Gay photos show Christ’s Passion

“Judas Kiss” by Robert Recker

A homoerotic vision of Christ’s Passion has been created by German photographer Robert Recker.

“Judas Kiss,” pictured above, shows the moment of betrayal when Judas uses a kiss to identify Jesus to the soldiers who will arrest him. In Recker’s version, Jesus looks stunned, like a deer caught in the headlights, as a dark-skinned Judas kisses his cheek.

Recker’s gorgeous, transcendent “Passion of Christ” series includes the Last Supper, Jesus washing his disciples’ feet, Jesus praying while his disciples sleep around him, Judas throwing away the coins silver coins he received for betraying Jesus, and Jesus carrying his cross.

Based in Berlin, Recker contributes regularly to the European press and media world with portraits, fashion, editorial and fine arts photography. The Passion photos originally appeared in the French gay magazine PREF’s May/June 2007 issue.

To see Recker’s whole “Passion of Christ” series, go to www.robert-recker.de, click on “mode,” and then click on “passion.”

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Update in April 2011: For another artist's view of the subject, click here to see "The Passion of Christ: A Gay Vision," a series of 24 paintings by Douglas Blanchard.

Lesbian poet honors ‘backward miracles’

Kay Ryan, the lesbian poet who is now serving as U.S. poet laureate, offers a refreshing poem suitable for reflection as Easter approaches. In “Backward Miracle,” Ryan breathes new life into Christian themes, starting with the cup of wine shared by Jesus at the Last Supper. She also revisits the multiplication of bread and fishes, the only miracle recorded in all four gospels. The poem appears in her book “The Niagara River: Poems)” and is reprinted below. Ryan, who lives in Marin County, California, was appointed poet laureate by the Library of Congress last fall. The official announcement notes her status as a lesbian simply by stating, “Her partner of 30 years is Carol Adair.” Take a moment to savor Ryan’s poem:

Backward Miracle By Kay Ryan (from The Niagara River: Poems) Every once in a while we need a backward miracle that will strip language, make it hold for a minute: just the vessel with the wine in it — a sacramental refusal to multiply, reclaiming the single loaf and the single fish thereby.

*** A warmly insightful video portrait of Ryan is presented in the video from the American Academy of Poets. In the video, Ryan reads and discusses her poetry -- including an excerpt that was reprinted in the popular cartoon Boondocks. To watch it, click here or on the image above. For more info on Kay Ryan, click on the following links: Official announcement: Librarian of Congress Appoints Kay Ryan Poet Laureate New York Times article: Kay Ryan, Outsider With Sly Style, Named Poet Laureate