The Arts
January
New York, NY—The Cathedral of St. John the Divine, headquarters
for the Episcopal Diocese of New York, featured a South African
art exhibit by Diane Victor titled, "The Eight Mary's." A writer
named C.J. DeStefano reported that the exhibit portrayed the
Blessed Mother with "Blood cascading from between her legs, as a
wire hanger dangled from her left hand. Another scene had a dog
precariously positioned under her raised skirt. Mary then appears
as a wash woman with clothespins attached to her naked torso. One
final image is a Pieta representation where both are nude and
Jesus is lying across Mary's lap with his penis placed
intentionally and prominently as a focal point."
In response to an inquiry from the Catholic League, Episcopal
Bishop of New York Mark Sisk stated that the exhibit was not
"blasphemous or demeaning to religion."
March 1
New York, NY—"Altar Boyz" opened at the off-Broadway Dodger Stages
Theatre. In the play, a boy band comprised of Matthew, Mark, Luke,
Juan and Abraham hear confessions from members of the audience and
sing lyrics that included "it's dope/to confess your sins and like
the pope." One dance routine mimicked the crucifixion.
March 7
New York, NY—"The Controversy of Valladolid," a one-act play by
Jean Claude Carriere, opened at Public Theater in New York. The
play, based on a 1550 Spanish papal tribunal, attacked the Church
and accused it of torturing and enslaving indigenous Americans.
March 14
New York, NY—A 35-foot statue by British artist Damien Hirst was
installed in the courtyard of the Lever House building. It
depicted a naked pregnant woman with skin missing from half of her
body. Tendons, her skull and the baby in her womb were all
visible. Etched into the statue's base was the work's title, "The
Virgin Mother."
March 29
New York, NY—An exhibit at the Matthew Marks Gallery of works by
Robert Gober featured a headless Christ on the cross with a
fountain that spewed water from his nipples. The Christ-figure was
covered in diapers.
May 5
Atlanta, GA—The Susan Myers play "Wizzer Pizzer" opened at the 7
Stages Theater. It portrayed Jesus as a sexually active
homosexual.
May 7
San Diego, CA— At the production of the San Diego Men's Chorus
"Life is a Cabaret," four men dressed as nuns performed the song
"How Do You Solve a Problem Like Maria." At the conclusion of the
song a shirtless man dressed in a blonde wig walked on stage
smoking a cigarette and spat at the "nuns."
May 27
Broward County, FL—A painting depicting President Bush being
sodomized was moved after a complaint was lodged at the
"Controversy" exhibit at the Broward County Art Guild. When the
Catholic League asked the Art Guild to move a painting that showed
Pope Benedict surrounded by swastikas to a less prominent
location, the request was denied.
June 2
New York, NY—"Little Mary" premiered at the Sanford Meisner
Theatre. Written by William S. Leavengood, it told the story of a
bishop who wants to change the Roman Catholic Church before the
world runs out of food and water. The bishop favors birth control
and women priests, but an envoy from Rome is sent to get him under
control. The play also features a 15-year-old girl named
Christina, who is pregnant with septuplets. Nonetheless, the girl
claims to be a virgin and believes the babies are God's. She is
then dubbed by the media as "Little Mary."
June 3
Wyandotte, MI—An exhibit titled "Nuns with Bad Habits" featured
six paintings from Janet Allinger, all of which depicted nuns
partaking in "bad habits." The paintings were titled "This Virgin
Prefers Hers on the Rocks," "Flying Nun," "Hail Mary, Full of
Merlot," "Nun With a Bad Habit," "Our Lady of the Immaculate
Consumption" and "Can You Hear Me Now God?".
June 3
Boston, MA—Christopher Durang's play "Laughing Wild" was presented
at the Wimberly Theatre. The play attacks Catholic school
upbringing and religious icons. Durang is quoted about his use of
the Infant of Prague as a character: "I thought it would be funny
to interview this 'entity' on a talk show. And I wanted an 'out of
date' religious icon to spout the church's out-of-date, but
tenaciously held onto, beliefs about why birth control is
supposedly wrong."
October
Brooklyn, NY and Sebastopol, CA— The Sebastopol Center for the
Arts and the CH'l Gallery displayed "Communion," a chess set
sculpted by the artist M.C.CAROLYN. Billed as "dealing with
pedophilia within the Catholic Church and its victims," the set
depicts children and clergymen as game pieces. Priests are shown
with exposed penises of exaggerated sizes while screaming boys and
girls are attempting to cover their genitals with tattered
clothing. Other pieces show an abuse victim attempting suicide and
a clergyman called "The Groper," who has three pairs of hands.
October
New York, NY—The Children's Museum of Manhattan showed its bias
when it refused to stage events that honored Christian holidays.
For example, it featured an Hispanic Heritage Month in October, as
well as a Ramadan in New York City Festival; the latter event
included stories read to children about Islamic traditions. But
there were no Columbus Day events for the city's Italian Catholic
community. In November, there was an Eid in New York City Festival
for Muslims, but Christians got nothing for Thanksgiving. Jewish
and African-American holidays (Hanukkah and Kwanzaa, respectively)
were celebrated in December, but there was nothing for Christians
at Christmas save for a "Festive Fruity Fondue."
November
Poughkeepsie, NY—As part of Dutchess Community College's
celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month, the school displayed a
painting by Ecuadorian-born artist Hugo Bastidas. Though the
painting is simply a recreation of Michelangelo's famous "Pieta,"
the artist titled his work "Magdalene Mourning Her Lover." When
local Christians protested the display of the piece at a public
school, a spokeswoman for the college claimed that the title does
not necessarily imply that Mary Magdalene and Christ had sexual
relations, saying it "could just as easily refer to the platonic
and spiritual love for Christ."
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