For nearly a decade, a white stone statue of Mary and baby Jesus has stood outside Ste Anne des Pins Catholic church in downtown Sudbury. At times vandals had targeted the statue, leaving the head of baby Jesus rolling on the ground nearby.
About a year ago, the head of baby Jesus was knocked off again. This time, it seemed, the vandals had taken it with them.
The statue stood headless for months as the church’s priest, Gérard Lajeunesse, asked local businesses about crafting a new head. It would have to be custom-made, he was told, and could cost as much as C$10,000 ($7,500).
It was around then that he received a knock on his door from a local artist.
[...]
[Heather Wise]had learned how to sculpt at a local college, but had never worked with stone. Still, she felt compelled to help.
[...]
Wise spent hours crafting the bright orange clay head. “To do a statue of baby Jesus for a church is like an honour of my entire art career,” she said, explaining that she would aim to sculpt a permanent head out of stone by next year.
[...]
The head sparked bemusement on social media, with some pointing out the striking resemblance between baby Jesus and Maggie Simpson.
[...]
[Father Lejeunesse] stressed that the new head – whose features are rapidly eroding in the rain – is just temporary. “It’s a first try. It’s a first go. And hopefully what is done at the end will please everyone,” he said. “She did this out of the goodness of her heart.”
[...]
“No wonder Mary has her eyes closed,” wrote one commenter on the CBC website, while another pointed out: “Since nobody knows what Jesus looked like, what difference does it make?”
Guardian
No comments:
Post a Comment