The ZINNG: Christ, Crime, and Cash

Aryan Art?

A bizarre lawsuit has been filed against the Metropolitan Museum of Art in Manhattan. The New York Post reports that 33-year-old Justin Renel Joseph is suing The Met for their “offensive aesthetic whitewashing” in several paintings depicting Jesus Christ as pale-skinned with blond hair. Joseph claims that this “Aryan” Jesus caused him “personal stress,” because it is a misrepresentation of his Savior in order to “make him more aesthetically pleasing for white people.”

Whether or not his offense is genuine or just an attempt to raise eyebrows, new research and evidence shows he might just have a case.

Retired medical artist Dr. Neave and his team recently used ancient Semite skulls, dating back to the time when Jesus was suspected to be alive, to digitally reconstruct his facial structure. Then, based on anthropological information, writings in the bible, and hypotheses based on his occupation, the team was able to recreate what they feel to be a scientifically accurate depiction of what Jesus probably looked like.

And let me tell you—this is not the depicted Jesus of Western lore:

                 

Hot-Spot on Steroids

St. Louis County police are rolling out the new wave of technology in hot-spot policing. Officers are now employing a system called HunchLab to digitally predict potential high-risk areas based on crime statistics and other variables, such as “weather conditions, public transportation routes, vacant properties, foreclosures, parks, libraries and housing density,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.

These predictions map out areas for patrol teams to monitor more closely, attempting to prevent a crime before it happens based on their presence alone.

HunchLab's product manager, Jeremy Heffner, says that the program purposefully omits race as a category of data—I would hope so.

Like the Tom Cruises of the world who are accused of a future crime not yet committed, I begin to wonder if this “hot-spot policing on steroids” isn’t just another way to profile an area.

And, though it might be a “minority report,” but my Precog vision of the future shows yet another police shooting in Missouri…

Who Are the Mystery Sirs?

To return our faith in humanity: two feel-good stories involving anonymous Good Samaritans.

Staying in St. Louis, FOX 2 Now reports that a mystery man walked in to two different Goodwill stores and began handing out $20 bills to customers. Claiming he had been through a lot since the death of his mother, the man wished to remain anonymous, and only wanted to do something good.

Heading east to Cleveland, Ohio, another mysterious benefactor walked into 2 different Walmarts and paid off $106,000 in layaway debt, NewsNet5 reports. Also insisting to remain anonymous, this real life Santa Claus brought joy and hope to several Ohio families.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What do you think? Is the depiction of Jesus in Western culture “racist”?

Where is the line between privacy/civil rights and safety?

Do you have any random acts of kindness stories to share?

Start/Join the conversation below!