[miss marmelstein]

The Catholic Church is a repository of the greatest art of western civ. I realize there are some people of the Protestant persuasion who feel this is sinful but most people are happy to know that the Church is a great caretaker of these works and make them available to millions of people.

The Church can walk and chew gum at the same time. Their charitable contributions are well-known.

[Resettozero]

The Church can walk and chew gum at the same time. Their charitable contributions are well-known.

Yes, from a worldly point of view, it may be a good thing to preserve these very, very valuable artifacts and works of art.

But you have yet to respond to the question of whether this is the assigned work of the Church that Jesus Christ founded or is opposition to what He said.

[Iscool]

The Catholic Church is a repository of the greatest art of western civ. I realize there are some people of the Protestant persuasion who feel this is sinful but most people are happy to know that the Church is a great caretaker of these works and make them available to millions of people.

That's because the rest of the world knows that most of the wealth of the Vatican is thru ill gotten gains...

[metmom]

The Catholic Church is a repository of the greatest art of western civ. I realize there are some people of the Protestant persuasion who feel this is sinful but most people are happy to know that the Church is a great caretaker of these works and make them available to millions of people.

Really?

Who told you it was sinful?

Or that Protestants thought it was sinful?

[Alex Murphy]

Post 17: I realize there are some people of the Protestant persuasion who feel this is sinful but most people are happy to know that the Church is a great caretaker of these works and make them available to millions of people.

Post 38: Many of the people who post here do not believe in representation of the Christ figure - they’ve told me it is an abomination. One fellow suggested the entire Vatican be burned to the ground. Not exactly art lovers.

IMO there's art, there's icons, and then there are idols. Any of the first two can become an idol. I can understand why some FReepers (I'm not one of them) might think that any visual representation of Jesus Christ is sinful. I would imagine that, in their thinking, any art representing a religious figure being prayed to would quickly become an idol.