Joshua Koffman, Maquette of Synagoga and Ecclesia in Our Time, 2015. Plaster.
Name/Title
Maquette of Synagoga and Ecclesia in Our Time
Description
21st-c. plaster maquette of the sculpture titled "Synagoga and Ecclesia in Our Time."
Artwork Details
Medium
Plaster
Made/Created
Artist Information
Artist
Joshua Koffman
Role
Artist
Date made
circa 2014
Time Period
21st Century
Interpretative Labels
Label
The medieval Christian Church often contrasted Judaism and Christianity (the Old and New Covenants) through the female personifications, Synagoga and Ecclesia. Typically, such depictions show Ecclesia crowned and triumphant, while Synagoga is blindfolded and dejected. However, in this example, Synagoga and Ecclesia sit side by side as equal figures in dialogue with one another. The plaster sculpture served as the maquette for a larger bronze installed on campus in 2015 in front of the Chapel of St. Joseph. It was commissioned to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the promulgation of Nostra Aetate ("In Our Time"). This transformative document from the Second Vatican Council (1962-65) defined and celebrated a positive and collegial relationship of the Catholic Church to non-Christian religions.
