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Does size matter? The approximately 15,000 who came to herald the new Christ the King statue in Swiebodzin, Poland seem to think that it does.
Many from this rally-round-the-statue crowd seem intent upon pointing out its vertical measurements - and seem equally intent upon factoring in the statue’s mound as part of its height. (Would the Rio folks therefore be allowed to factor in the Corcovado mountain as part of their statue’s height?)
Other contenders for the "NBA Jesus club" include: Cristo de la Concordia of Cochabamba, Bolivia (33 meters); Christ of Vung Tau, Viet Nam (32 meters); Cristo Rei of Lisbon, Portugal (28 meters); Cristo Rei of Dili, East Timor (27 meters); Cerro del Cubilete of Guanajuato, Mexico ( 23 meters); Cristo Redentore of Maratea, Italy (21.23 meters); Christ of the Ozarks, Arkansas, USA (20 meters); and Christ of Havana, Cuba (20 meters). (Are the matching heights of the American and Cuban statues an example of cosmic humor?)
Just as many believe that might makes right, many also believe that size makes wise. The Associated Press of Warsaw quotes Bishop Stefan Regmunt (one of the leaders of this monumental gathering) as proclaiming: The monument is a visible sign of faith in Christ. (Isn’t a ten-meter monument also visible? Isn’t faith the belief in things unseen?)
Not everyone is as pleased as Bishop Regmunt about the height of the Swiebodzin statue. Some have even accused Father Sylwester Zawadzki (the priest who told CathNews that building this statue was his “second vocation”) of “megalomania.” The AP reports these same accusers as saying that the statue’s “grandiosity violates Christ’s spirit of humility.”
Resources
http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Latest-News-Wires/2010/1122/Jesus-statue-world-s-largest-consecrated-in-Poland
http://www.cathnews.com/article.aspx?aeid=24002
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christ_the_King_(statue)
Copyright November 23, 2010 by Linda Van Slyke All Rights Reserved
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