Not to say that this statue was anywhere near the Ark of the Covenant, but He liked His bling.
Posted on 06/15/2010 5:36:10 AM PDT by DouglasKC
Solid Rock Church Jesus monument struck by lightning
By Tiffany Y. Latta and Lauren Pack, Staff Writers
Updated 8:28 AM Tuesday, June 15, 2010
MONROE — Charred remnants remained this morning, June 15, of the large Jesus statue iconic to Interstate 75 that was destroyed following an apparent lightning strike during a thunderstorm late Monday night.
Those at the scene this morning as the fog lifted around I-75 also described smoke damage to the Lawrence Bishop Music Theater located east of the statue. The theater also suffered fire damage, according to officials.
No firefighters were on scene this morning as the smell of smoke surrounded the area of the statue’s charred frame and the pond in front of it appeared murky, witnesses said.
No one was injured in the blaze and fire officials said they expect to have a damage estimate later this morning.
Keith Lewis of Middletown showed up at the church just after 7 a.m. with a camera in hand to take some shots of the remains. His wife, Stephanie, sent him.
“It has been a landmark in this area for a long time,” Lewis said. “She said she wanted picture of what was left.”
A guitarist, Lewis said he has learned to play comedian Heywood Banks’ song about the statue, “Big Butter Jesus,” and has also had his picture taking in front with his hands in the air.
Was the statue an oddity or inspiration to Lewis?
“Really a little of both,” he said, noting he doesn’t believe the nicknames were meant with any disrespect. “Kind of do hope they rebuild it.”
Earlier this morning and late Monday night, motorists were stopped along the highway and along Union Road in Monroe to watch the 62-foot King of Kings statue burn. The fire was reported at 11:15 p.m. Monday, June 14. Within minutes, all that was left was the steel frame of the statue at Solid Rock Church, 904 N. Union Road.
Church member Cassie Browning, 27, of Dayton, said she was driving north on I-75 on her way back from Tennessee when she and her family saw smoke and noticed the statue missing. “It meant so much to so many people,” Browning said. “The statue can be destroyed and gone, but Jesus can’t be.”
When crews arrived, Monroe Fire Chief Mark Neu said the statue was fully engulfed and the fire had spread to the attic area of the church’s adjacent amphitheater. There were no injuries, said Neu, who spoke just before 2:30 a.m. to media at the scene. It was a “hot fire,” he said, which made it more difficult to battle, but it was extinguished within about an hour.
In the late evening and early morning hours, social media sites such as Facebook fueled interest and onlookers: the curious, the incredulous and still others who just wanted to poke a little fun at the situation.
“God struck God, I like the irony. Jesus struck Jesus,” said Dawn Smith, 25, of Hamilton, who was among those standing outside the vehicles along Union Road. “I had to see it. What else are you going to do on a Monday night?”
Since its completion in 2004, the statue, which appeared to come out of a pond in front of the nondenominational megachurch, was known by multiple nicknames, including “Touchdown Jesus” because the arms and hands were raised upward. It also was known as “Big Butter Jesus” after comedian Heywood Banks referred to it as such and created a song about the statue, which he performed on radio’s popular “The Bob and Tom Show.”
The statue was constructed of wood and styrofoam over a steel framework that was anchored in concrete and covered with a fiberglass mat and resin exterior, according to the church. It was slated to undergo renovations this summer.
Also gathered along Union Road were Franklin twins and storm chasers Levi and Seth Walsh, who said they were out in the thunderstorm when they heard about the fire through a Facebook update.
“It sent goosebumps through my whole body because I am a believer,” said Levi Walsh, 29. “Of all the things that could have been struck, I just think that that would be protected. ... It’s something that’s not supposed to happen, Jesus burning,” he said. “I had to see it with my own eyes.”
“I can’t believe Jesus was struck,” said his brother, who noted the giant Hustler Hollywood sign for the adult store across the street was untouched. “It’s the last thing I expected to happen.”
Whether jostled by the incident, or ready to call out zingers, all agreed the statue is what makes that stretch of I-75 in front of the church special.
“It’s a landmark, so it’s going to make the drive different,” said Josh Bartram, 18, of Middletown.
Because the fire was sparked by lightning, Neu said there will be no further investigation.
Also lost in the fire was audio equipment stored in the attic that Neu said was to be used for a Fourth of July event at the church. No damage estimate will be available until 10 a.m. today, said Neu, who added that church leaders indicated to him they planned to replace and rebuild all that was lost in the fire.
Crews responded from Monroe, Middletown, Liberty Twp., Deerfield Twp. and Trenton, according to dispatchers.
Kick me, Jesus, through the goalposts of life ...
Reminds me of a song I haven’t thought of in a long while, no offense meant to my Christian brothers but here it tis:
I don’t care if it rains or freezes
‘Long as I got my plastic Jesus
Riding on the dashboard of my car
Through my trials and tribulations
And my travels through the nations
With my plastic Jesus I’ll go far
Plastic Jesus, plastic Jesus
Riding on the dashboard of my car
I’m afraid He’ll have to go
His magnets ruin my radio
And if I have a wreck He’ll leave a scar
Riding down a thoroughfare
With His nose up in the air
A wreck may be ahead, but He don’t mind
Trouble coming He don’t see
He just keeps His eye on me
And any other thing that lies behind
Plastic Jesus, plastic Jesus
Riding on the dashboard of my car
Though the sunshine on His back
Make Him peel, chip and crack
A little patching keeps Him up to par
When I’m in a traffic jam
He don’t care if I say “damn”
I can let all my curses roll
Plastic Jesus doesn’t hear
‘Cause he has a plastic ear
The man who invented plastic saved my soul
Plastic Jesus, plastic Jesus
Riding on the dashboard of my car
Once His robe was snowy white
Now it isn’t quite so bright
Stained by the smoke of my cigar
If I weave around at night
And policemen think I’m tight
They never find my bottle, though they ask
Plastic Jesus shelters me
For His head comes off, you see
He’s hollow, and I use Him for a flask
Plastic Jesus, plastic Jesus
Riding on the dashboard of my car
Ride with me and have a dram
Of the blood of the Lamb
Plastic Jesus is a holy bar
The old race between Second Commandment and Second Law of Thermodynamics
Not to say that this statue was anywhere near the Ark of the Covenant, but He liked His bling.
I thought that too, then remembered that thing in Rio de Janiero. . .
I live a couple of miles from the statue. We had a massive lightning storm roll in last night - pretty intense for awhile. Fire departments were busy last night....
Exo 20:4 “You shall not make for yourself a carved image—any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth;
I guess He meant it...
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I loved how the one in Brazil crumbled in “2012”!
Ping
Christ the Redeemer is made of reinforced concrete and soapstone. The one that burned down was wood, styrofoam, fiberglass and resin on a steel frame. A lightning rod essentially stuck in a pile of kindling just waiting for a spark..................
You used to.............
exactly...it was the nature of the structure, not Gods wrath....if Gods wrath was up and working, we would not have Mecca and Medina.
Ping for later
Either that, or God doesn’t like fiberglass statues.............
I have driven past that a few times in the past few weeks and was disturbed by it.
Or that He directed that the image of a serpent should be used to heal the Israelites when they were in the desert.
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The serpent was a type of Jesus Christ, Jesus said in John 3:14&15: “As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up so that whoever believes will in Him have eternal life.”;
Really?
17"You shall make a mercy seat of pure gold, two and a half cubits long and one and a half cubits wide.18"You shall make two cherubim of gold, make them of hammered work at the two ends of the mercy seat.
19"Make one cherub at one end and one cherub at the other end; you shall make the cherubim of one piece with the mercy seat at its two ends.
20"The cherubim shall have their wings spread upward, covering the mercy seat with their wings and facing one another; the faces of the cherubim are to be turned toward the mercy seat.
21"You shall put the mercy seat on top of the ark, and in the ark you shall put the testimony which I will give to you. "
The serpent was a type of Jesus Christ
Absolutely true. Which simply illustrates the point that images may be used in worship of God, but images must never be worshipped.
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