Chocolate Jesus
Just in time for Easter a gallery in NYC is displaying a sculpture by Cosimo Cavallaro which is a chocolate (and naked) representation of Jesus hanging on the cross. The sculpture is entitled, “My Sweet Lord.” Needless to say (or maybe surprisingly) there has been an ‘uproar’ among Christians, particularly by a few Catholics. You can read the MSNBC article here.
Understandably, the tradition of preserving the sacred nature of certain religious symbols is of great interest and value to much of the world, Christian or not. However, is there no room to comment upon those symbols by creating another symbol, in this case a chocolate Jesus?
This backlash seems characteristic of the conflict between religious preservationists and those who would care to open up new spaces for dialogue. It is true that late (post) modernity has deconstructed so much in-common meaning that it is often hard to find symbols in which everyone can meaningfully share.
When visual artists combine their efforts with pop culture they have an unusual power to deconstruct the meaning of shared symbols. Is there ethical artistic responsibility here? Or does the concept of ‘free speech’ mean that there is not anything beyond the commentary of the artist? Is anything too sacred?
On the other hand, can’t religious groups learn to dialogue about the meaning and messages of new symbols rather than simply write them off as offensive? Is there not a way to preserve the sacred while at the same time explore the possibilities that a chocolate Jesus, for example, may have to offer in the way of beneficial conversation?
*Read Update: Gallery show canceled because of ‘uproar,’ called “one of the worst assaults on Christian sensibilities ever.”
March 30th, 2007 at 1:31 pm
A chocolate Jesus! My first thought was - “I want to eat him!” And - shouldn’t I? He’s the bread of life. His body was broken on the cross so that I could eat of him. Chocolate sounds way yummier than bread!
March 30th, 2007 at 6:42 pm
My first thought is of the Tom Waits song with the same title. I find nothing immediately, irreversably wrong with having a “Chocolate Jesus” statue. I wonder what the artist is trying to say?
March 31st, 2007 at 11:45 am
It’s interesting that certain “christian” leaders would gladly sugar-coat Christ’s humanity - his nakedness and homeliness - yet righteously proclaim that a peculiarly mediumed, sugar-coated sculpture is “… one of the worst assaults on Christian sensibilities ever.”
The chocolate Jesus sculpture is no “David” but has been shaped by a skilled hand. I think the medium of chocolate is a rousing commentary on what Easter has largely become in western culture. The fact that so many religious people blindly defend their religious symbols tells me that those symbols have become idols.
April 3rd, 2007 at 11:15 am
Like grubedoo, my immediate response to hearing about this was that this sculpture seems to be an intelligent (or at the very least clever) statement on the state of the western celebration of Easter, and its unveiling during Holy Week was less an “assault on Christian sensibilities” than a somewhat prophetic condemnation of those who would be outraged by this, and yet have nothing to say about the millions of Americans who see Easter simply as a time for pastel colors, chocolate, marshmallow peeps, and the Easter Bunny. Which is of course far more pernicious and insidious in its widespread association with the Gospel than this statue ever could be.
Of course, Jesus and the prophets assaulted and offended the sensibilities of the religious and moral leaders of their day right and left, but that’s another story.
April 10th, 2007 at 3:19 pm
i find the “religious” response in the article interesting. maybe the artist was trying to be sacreligious. maybe not. either way, we are challanged to look, think and respond. i think this generates an amazing discussion. actually it creates many discussions. my thoughts recently have been on “religious” responses. are they what we have been taught, or what we are comfortable with, or what is truth? i personally love chocolate and sculpture…so creating an icon out of it for us to think about…wow!