You can see the golden symbol "IHS", which is Greek for the name of Jesus, with the cross above it in the picture below taken at a panel discussion on US-Russia relations and energy security on December 3rd, 2007:
(Getty Images )
During the president's speech on the economy on Tuesday, you can barely see that it was covered up in the photo below:.
But you can see it blacked out better in this photo:
(photos: Gerald Herbert)
You can also see a good shot of this at the beginning of a CSPAN video here when the camera zooms out around the 20 second mark.
The day after the speech, the name of Jesus and the cross was still covered:
(Photo by Penny Starr, CNSNews.com)
Now get this, according to CBS News, the White House denies they deliberately covered up any symbol of faith:
"The White House is taking some heat today from conservative and Catholic bloggers who noticed that while President Obama delivered remarks on the economy at Georgetown University Tuesday, a monogram that is a symbol for the name Jesus was covered up behind him.
CNSNews.com, a conservative web site affiliated with the Media Research Center, reported that the gold “IHS” monogram inscribed in Georgetown’s Gaston Hall was covered by a piece of black-painted plywood.
The White House denied that there was any effort to specifically cover up religious imagery or symbols and noted that on the wall directly behind the president there are two religious paintings and there is other imagery throughout the hall.
"Decisions made about the backdrop for the speech were made to have a consistent background of American flags, which is standard for many presidential events. Any suggestions to the contrary are simply false,” White House spokesman Shin Inouye told ABC News.
Georgetown officials said that the White House requested the backdrop and asked that all signs and symbols behind the stage be covered up..."
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Also see:
So will Notre Dame need to cover 'Touchdown Jesus' for the Obama ...
Anyway you look at it, it is offensive.
Posted by: worriedmary | April 17, 2009 at 11:05 AM
I don't get why he did this and it bothers me greatly.
Posted by: Junebug | April 17, 2009 at 11:55 AM
Devils tremble at the name of Jesus.
Posted by: Jim | April 17, 2009 at 12:18 PM
Obama: There can only be one, 'One'.
Some people have argued that Obama does not want to use religion to further a political ideology. However, Obama did evoke the Sermon on the Mount, at this Georgetown appearance, to further his economic agenda. Although Obama failed to mention Jesus Christ by name for the Sermon on the Mount.
“There is a parable at the end of the Sermon on the Mount that tells a story of two men…‘the rain descended and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house…it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock,’” Obama said.
“We cannot rebuild this economy on the same pile of sand,” he added. “We must build our house upon a rock.”
The last statement is particularly ironic since building your house upon a ‘ROCK‘ means to build your house with Christ as the foundation. Obama decided to blot out the real foundation from the timeless parable.
See the hi-res pictures:
http://tinyurl.com/djtzgm
Posted by: jordan | April 17, 2009 at 10:18 PM
How valuable for me, believe that it will attract lot of people's love.
Posted by: force one | June 24, 2010 at 08:15 PM