 |
|
|
|
|
December 2nd, 2010
06:18 PM ET
My take: Where's the outrage over Noah's Ark park?
By Stephen Prothero, Special to CNN A four-minute video that includes an eleven-second depiction of a crucifix crawling with ants has been removed from the “Hide/Seek: Difference and Desire in American Portraiture” exhibit at the National Portrait Gallery, but it is still stirring up controversy in Washington, DC. First, incoming House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Virginia) blasted the National Portrait Gallery for its “obvious attempt to offend Christians during the Christmas season,” while the incoming House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) and other Republicans threatened to scrutinize Smithsonian funding next year. Then Martin Sullivan, who directs the National Portrait Gallery, said “it was not the museum’s intention to offend” but pulled the video anyway, which prompted the liberal group, People for the American Way, to accuse Republican critics of the exhibit of censorship: “This new GOP leadership wants a government that stays out of people’s lives when it comes to health care and unemployment benefits, but they show no scruples about using government power to censor the free expression of those they disagree with.” I write not to raise First Amendment questions about elected officials transforming themselves into self-appointed curators, but to ask whether these officials are really concerned (as they claim) about the use of taxpayer funds to weigh on matters of the spirit. In a press release yesterday, Gov. Steve Beshear of Kentucky announced that his state had entered into a deal with the folks behind the Creation Museum to break ground for Ark Encounter, a $150 million theme park complete with “a full-scale model of Noah’s Ark.” Rather than speaking of his state's support of this group’s creationist agenda, Gov. Beshear spoke of employing 900 workers and drawing 1.6 million visitors a year. According to the Lexington Herald-Leader, however, the tax breaks offered by the state to Ark Encounter, as the theme park is being called, “could surpass $37 million.” The entire exhibit at the National Portrait Gallery (of which the brief clip by the late artist David Wojnarowicz was a small part), cost, by contrast, $750,000, and all of that from private donations. So my question to Representatives Boehner and Cantor, and to Glenn Beck and others who are working themselves up into a lather over this supposed attack on Christianity, is this: Are you equally outraged over millions in tax breaks to a group promoting fundamentalism? Would you be outraged at all if the clip in question concerned not an "antsy Christ" but an "antsy Buddha" or an "antsy Christopher Hitchens"? And how loud would the outrage be in Washington if Kentucky's governor was offering millions in tax incentives to a Hare Krishna theme park? Or a Disney Land of Atheism? Beyond these questions of basic fairness, I have a more practical question, this time for Belief Blog readers: Would you pay good money to see a 500-foot-long replica of Noah's Ark? I hate to sound like one of Noah's scoffers in Genesis, but the last time I was at the Holy Land Experience in Orlando, it wasn't exactly crowded. And that Bible theme park is in Orlando, Florida, not Grant County, Kentucky. The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Stephen Prothero. |
  About this blog
The CNN Belief Blog covers the faith angles of the day's biggest stories, from breaking news to politics to entertainment, fostering a global conversation about the role of religion and belief in readers' lives. It's edited by CNN's Daniel Burke with contributions from Eric Marrapodi and CNN's worldwide news gathering team.  |
|
|
|
Editor's Note: Stephen Prothero, a Boston University religion scholar and author of "God is Not One: The Eight Rival Religions that Run the World," is a regular CNN Belief Blog contributor.
Hello all, here every person is sharing these kinds of knowledge, so itis fastidious to read this website, and I used to go to see this blog daily.
This is a fantastic post. You get my vote and I will bookmark this website now.
I think other site proprietors should take religion.blogs.cnn.com as an model, very clean and excellent user friendly style and design, let alone the content. You are an expert in this topic!
Can I say what relief to find someone who really knows what theyre discussing on the net. You definitely have learned to bring a difficulty to light making it important. The diet should look at this and understand why side on the story. I cant believe youre less common simply because you definitely possess the gift.
The key we must rememeber "Kentucky". Slow and dumb.
I guess all the carnivores ate grass for many years until the populations grew big enough for them to feed on. Or maybe god waved a magic wand? Seriously, do people still belief this fairytale??????????
Beyond these questions of basic fairness, I have a more practical question, this time for Belief Blog readers: Would you pay good money to see a 500-foot-long replica of Noah's Ark?
--------
Once good thing is people could get a visual just how foolish and unrealistic the story is.
http://apostlestoday.net/
For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God! The logic of man has no direction but to keep him looped to derision in the broad way, and finally pass out from exhaustion. Then another ‘idealist’ claims another “fact” that needs to be included in the matrix of scrabble to test his ideas against the held in question concepts, and so truth is discovered. This is not true science!
amen, Apostle
the carnal mind cant perceive the things of the Spirit.
http://letstalkkingdom.blogspot.com
How many innocent children, infants, were drowned by floodwaters, or dashed against rocks and trees, screaming in vain? Wonder if that will be part of the exhibit? Ain't god great!
I'm sorta late to the party... Anyway, I was initially against the ark park, but after reading the comments... if they fill it with adorable baby animal replicas, I am so in.
To Nick: You are a true Christian. When logic and reason fail you, use hellfire and damnation to scare the hell out of everyone. Interesting since you all created hell in the first place. Bet you can't wait to watch the heathens burn.
no, wait, I have an idea....how about a reality tv show!!! They could put one pair of every animal on the 500 foot replica ark, find some people who are not afraid of being mauled to death, and ship them all out to sea!! We can watch each week in thrall as the animals slowly take control, eat everything else, and the whole thing ends with the Navy having to come in and save those people...what fun!