A statue of Jesus was knocked over and damaged between Friday night and Saturday morning at Northwestern’s Sheil Catholic Center, police and church officials said.
The incident occurred between 8 p.m. April 30 and 8 a.m. May 1, said Sgt. Steve Goldenberg of the Evanston Police Department.
The Rev. Ken Simpson, Sheil’s chaplain and director, found the head broken off of the statue and pieces of the face shattered at about 8:30 a.m. Saturday when he arrived at Sheil. Simpson said he reported the incident to both NU and Evanston Police, who took photographs of the damaged statue.
There are no suspects, and the incident has not been identified as a hate crime, Goldenberg said.
Members of the Sheil community are unsure about the meaning behind the damage.
“Hate crime is very strong, but it certainly seems to me this (statue) is a very clear symbol,” Simpson said. “It’s a wound to the community.
Incidents of vandalism at Sheil are rare, according to Mary Deeley, a pastoral associate at Sheil. About five years ago, a street sign was thrown through the chapel’s stained glass window.
In both incidents, Sheil probably wasn’t the object of hate, Deeley said.
“I think somebody was just out looking to damage property, and we happened to be the target this time,” she said.
But unlike the stained glass incident, which was accompanied by other damage to the neighborhood, the statue seemed to be the only object in the vicinity that was defaced, Simpson said.
The cement statue of Jesus, which depicts the religious figure holding a book against his chest, had stood on the south side of Sheil between two benches surrounded by flowering trees, bushes and tulips. On Sunday the statue was replaced by a pot of flowers.
In response to the vandalism, Simpson said he plans to make an announcement about the incident during Mass and write a reflective message for the church bulletin.
Sophie Snyder, a Weinberg freshman and member of Sheil, said she hopes discussion about the destruction won’t be limited to religious members of the NU community.
“I’m sure (church leaders are) going to bring awareness to NU students about why this is wrong,” she said.
Simpson said the issue will be addressed during a weekly meeting, as well as church discussion and prayer groups.
“Someone who would vandalize a church object may not realize how important these symbols are,” Simpson said. “If they’re not aware how important they are, they need to be aware. If they are aware, then it’s a hate crime.”
Regardless of the motivation for the vandalism, the incident still has damaging effects, according to some Sheil members.
“It’s obviously defacing something that’s pretty important to the Sheil community and the Christian community as a whole,” said Andrew Hill, a Music sophomore and a member of Sheil.
Deeley said the statue depicts Jesus as a teacher, which is the symbol of Sheil’s chapel.
“The statue of Christ the teacher really says something about our relationship with God as a teacher,” Deeley said. “To not have the statue there, we lose a bit of tradition and richness of heritage.”
Deeley said the Sheil staff will discuss the incident at their meeting today. As of Sunday, the statue’s damage had not been announced to the Sheil congregation.
Along with symbolism for NU’s Catholic students and faculty, the statue also has historical significance. NU’s senior class gave it to Sheil in the 1950s, when the church was located at 1922 Sheridan Road.
Jenny Rocci, a McCormick freshman and member of Sheil, said the incident had a hurtful impact on her.
“Religion is such an important part of my life,” she said. “It’s sad that someone has such a blatant disrespect for something that can be so good.”
Timothy Stevens, NU’s chaplain, said awareness of the incident should be raised, but it is important not to overreact.
“I wouldn’t want to overemphasize and say it’s a hate crime if it’s just someone doing something stupid,” Stevens said. “I don’t want to dismiss it, but at the same time, I think we need to react appropriately.”
