The Empty Tomb

The empty tomb at The Cross of Our Lord, Groom, Texas.

My friends and regular readers of this blog know how much I enjoy going over to the huge cross at Groom and taking photos. These are a year or so old, but I don't think I've yet published the following photo in this blog.

If you've seen my other posts about the cross, you'll also know how I love the angel atop the empty tomb.

(My Angel has many of my favorite photos of her)

A closer, straight-on look at the stone that was rolled away.

Inside the tomb is this angel:

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A "bump" for Easter Sunday

No Pity for Pilate

And I was round when Jesus Christ
Had His moment of doubt and pain
Made damn sure that Pilate
Washed his hands and sealed His fate

"Sympathy for the Devil"
- The Rolling Stones

This is the first station in the Stations of the Cross and is one of my favorites. I will post some better photos at a later date, but these are some of the older ones I wanted to go ahead and show, then burn to disc.

Stepping around to the middle of the exhibit, the detail on the bronze of Jesus' face is the very definition of "resigned to one's fate".

I've tried to not be caught looking, but I find it interesting to watch some people's reactions at this station, especially after they've seen the pure essence of dejection from the above view. Quite a few of the folks step away with a sad face, then turn facing Pilate with Jesus, standing side-by-side, often with their hand on Jesus' shoulder. I've never seen it done with disrespect, no mugging for the camera; in fact, I never have seen anyone posing with the statues...most of the photographing of people is done with the huge cross as the background.

A little closer view shows how the bronze has been shined by people touching or brushing up against it.

Both figures are fascinating to study; Pilate is interesting because he did nothing, "washed his hands" and I suppose I can relate to that more than I can being persecuted as was Jesus. Pilate was human, interested mainly in his own self-preservation.

We all have crossroads in life, decisions we make that turn out to be wrong, but which is the worse sin; making a mistake or doing nothing? Sometimes our fate hinges not on those things we do, but by the things we do NOT do.

It's also common to find several dollars worth of change in Pilate's hand washing bowl.

This is my favorite perspective of Pilate, and I've plans for this or similar photos. I altered this one with my IrfanView program several months ago and like the way it almost looks like an oil painting.

As I said, I will post more at a future date.

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Sorry, but this one is also a "bump" and was originally posted on 8/3/07

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"Bumped" again from May 31, 2008

Which Ten Commandment?

Are you?

You Are "Honor Thy Father and Thy Mother"

You may or may not have the most honorable parents, but you try to respect and honor them whenever possible. In general, you think that people should focus on their families more. Charity begins at home. You also believe that younger generations should do a better job taking care of their elders. It saddens you to see how older people are treated in most cultures. You think it's truly a disgrace.

Which of the Ten Commandments Are You?

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While I will admit to not respecting or honoring both my parents as much as I should have when they were alive, I'd say that most of the rest of the results are accurate.

While my own faith has diminished over the last few yrs., I still think the Ten Commandments are - for the most part - good to live by. I could get people arguing with me, but for good or bad, they're the basis for much of the western world's laws. (and no, I do not want to debate it)

One of the better photos I think I've ever taken at the Cross of Our Lord near Groom, Texas, has been this one of the Ten Commandments monument.

"Father, Forgive Them"

Originally posted 4/10/09.  A "bump" for Good Friday. Other Groom Cross posts (and mentions)

Groom Cross in National Geographic

Looking through my Google Reader subscriptions earlier this morning, I saw an photo that looked familiar at the Damn Cool pics site (second from top). The article is about photo submissions to the annual National Geographic contest, but it took a bit of searching to find out more about that particular photo. Finally I found it at Boston.com.

Several times when I've been up extra-early because of booming thunder from an early morning thunderstorm, I've thought about going over to the Cross and get some similar shots (I would hope to be).

Vote for your favorite at the National Geographic website.

Face Project

Here's a photo I've published before, but put a simple frame around it and softened the edges with my FotoSketcher program.

Jesus Weeps

And so should we all.

Usually, I try to add some commentary or background information along with my photos.

These do not need it. Words will not, cannot do them justice.

This is a case where a picture is indeed better than a thousand words....but a thousand tears are not enough.

At The Cross of Our Lord, Groom, Texas.

The Face of Cruelty

The most heart-wrenching of all the Stations of the Cross is this one, where Jesus is being nailed to the cross. We'll have more photos of it at a later date, and especially those of Jesus and His face, but this one is about the soldier who is wielding the hammer.

It's not the most expressive of the bronzes at the Groom Cross, but it is certainly one of the ones that stirs the most emotions in me.

I like to take these sorts of photos when no one is out there; I have to almost lie down along side Jesus to get some of these and I garner enough curious and bemused looks when I'm out there photographing anyway, so....

A closer look shows that the face is much more crudely cast than are the others, but there's no mistaking the emotion shown: cruel glee, taking delight in his task.

That photo disturbs me, and is one of my favorites;  yet, on the other hand, it is one of my least-liked photos I've ever taken there, as is the following. I know that doesn't make much sense and I cannot explain my feelings toward the photos, just as it is hard for me to explain how I feel about this statue.  It's definitely a case of cognitive dissonance.

This one gave me the perspective as if I were the one driving the spikes into His flesh; from an "artsy" and objective perspective, I suppose one might say it is interesting, but it really makes me feel uncomfortable.

I've visited the Groom Cross dozens of times, taken thousands of photos and I have also seen hundreds and hundreds of people who stop and look, many of whom let their dogs out for a walk (on a leash, please) and "constitutional" in the lovely manicured grass around the outer walkways.

Almost every time, especially since I've made a note to watch, the dogs will react to this particular station. Some will bark at it, some will growl and some have to be dragged by their owners to get close to it. I don't know if it's because the life-sized soldier bronze has a weapon, or... something else.

Perhaps I don't like the photos of the cruel centurion because I'm afraid that same look has been seen on my own face; seen by people I least wanted seeing it - by my mother, by the rest of my family, by my friends, by women I've let get close to me and...almost worst of all... by total strangers who were treated with less than respect by me and for no good reason.

How many times have I driven a stake into someone's feelings just because of my own cruel nature? I hope I've managed to atone, to at least apologize to those I could and hope all others have forgiven me or at least let time soften any cruel blows I sent their way. Forgiving myself is much harder, but I'm working on it.

Getting His forgiveness was so easy, though.

Veronica

Veronica wiping Jesus' face.
The sixth station at the Groom Cross.

Read about Saint Veronica at Wiki

Like a Rock

The Ten Commandments
Groom Cross

This is one of those times where I was trying to be more "artsy" than I have any right of being. On this photo, I lay down on my side trying to get the reflection of the huge cross behind me and didn't think about the reflection of the huge pile of lard laying on its side trying to take the picture.

Tilted Perspective

I think I was leaning.

Pretty sure I was. I've always leaned a bit to the right, in reality and also politically. I walk pretty straight on the days my back eases up some.

I believe I was focusing more on the light standard than on the background object, the huge Cross.

Whatever, it's a little bit disconcerting, isn't it?

They Cast Lots

While not my "favorite" Station of the Cross at the Groom Cross, the tenth one is an interesting one. I need to take some more photos, some close-ups of the faces.

I've also not taken any good photos of the bronze plaques anchored in blocks of granite around each station. I would like to make a presentation someday of each station and need these all to look somewhat consistent. My best efforts, that is to say, the ones that were the clearest and truest to the actual color, had part of a necessary bit chopped off or had my big feet in them.

Click any photo for a larger view.

There's not a great perspective to take the photo of this station; any more to the right would have the gift shop in the background. As it is, I-40 and at times the traffic can be seen.

The detail is much more impressive as you get closer. I'm sure, since this is a "double" bronze, that it's one of those that (I was told) cost upwards of $30,000.

Jesus, exhausted from the labor of carrying the cross, bleeding from hundreds of cuts from vicious lashings, shows a sad resignation. He knows His greatest torment is yet to come.

The headdress/helmet of the Roman guard is almost comical, but then one's eyes drop to his face.

A mean, cruel face, insensitive to his captive's suffering. The exaggerated wrinkles in his face show a face prone not to laughter, but to sneers and scowls. He loved his horrible job.

And then they gambled for His clothes.

My Angel

If you know me you also know that I love to take photos of the Groom Cross and in particular the angel atop the empty tomb. I've posted some of these photos before, but wanted to include them in this presentation.

Looking towards the northeast, you can get the cross and the tomb and angel all into the same shot. I really don't like the trees that were planted and "spoil" the bottom part of the view of the large cross.

I prefer to have the cross at my back and take photos nearly due west. I have to be careful because there are some ugly radio towers in the background.

I love it when there are clouds behind her.

And sometimes I like to photograph her head on, facing nearly due north.

My favorite time to photograph her is in the late evenings, near sunset; I am almost always enthralled the way the sun, the clouds and the sky frame the shot.

And sometimes I like to take the same photograph from the same perspective, but shoot with a different setting, such as in black and white:

It sounds silly, but sometimes when my days are dark and dreary I think of her and a ray of sunshine pierces my gloomy mood.

I think of how achingly beautiful she can be with the setting sun creating a halo of pure dazzling white against the azure sky, a few wisps of clouds disappearing with the light.

I never could get very close to her, though; using zoom gave me the best detail I could get from the ground, even standing on a stepladder I sometimes take with me.

Early one Sunday morning, I got up and over there around sunrise. I wanted to get some closeups of her, without anyone around because I had in mind climbing out on top of the "tomb" structure -- where there's a sign that asks people NOT to climb on it.

I felt a little odd doing something like this, at a place I love (and would hate to be banned from), but I also felt obsessed with looking into the statue's face.

A few weeks earlier, I had mentioned to a woman in the gift shop that the angel was one of my favorite things to photograph out there. She told me that before the tomb "exhibit" was finished, the angel was stored in the store. She said people would put their babies in the angel's arms and take photos. I thought that a touching story.

With camera in hand, I climbed out on the slippery fake rock, slick with the morning dew. I nearly fell a couple of times, but got close to "my" angel. I was nearly there!

I jumped down into her little "niche", the cubbyhole where she was mounted and where the lights and wiring for the tomb were hidden.

She was as beautiful as I thought she would be; I sat there in the cool Texas dawn, staring at her, oblivious to the noise of the truck traffic on nearby I-40. Something was SO familiar about her and then it hit me so hard that I nearly fell off the structure.

She looks JUST LIKE my ex-wife!

This is where I'd normally say something like "But my ex was no angel!" but that would be a lie, at least hateful and undeserved. She put up with me for over five years, and if she's not going to be an angel, she at least qualifies for sainthood, bless her.

Groom Cross Photo

Since I've uploaded hundreds of photos of the Groom Cross to the 'net, from several posts in MSN Groups, to Webshots, to Photobucket and to here, I was wondering if Google had indexed/trawled any of my photos.

A search showed none of mine, but I did run across a website with a photo taken from an airplane flying fairly close overhead. It's an older photograph, and it doesn't show the fountain that's now there or the Last Supper exhibit, but it shows the entire location.

Attention to Detail

(click for larger view)

It's heartbreaking, some of the details on the Stations of the Cross bronzes. With this one of Jesus hanging on the cross, it's not only life-sized, but horribly realistic. Note the bleeding wound, the hundreds of tiny cuts on His skin, how his muscles and tendons are straining to relieve the horrible pressure from being nailed to the cross.