During Sunday’s ninth annual World Day of the Poor, an anti-poverty effort of the Catholic Church, St. Peter’s Parish in Portland hosted a special Mass celebrated by Bishop James Ruggieri and concelebrated by Pastor of the Portland Peninsula & Island Parishes Fr. Seamus Griesbach. Following the Mass, Bishop Ruggieri blessed a sculpture by renowned Canadian artist Timothy Schmalz depicting Jesus as a homeless person. The Homeless Jesus sculpture has been placed in the newly constructed grotto alongside St. Peter’s Church on Federal Street.
Organized by St. Peter’s Director of Music Jim Ciampi, the event also featured a virtual presentation by the sculptor during which he shared his process and gave a video tour of his studio. Schmalz’s sculptures have been installed all over the world, including two pieces in St. Peter’s Square in the Vatican.
Schmalz sees artwork as a way to spread the Gospel. “It is an everyday reminder that every human life is sacred.”
Of his many sculptures, he is most proud of Homeless Jesus, which shows Christ on a park bench under a blanket, His only identifying marker the wounds on His feet. “The message is so powerful and authentic to our spirituality – Jesus is not just there to make you feel good.”
