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Question III In The Soul of Sex, Thomas Moore says "religious institutions remain close to pornography, sometimes in their art . . . because ultimately both are concerned with life's deepest meaning and mystery." Do you see any connection between Catholicism and porn? Did Catholic artists ever purposely infuse their art and iconography with suggestions of sexuality in order to help convey the power of spiritual ecstasy to the masses (consider such Christian-themed works as the illustrated "O" in Bede's commentary on the Song of Songs, Donatello's David, Caravaggio's Doubting Thomas, and Bernini's The Ecstasy of St. Theresa)? And, if so, how should that affect the way we interpret contemporary renditions of Christianity such as Andres Serrano's photograph Heaven and Hell, Martin Scorsese's film The Last Temptation of Christ, Madonna's video "Like a Prayer," and Terrence McNally's play Corpus Christi (all of which many religious fundamentalists have condemned as pornographic and blasphemous)?

Certainly religious experience which often powerfully engages emotion is close to our sexuality. But is sexuality equivalent to pornography? Or pornography with art? Talking with Andres Serrano about his work, I was struck by the way he engages and explores his Catholic upbringing, as well as his fascination with what is spiritual, through his work asking himself, for example, How did the church teach me what was "dirty"? What about the body is "dirty" anyway? Later, Eric Fischl, who uses erotic images often in his painting, told me that in his experience of seeing and painting there are certain angles, viewpoints (literally, in the photograph or painting) that encourage participation in what is seen, and others that engage the viewer only as voyeur: those various perspectives, he suggested and not the actual subject are what make certain works pornographic, and others not.

Introduction Question I Camille Paglia Thomas Moore Elaine Pagels Robert Francoeur Frances Kissling Question II Camille Paglia Thomas Moore Elaine Pagels Robert Francoeur Frances Kissling Question III Camille Paglia Thomas Moore Elaine Pagels Robert Francoeur Frances Kissling Question IV Camille Paglia Thomas Moore Elaine Pagels Robert Francoeur Frances Kissling Question V Camille Paglia Thomas Moore Elaine Pagels Robert Francoeur Frances Kissling ©1999 Elaine Pagels and hooksexup.com