NYC crook steals female Christ statue from St. John the Divine church

A thief stole a controversial sculpture of a female Christ on the cross from Manhattan’s famed Cathedral of St. John the Divine as an act of protest — and then returned it, the church’s dean said Sunday.

The crook showed up at the landmark Episcopal church on Amsterdam Ave. at W. 112th St. dressed all in black about 8:30 p.m. Dec. 3 according to cops.

The thief quickly returned the bronze sculpture called the “Christa” with a note reading, “This does not belong in God’s house,” according to Patrick Malloy, the cathedral’s dean. The note was signed “R.J.” in cursive.

“We believe that the theft was a theological political protest,” Malloy said. “The object we treat as a crucifix in this man’s mind has no right to be a crucifix and doesn’t even belong in the church.”

The Christa, created by sculptor Edwina Sandys, was first installed in the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in 1984 and was met with condemnation and hate mail. Eleven days after it went up, the Suffragan Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of New York, Walter Dennis, ordered its removal, calling it “theologically and historically indefensible.”

“It caused international uproar because this sculpture that has a crown of thorns on it was a woman and people said it was blasphemous,” Malloy said. “It raised an international firestorm.”

The cathedral brought the sculpture back in 2016, as part of an exhibit called “The Christa Project.”

“Conversations about the politics of identity have changed tremendously since the 1980s,” reads an archived version of the cathedral’s web site. “Christa’s essential statement, however, remains vital to our world today: people are hungry to see themselves and each other fully represented in society, especially in its most powerful and iconic institutions.”

Malloy added on Sunday, “A few years ago the sculpture was given to us permanently by the artist and we mounted it on a plexiglass gauze and put it behind the altar in the chapel of St Xavier as a Crucifix…. There was no uproar about it this time.”

On Dec. 3, the cathedral was holding a crafts fair and the thief used the throng of fairgoers to hide what he was doing.

“(He) went into the Chapel of St. Xavier, saw this object, this crucifix, and then 10 minutes later came back with shipping blankets, took it off of the altar,” Malloy said. “It’s a bronze sculpture on a wrought iron base so it’s quite heavy. (He) lifted it up off the altar, wrapped it in the blankets, taped it up and carried it away.”

The man returned less than two hours later with a truck and left the Christa on the cathedral loading dock, Malloy said.

“He spoke to people who were a part of the crafts fair … and told them, from what I understand, that he brought it back because he felt guilty about stealing it,” the dean said.

Police said the sculpture is worth at least $100,000. It was returned undamaged, Malloy said.

“I was here when it first showed up years ago,” said John Felbinger, who’s been attending the church for about 50 years. “It’s a crucifix with a female image for Jesus hanging on the cross rather than a male image. Some people would find that offensive, other people wouldn’t.”

“Given the current state of affairs in the world today, I’m not surprised this happened,” he added. “Somebody was trying to make a point.”

Another longtime parishioner, Robert Rodriguez, said the Christa embodied what he feels is the cathedral’s welcoming environment.

“I think these days the depiction of Christ is whatever you believe in your heart,” he said, adding that he hopes the thief is identified.

“You can’t let people just get off without anything. At least have a sit down and ask what this is all about. We are so divided in this country nowadays but there should be some accountability.”

The church, which can hold 5,000 worshipers and is touted as the world’s largest Gothic cathedral, is famed for its annual Procession of Animals.

It was ravaged by fire in 2001 and damaged again in a 2019 blaze. In December 2020, police shot and killed an apparently suicidal double-pistol waving gunman on the cathedral steps.

Cops released surveillance footage of the crook in action and asked the public’s help identifying him and tracking him down. He is describes as between 45 and 50, about 5-foot-10 and 220 pounds with a light complexion.

Anyone with information is asked to call Crime Stoppers at (800) 577-TIPS. All calls will be kept confidential.