The Truth:
The monogram “IHS,” which
symbolizes the name of Jesus Christ, was covered along with all other
symbols on the platform during the president’s speech. There is not
evidence, however, that the intent was to eliminate religious or
Christian symbols.
The inscription is on
a pediment on the stage in Gaston Hall where the speech was given. The
White House had asked the school to remove or cover all signs and
symbols that would appear behind the President while he delivered his
speech on the economy, according to an
April 15, 2009 CNS News article.
David Brody of CBN
said he was told by the White House that the intent, however, was not to
cover the religious symbols in particular or to leave Christ out of the
picture. It was to drape the platform in a simple black background with
American Flags on display. Brody said there were 26 other religious
symbols in Gaston Hall that were not covered and that were visible in
some pictures taken at the speech. The White House told Brody, “The
President appreciated the gracious hosts at Georgetown University where
he delivered his speech on the state of the economy. 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.”
Georgetown Associate Vice President Julie Green Bataille told CNS news,
“The White House wanted a simple backdrop of flags and pipe and drape
for the speech, consistent with what they’ve done for other policy
speeches. Frankly, the pipe and drape wasn’t high enough by itself to
fully cover the IHS and cross above the GU seal and it seemed most
respectful to have them covered so as not to be seen out of context.”
The source of this email came from
Citizenlink.org, a web site constructed by Focus On The Family.
Click
for Citizenlink site.
Gaston Hall
showing the "IHS" symbol for the name of Jesus with cross above
(photo: Georgetown University Online Library)
The monogram and cross above were
covered by a plain black painted plywood board. The article
said that the Roman Catholic traditional use of "IHS" as a symbol for
the name of Jesus dates back to when "St. Ignatius of Loyola adopted the
monogram in his seal as general of the Society of Jesus (1541) and thus
became the emblem of his institute.”
updated 04/17/09
