To mark the 15th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, Catholic sculptor Timothy Schmalz, famous for his “Homeless Jesus” sculpture, recently unveiled a new provocative sculpture that depicts Jesus Christ embracing a terrorist.
Called “Love Your Enemies,” the sculpture depicts Christ somberly embracing a person with a hood and carrying a rifle. “Love Your Enemies” is a reference to Christ’s teaching in the Sermon on the Mount in which he says “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you…” (Matthew 5.43ff)
“‘Love Your Enemy’ was one of the most difficult sculptures and visual challenges I have ever created,” Schmalz said about his work. “I also believe, of the two works, it is probably the one that would anger the terrorists the most.”
He also unveiled another new sculpture called “Thou Shalt Not Kill,” which depicts Christ weeping over the dead body of an individual in a sweatshirt with bullet holes in his back, an apparent reference to recent controversial police shootings of African-American men.
“To see the Son of Man weeping over the dead body in ‘Thou Shalt Not Kill,’” Schmalz explained, “shows us the pain and the heartache Christ feels every time we take a life.”
You can learn more about Schmalz’s work on his website.
What do you think of the sculptures? Let us know in the comments!
[See also: The “Ground Zero Bible” Miracle? What a 9/11 Fireman Found Burned into Steel]
[See also: The 14 Most Challenging, Radical, Do-We-Really-Have-To Teachings of Jesus]