(LifeSiteNews) – A page from the Epstein files shows that artist Andres Serrano had personally invited the billionaire sex trafficker to the opening of his infamous “P— Christ” exhibit at a Manhattan art gallery.
In the 2012 email invitation, Serrano appeared to mock the fact that the Catholic League would be protesting the blasphemous exhibit, which is an image of a crucifix in Serrano’s own urine, as he linked to an article on the protest. A 2015 email from the files also shows that Serrano had asked Epstein if he might be able to arrange a meeting with Pope Francis.
“Hi Jeffrey, I’ll be having an opening this Thursday if you’re in town. The Catholic League will be there protesting!” the email read.
Artist Andres Serrano invited Jeffrey Epstein to an exhibit of the “Piss Christ”, a crucifix submerged in Serrano’s urine, laughing that the Catholic League would be protesting it.
Epstein’s emails contain plenty of abusive statements toward Catholics.
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Serrano’s sacrilegious work, otherwise entitled “Immersion,” was a photograph of a small, plastic crucifix completely immersed in a liquid that Serrano attested was his own urine and was part of a series of other blasphemous “art.”
The series included similar images involving bodily fluids, using blood (in particular, sometimes menstrual blood) or semen. His 1985 work “Blood Cross” was an image of a “plexiglass cross filled with cow’s blood.” Blood leaked out of the cross in the image to create the impression of flowing blood.
Another 1985 work, “Pieta,” featured his wife holding a “a large limp fish” in a distortion of the classic portrayal of the Virgin Mary holding the dead Christ at the foot of the cross.
Interestingly, another email from the Epstein files shows that three years after inviting the sex abuser to his exhibit opening, Serrano reached out to see if he could arrange for both of them to meet with Pope Francis.
In 2023, about four years after Epstein’s death, Serrano finally had the opportunity to meet with the Argentine pontiff. He, along with 200 other artists from across the globe, invited to the Vatican by Francis to mark the 50th anniversary of the inauguration of the Vatican Museums’ collection of modern and contemporary art.
READ: Pope Francis warmly greets infamous ‘artist’ who created image of crucifix in urine
After the event, Serrano said that he “was surprised to be invited and even more surprised that (Pope Francis) gave me a thumbs up. And I was very happy that the (C)hurch understands that I am a Christian artist and I am not a blasphemous artist. I’m just an artist.” The blasphemous artist added that Francis’ greeting was with full knowledge of who Serrano was, saying, “it was a great, mischievous smile.”
Several of the recently released Epstein files show the pedophile speaking about the Catholic Church in some way. One page uncovered by the Lepanto Institute showed that Epstein had donated “critical funds” to Catholic Charities of the U.S. Virgin Islands.
READ: Jeffrey Epstein donated ‘critical funds’ to Catholic Charities of the Virgin Islands
Catholic Charities has directly managed in the U.S. the day-to-day care for many unaccompanied immigrant children and has received intense scrutiny, including from Catholics, for placing children with unvetted sponsors, even after reports emerged that some of these children ended up in forced labor, sex trafficking, or other forms of abuse.
The Lepanto Institute highlighted that Catholic Charities provides several youth programs in the U.S. Virgin Islands, including Camp Shriver and Kids Learn and Emergency Help, which reportedly both “offer intensive multi-week learning and sports camps to underprivileged children and continue to stay involved in the children’s lives.” This is particularly concerning, considering Epstein’s history of sex trafficking and rape.
Epstein was arrested in 2019 for sexually abusing underage girls and operating an international sex trafficking ring. U.S. Attorney Geoffrey Berman declared at the time that the well-connected financier had “created a vast network of underage victims for him to sexually exploit, often on a daily basis.”
About a month later, while awaiting trial in a New York jail cell, he was found dead, allegedly after hanging himself. Epstein’s brother later claimed that Jeffrey was murdered in prison with the knowledge of the U.S. government.
Another email exchange in the files shows Epstein discussing Pope Benedict XVI’s resignation and the Vatican Bank with economist Larry Summers, suggesting he was closely monitoring Vatican politics.
