Savior as servant: A statement in bronze

Tom Heinen reports in today's Milwaukee Journal Sentinel on a statute commissioned for the prayer garden at the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist.

Titled "Christ the Servant," the larger-than-life bronze work will depict a kneeling Jesus washing the feet of a seated woman disciple.

How did that come about? First, the prayer garden was part of the cathedral renovation, completed five years ago. Later,

Auxiliary Bishop Richard J. Sklba came up with the idea of a statue of Jesus washing disciples' feet as the garden's centerpiece a few years ago, Last [Father Carl Last, cathedral rector] said. One reason is that the foot-washing scene comes from the Gospel written by the cathedral's namesake, St. John.

Specifically from John 13. You might have expected the statute to be of Jesus washing John's feet. Why a woman, given that the Gospel accounts don't say anything about women being present?

Last suggested making the disciple a woman

Because ...?

to tie in with the women's center.

Good thing he clarified that, so we don't think the cathedral parish shelled out a lot of dough for a clumsy propaganda piece on women's ordination.

Dave Wanner said that the woman will have a somewhat surprised expression on her face,

Maybe she's read the Gospels.

an emotion he hopes the statue will evoke in its viewers.

I would have suggested a statute of Archbishop Weakland washing the feet of Marie Rohde.