Cathedral Cop-out on Culling Constantine
by Jules Gomes, Church Militant:
England’s oldest northern cathedral has said it never considered culling the statue of Constantine, after cathedral officials were pilloried for engaging in an “orgy of buck-passing” and “hiding behind a wall of waffle.”
The Cathedral and Metropolitical Church of Saint Peter in York, known as York Minster, is reviewing Constantine’s statue after complaints that the Roman emperor supported slavery, Britain’s Telegraph reported Wednesday.
A day later, the former Catholic cathedral — which came under Protestant control in 1567 — denied reports of complaints but confirmed that a review of all monuments was underway in response to the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement.
“Contrary to what has been reported, we have not received a single complaint about Emperor Constantine’s statue,” Sharon Atkinson, communications director for York Minster told Church Militant.
“We are not removing Emperor Constantine’s statue. Nothing is happening: There is no discussion, action, intention or even thoughts about it,” she insisted.
Review of All Monuments, Statues
However, “the Church of England has asked cathedrals and churches to review their monuments and statues for specific examples of memorials which symbolize and reflect prejudices and discrimination being experienced by people today,” Atkinson confirmed (emphasis original).
“The transatlantic slave trade is the most prominent example and has a contemporary manifestation. Constantine and the Romans do not fall into this category,” she said.
Joseph Shaw, fellow of the distinguished Royal Society of Arts, told Church Militant: “While, like his mother Helen, Constantine is venerated as a saint in the Christian East, Western Christians often consider him a flawed individual who was nevertheless God’s instrument in the Christianization of the Roman Empire.”
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