RELIGIOUS ART | NEWS OF WEEK
ALPHA OMEGA ARTS
By Ernest O. Britton
Plenty of people look around and say, "This is a nation without God". It's a nation where skeptics and extremists, moment by moment, try to take away our spiritual joy--our hope given to us by our God. Today, on Ascension Sunday, Christians are reminded of the day Jesus left them to learn to love together on their own. That can be a frightening thought, but this week, an artist at Newsweek reminded believers, and skeptics too that there are Saints in America still teaching us how to love, and that's why that magazine cover is the RELIGIOUS ART | NEWS OF WEEK.
In other Religious Art news from across the USA, and the world:
By Ernest O. Britton
In other Religious Art news from across the USA, and the world:
- CHRISTIANITY: Brooklyn-based Sebastian Errazuriz (b. Chile) took aim at religious extremism by handing out 100 "Christian Popsicles" in NYC. [More: Art News]
- JUDAISM: Renowned artist Avner Moriah presented Pope Benedict his illustrated version of Genesis, the first book of the Torah, at the Vatican this past Wednesday. [More: Art News]
- ISLAM: Pakistani-American artist, Lubna Agha died last Sunday in Boston. [More: Art News]
- BUDDHISM: A show of 60 contemporary pieces opened this past Friday to play off prized historical objects at the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco. [More: Art News]
- HINDUISM: Virginians prepare to open a blockbuster traveling show, "Maharaja: The Splendor of India's Great Kings" tomorrow night, Monday, May 21. [More: Art News]
- OTHER: Check-out this week's 5 Faith's Friday Artworks of the Week. [More: Art News]
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The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People passed the resolution at its board meeting in Miami "as a continuation of its historic commitment to equal protection under the law," the organization said.
"Civil marriage is a civil right and a matter of civil law. The NAACP's support for marriage equality is deeply rooted in the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution and equal protection of all people," Benjamin Todd Jealous, President and CEO of the NAACP, said in a statement.
The gay rights movement got a big boost last week when President Barack Obama said for the first time he supports gay marriage.
Let us be clear: We do not agree with the president's decision to support same-sex marriage, and we have been critical of his administration for pushing parts of the same-sex marriage agenda even prior to last week's announcement. Nonetheless, we were pleased to hear him recognize the important role that states should play in ultimately determining this issue and the need for civility and respect in public dialogue as the issue moves forward.
Twenty-nine other states already have similar bans, and North Carolina's referendum passed by a tally that was both overwhelming (61%-39%) and almost perfectly anticipated in polls. Yet the run-up to this event was front-page news nationwide.
The media frenzy created awkwardness for President Barack Obama, as Democratic Party elders and members of his own cabinet drew attention to his "evolving" views on gay marriage.