on religious grounds."

Yet this same newspaper, in the same article about the Danish cartoons, reproduced the "dung on the Virgin Mary" artwork that was shown at the Brooklyn Museum of Art's "Sensation" exhibition in 1999! To show how acceptable anti-Christian art is, three days after "Sensation" opened, Christie's sponsored a "Piss Christ" print exhibit.

"Piss Christ," which dates back to the late 1980s, wouldn't matter as much to Christians in 2012 if it weren't for the supine statements offered by the Obama administration in the wake of an anti-Islamic video.

Never before have Americans learned how deeply offended our elites are by anti-religious fare. If only we could believe them. When have they ever condemned anti-Christian movies or art?

I will be there on Thursday with a contingent from the Catholic League.

- - -

The Catholic League is the nation's largest Catholic civil rights organization. Founded in 1973 by the late Father Virgil C. Blum, S.J., the Catholic League defends the right of Catholics � lay and clergy alike � to participate in American public life without defamation or discrimination. It is led by its' President, William A. Donohue, Ph.D.

Keywords: Piss Christ, Catholic League, Andres Serrano, Blaphemy, Bill Donohue, Catholic League

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1 - 10 of 53 Comments

Judy Claar
8 months ago
Rob, Agreed. Blessings...
Rob
8 months ago
vance, and even that guy God loved to the very end hoping he would repent...as he does the artist in this case.
vance
8 months ago
DLL, I remember well when this sick blasphemous photo came out in the early 90's. If I read correctly, the sick freak who did this photo died of AID's. I do remember his reason for why he did what he did. He was a militant sick homosexual activist who hated Christ and Christianity in general because he saw that Christ as anti-gay. It was a pure act of hate. He wasn't joking. You are right. It takes a sick twisted individual to embrace such a thing.
Judy Claar
8 months ago
Nicholas Scardino: I Feel your plight. Everyone at one time or another has been there by the time you reach my age. Not knowing the intimates of your burden, I offer two suggestions:
"Let Go and Let God", or, visit a priest. Of course I am assuming you have already exhausted yourself with prayer, and perhaps a close confidant. Prayerful Blessings...
aloysius teo
8 months ago
The creator of " Piss Christ" will have no second thought to put a picture of his parents in cow-dung and have it displayed because he has no respect for the feeling of others especially Christians who revere Christ as their God.
To the citizens of the country that allow such exhibition to be displayed I pray that chastisement of God will come down upon them

aloysius teo
Nicholas Scardino
8 months ago
I liked Josh's comment about forgiveness. It's important to remeber to forgive our afflictors so we aren't burdened by their evil. Also the greater potential for love makes it easier to teach and overcome. I guess my question is when do you pray to god to expell these people from your life after you can no longer except their burdens?
Judy Claar
8 months ago
DLL, Good perceptions. I especially liked: "We are saved by the Incarnate and Holy God Man". Speaking about the: "Holy Sacrifice of the Lamb". And, when one chooses to degrade, they are really degrading themselves. This bit of wisdom, is good for Everyone, no matter what the topic or subject is. One's thoughts, words, or deeds in fact, become counter productive as DLL said. One does not become closer to the Lamb...Indeed, they are farther apart! DLL's message is a good read. Take it to heart. Prayerful Blessings...
DLL
8 months ago
Judy: Christ the only pure and perfect one,wholly,Holy,acceptable to God exclusively,died for all,so all couldn't die to sin. We are saved by the Incarnate and Holy God Man. The great and Holy Sacrifice is one who lived among us as,pure and Holy,un affected by the sin of our world,so that He is referred to as the perfect and acceptable Holy Sacrificial Lamb of God. All that choose to try to live a Christlike existence are saving the world. Those that do not choose to do so do it all to their very own degradadation,as they when they choose to offend God,they are most offensive to themselves,as this action is counterproductive. Vance and Karl this artists head is in the stockade for the rest of his life and he will always be the village idiot for his so called artistic accomplishment. He is a goof that laughes at a society,that would embrace his stupid art. Sure he gets publicity for his art. The people that embrace it and overpay for obtaining it are the real pure honest jokes. The art proves just how dumb our so called western culture is and as one of sophistication is,NOT! Crude is crude and those that embrace what is crude,are simply crude themselves. This art has through the creators own admission of it,pushes indecency to to a peculiar level of an acceptablity,therefore making the piece itself a decently formidable and acceptable art form. I think the artist actually thinks this is poppycock,and I agree. The difference is that he is laughing at a silly society that accepts it,as he is one who is gladly laughing himself all the way to his bank. The sad thing is that people that won't take God seriously,embrace and take a guy like this art seriously. They sadly have chosen to worship a toad instead. That is what hell must be like. No God just a bunch of toads! A toadstool is the throne for everlasting fools.
KarlVDH
8 months ago
Vance, I called you a liar because after being told repeatedly that I'm neither an Obama supporter nor a Democrat, you insist on calling me those things... and it's a lie. And since YOU are the one engaging in false accsation and namecalling, may we all presume you're a "liberal democrat?"
Now, regarding what I was actually talking about, do you think I'm wrong based on the result? Lots of attention WAS, in fact, drawn to this atrocious "art," and to Mr. Donohue. Was something else achieved? Did we stop it? Was funding cut? no... we provided them with free advertizing, nothing more.
Tell me where I'm wrong. See if you can do it without another personal attack on me.
Josh Fisher
8 months ago
I pray that whatever words and actions you bring to the protest, above all it is that of forgiveness, for the greater the evil the greater the potential for love.

God bless

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