Crucifixion is horribly violent – we must confront its reality head on

THE GUARDIAN
By Jonathon Jones

Grotesque … the Isenheim Altarpiece by Matthias Grünewald. Photograph: Heritage Images/Getty Images

Glasgow University is giving theology students what the Daily Mail calls “trigger warnings” about potentially upsetting images of the crucifixion. One reason people before modern times wanted their crucifixions gory and their churches full of images of death was that mortality and its horrors haunted their real lives. But we in wealthy peaceful countries don’t usually see death on the street. We can turn our eyes away more easily from suffering. That is why we need art’s tormenting images of the crucifixion – to make us see what we would rather ignore. [link]