"A Gory Hobby"

Crucifixes are one of the most recognizable Catholic symbols. A beautiful Catholic tradition is to have one in every room of the house. Some people placed them over the doorways and beds in the bedrooms. It is an anchor to cling to in our own sufferings, and a powerful reminder of Christs sacrifice for us, as well as a reminder that we, too, are called to suffer in this life. ("And whosoever doth not carry his cross and come after me, cannot be my disciple." - Luke 14:27 "Then Jesus said to his disciples: If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me." - Matthew 16:24) "Why Crucifixes instead of empty Crosses? Because, as did Paul, we preach Christ crucified, and know that we get to the Resurrection through the Cross, that we are called to pick up our own crosses and carry them, offering up our sufferings in imitation of Him."(1) It should also be mentioned that "Crucifixes should be blessed by a priest and treated with great veneration. Kissing a Crucifix is an indulgenced act." (2)

This being such an important, familiar Catholic symbol, I doubt that there is any baptized Catholic that does not recognize it. Yet I wonder how many Catholics actually prefer the "unclean version" (that is, the bloodied, gory, life-like version) of the Crucifix rather than what most Churches and Catholic gift shops offer these days. Gina Christian from CatholicPhilly.com actually has a great article on the topic; she specifically writes about how many Catholics recoil at a Calvary that "smacks too close of the real thing."(3) I highly recommend reading her analysis. She notes that, "Some faith communities have eliminated the cross altogether, deeming it too 'off-putting' and 'negative.'" This is a serious issue that can be a whole article by itself, but that's not the complete focus of this article. What I do want to focus on today, however, is how might one go about "fixing" their Crucifixes if they prefer a more "real life" representation.

A Gory Hobby: Repainting Crosses and Stirring the Heart to Christ's Suffering 

My great-grandmother, Armoza, was always unimpressed with the "clean" version Crucifixes that she came across in her time and started re-painting the ones she had. She would simply add a bit of red paint to Christ's wounds, as many of them rarely had any representation of blood at all! She would also add some blood near His pierced Heart and His Face from the crown of thorns. Perhaps she believed that since Christ died such a terrible, agonizing death for us, it just seemed wrong to gloss over it, especially for the sake of "people's feelings", when this very suffering is also a glorious triumph over death and sin. 

My Grandmother, took up this "family tradition", as did my mother. Then it was my turn, but I decided to take it up a notch. I wanted my Crucifixes to really make me cringe. To make me feel silly for complaining about my small sufferings. To remind me of just how deeply God Himself suffered for my sin.  I wanted to really be taken aback, especially during times of temptation or despair. I believe that when we see a small sampling of what Christ willingly suffered for us, we can more readily take all our sufferings, pains, and frustrations and unite them to He Who suffered infinitely more. 

Here are some of the finished projects that I've done:

ABOVE PHOTO: My second favorite! I applied "gore" to this one for Claire (her photo). Check out here blog here. 

For those interested in trying this project themselves, especially for Lent, here's how I do it.

You will need:

? Modge Podge

? Red, Black, Brown paint. (More if you know how to paint wounds better than I do haha)

? Water

? Paint Brushes

? Kleenex

? A Crucifix (preferably one already painted, with skin color and such)

1. I just start by making sure the surface is clean / not dusty.

2. Then, I begin my using water and a brush and wetting the spot I want to begin building a wound on.

3. Take the Kleenex and split it in two. Tear it into pieces (these will be parts of the wound when wet.) People who do SFX wounds also use torn / shredded cotton balls.

4. Make sure to mold the wound, you can tear it in places and make large gaping holes to add effect.

5. Then, add the “blood”, diluting the paint in water to moisten the Kleenex even more and adding to the “wound”. Add many layers.

6. I stand the crucifix up as I pack on the blood so that it drips down, as it would while He was on the Cross.

7. Paint inside the wound and the sides black to add depth. Continue to add more various red and dark red to the wound. You can look up realistic SFX wounds for ideas on how to paint them well. This video on bruises is good too. You can also use toothpicks to make scratches, or a red pen.

8. When done, let dry.

9. Once its dry, you can paint the whole crucifix, or just the wounds with Modge Podge, and that will give it a shine.

"The death of the Lord our God should not be a cause of shame for us; rather, it should be our greatest hope, our greatest glory. In taking upon himself the death that he found in us, he has most faithfully promised to give us life in him, such as we cannot have of ourselves." Saint Augustine (4)

 “Meditation on Jesus Christ crucified is a precious balm which sweetens all our pains.” "The more deeply the cross penetrates, the better; the more deprived of consolation that your suffering is, the purer it will be; the more creatures oppose us, the more closely shall we be united to God.”  Saint Paul of the Cross (5)

Footnotes:

(1) Fisheaters.com, "Crucifixes & Crosses" https://www.fisheaters.com/crucifixes.html

(2) Ibid.

(3) Gina Christian, "Don’t clean up Calvary: The bloody, saving reality of Christ’s crucifixion" CatholicPhilly.com, published April 1, 2021. https://catholicphilly.com/2021/04/catholic-spirituality/dont-clean-up-calvary-the-bloody-saving-reality-of-christs-crucifixion/

(4) Saint Augustine, "His Death is Our Hope & Glory" Sermons excerpts published on Crossroadsinitiative.com. Published, Mar 28 2021. https://www.crossroadsinitiative.com/media/articles/hisdeathisourhopegloryaugustine/ 

(5) "Summary of Christian Holiness in the words of Saint Paul of the Cross" SaintPaulOfTheCross.com. https://www.saintpaulofthecross.com/2009/10/how-to-be-holy-in-words-of-st-paul-of.html