An abortion-linked golden statue is headed for a St. Louis park between two churches, according to Missouri Attorney General Catherine Hanaway, who is demanding answers about the project’s placement and what she describes as a lack of public input.
Hanaway raised the alarm on X, saying residents have described the sculpture as a “demonic affront to faith.” She said installation is scheduled for Monday in Fox Park, “right between two churches where families gather and worship.”
“There has been minimal public notice or opportunity for neighborhood input,” Hanaway wrote.
“Missourians deserve answers about the secrecy and placement, and we intend to get them.”
The hoop-skirted figure accompanying the post matches Shahzia Sikander’s “Witness,” the sculpture Charisma covered ahead of its 2024 exhibition at the University of Houston. Its golden female figure features rootlike limbs and braids curled into ram’s horns, suspended within a sweeping metal framework.
The artist’s own explanation establishes its connection to abortion advocacy.
In her published statement, Sikander lamented the Supreme Court’s reversal of Roe v. Wade and praised women fighting for bodily autonomy.
“That spirit and grit is what I want to capture in both the sculptures,” she wrote, referring to “Witness” and its companion work, “NOW.” The figure’s collar also references the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
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Charisma’s February 2024 reporting warned about the spiritual consequences of erecting “Witness,” connecting the installation to idolatry and spiritual strongholds. Hanaway’s post now raises questions about the same design being installed between places of Christian worship.
Scripture records a devastating progression in 2 Kings 17:9-12: Israel built high places, erected sacred images and served idols in defiance of God’s commands. Rebellion gained a public foothold as the people honored what God had forbidden.
That biblical pattern bears directly on the spiritual danger of publicly celebrating abortion. Human life bears God’s image. A culture that honors its destruction exalts human autonomy above His authority.
Beside churches that proclaim the God who creates life, a monument tied to abortion advocacy would elevate a cause that destroys it.
James Lasher, a seasoned writer and editor at Charisma Media, combines faith and storytelling with a journalism background from Otterbein University and ministry experience in Guatemala and at the LA Dream Center. A Marine Corps and Air Force veteran, he is the author of The Revelation of Jesus: A Common Man’s Commentary and a contributor to Charisma magazine. For interviews and media inquiries, please contact [email protected].
