Check out these Freedom of Religion images:
Kunming Patriotic Church
Image by Wootang01
The highlight of my trip so far is where I sit now, inside one of the Communist Party’s patriotic churches. This imposing brick edifice was difficult to miss from across the street whence I came; and certainly my curiosity was piqued. Inside I went.
At this time in the later afternoon, services have ended. A few elderly patrons, and some ethnic minorities still mull around the entrance, chatting with no visible signs of prayer.
There, too, are no traces of Jesus; He has disappeared; neither His Chinese name nor His Caucasian image can be found. Tinsel and banal Christmas images abound, but where is the Christ and His Spirit in the church? I’ve been ruminating on this mystery since I returned from Korea.
The front of the church is a stage on which three small trees stand; the luminous stained glass windows loom over them, shining upon rows of lacquered wooden benches. And above the fray hangs a grand chandelier more suited for a palace than a church. Yet I suppose this is palace, but for whom?
Believe
Image by Bárbara Nita
Orthodox Jewish ghetto in Brooklyn.
In addition to the cultural contrast, the kid in the middle wears an orthopaedic prosthesis. See?
I also have special affection for this shot because spot focus asigns speed and freedom of movement in function of life philosophy.
So many different life rythms and so many different limits to overcome…!
Inside the Patriotic Church
Image by Wootang01
The highlight of my trip so far is where I sit now, inside one of the Communist Party’s patriotic churches. This imposing brick edifice was difficult to miss from across the street whence I came; and certainly my curiosity was piqued. Inside I went.
At this time in the later afternoon, services have ended. A few elderly patrons, and some ethnic minorities still mull around the entrance, chatting with no visible signs of prayer.
There, too, are no traces of Jesus; He has disappeared; neither His Chinese name nor His Caucasian image can be found. Tinsel and banal Christmas images abound, but where is the Christ and His Spirit in the church? I’ve been ruminating on this mystery since I returned from Korea.
The front of the church is a stage on which three small trees stand; the luminous stained glass windows loom over them, shining upon rows of lacquered wooden benches. And above the fray hangs a grand chandelier more suited for a palace than a church. Yet I suppose this is palace, but for whom?
