{"id":252284,"date":"2025-10-02T17:11:27","date_gmt":"2025-10-02T21:11:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/?p=252284"},"modified":"2025-10-02T17:11:28","modified_gmt":"2025-10-02T21:11:28","slug":"statue-at-local-church-sparks-debate-among-religious-leaders","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/statue-at-local-church-sparks-debate-among-religious-leaders\/","title":{"rendered":"Statue at Local Church Sparks Debate Among Religious Leaders"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a><\/div>
\"\"<\/a><\/div>\n

A massive statue recently erected by Glorious Hope Ministries has triggered sharp debate within Antigua\u2019s religious community, with some leaders praising its biblical inspiration while others question its purpose and expense.<\/p>

\"\"<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Elder Claude Weaver, the church\u2019s leader, said the structure was designed to raise awareness about the return of Christ and was inspired by the book of Daniel. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

But Bishop Charlesworth Brown of the Christian Council criticized the installation, arguing it has created more division than unity. \u201cWe are here to harmonize the society \u2026 I don\u2019t think the erection of that image brings harmony,\u201d Brown said. He added that the Christian message is best spread through faith and teaching rather than costly monuments.<\/p>

\"\"<\/a><\/div>
\"\"<\/div>\n\n\n\n

The towering structure, visible to anyone passing along All Saints Road, has become a point of controversy, with Brown suggesting the funds spent could have instead supported needy families.<\/p>

\"\"<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n

The statue remains in place as the debate over its symbolism and necessity continues.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A massive statue recently erected by Glorious Hope Ministries has triggered sharp debate within Antigua\u2019s religious community, with some leaders praising its biblical inspiration while others question its purpose and expense. Elder Claude Weaver, the church\u2019s leader, said the structure was designed to raise awareness about the return of Christ and was inspired by the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":251440,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-252284","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\nStatue at Local Church Sparks Debate Among Religious Leaders - Antigua News Room<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/statue-at-local-church-sparks-debate-among-religious-leaders\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Statue at Local Church Sparks Debate Among Religious Leaders\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"A massive statue recently erected by Glorious Hope Ministries has triggered sharp debate within Antigua\u2019s religious community, with some leaders praising its biblical inspiration while others question its purpose and expense. Elder Claude Weaver, the church\u2019s leader, said the structure was designed to raise awareness about the return of Christ and was inspired by the […]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/statue-at-local-church-sparks-debate-among-religious-leaders\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Antigua News Room\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/antiguanewsroom\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-10-02T21:11:27+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-10-02T21:11:28+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/statue-e1758924322198.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1338\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1314\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Editor\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@AntiguaNewsRoom\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@AntiguaNewsRoom\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Editor\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"1 minute\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/statue-at-local-church-sparks-debate-among-religious-leaders\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/statue-at-local-church-sparks-debate-among-religious-leaders\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Editor\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#\/schema\/person\/36cac05ef6398fe56ae3e6317f8535c5\"},\"headline\":\"Statue at Local Church Sparks Debate Among Religious Leaders\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-10-02T21:11:27+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-10-02T21:11:28+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/statue-at-local-church-sparks-debate-among-religious-leaders\/\"},\"wordCount\":168,\"commentCount\":14,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/statue-at-local-church-sparks-debate-among-religious-leaders\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:1099\/h:1080\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/statue-e1758924322198.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"News\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/statue-at-local-church-sparks-debate-among-religious-leaders\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/statue-at-local-church-sparks-debate-among-religious-leaders\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/statue-at-local-church-sparks-debate-among-religious-leaders\/\",\"name\":\"Statue at Local Church Sparks Debate Among Religious Leaders - Antigua News Room\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/statue-at-local-church-sparks-debate-among-religious-leaders\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/statue-at-local-church-sparks-debate-among-religious-leaders\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:1099\/h:1080\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/statue-e1758924322198.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-10-02T21:11:27+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-10-02T21:11:28+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/statue-at-local-church-sparks-debate-among-religious-leaders\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/statue-at-local-church-sparks-debate-among-religious-leaders\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/statue-at-local-church-sparks-debate-among-religious-leaders\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:1099\/h:1080\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/statue-e1758924322198.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:1099\/h:1080\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/statue-e1758924322198.jpg\",\"width\":1338,\"height\":1314},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/statue-at-local-church-sparks-debate-among-religious-leaders\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Statue at Local Church Sparks Debate Among Religious Leaders\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/\",\"name\":\"Antigua News Room\",\"description\":\"News As It Happens\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Antigua Newsroom\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:1080\/h:1080\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/IMG_1584.jpeg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:1080\/h:1080\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/IMG_1584.jpeg\",\"width\":1260,\"height\":1260,\"caption\":\"Antigua Newsroom\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/antiguanewsroom\",\"https:\/\/x.com\/AntiguaNewsRoom\",\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/antiguanewsroom\/\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#\/schema\/person\/36cac05ef6398fe56ae3e6317f8535c5\",\"name\":\"Editor\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536?s=96\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536?s=96\",\"caption\":\"Editor\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/author\/editor\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Statue at Local Church Sparks Debate Among Religious Leaders - Antigua News Room","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/statue-at-local-church-sparks-debate-among-religious-leaders\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Statue at Local Church Sparks Debate Among Religious Leaders","og_description":"A massive statue recently erected by Glorious Hope Ministries has triggered sharp debate within Antigua\u2019s religious community, with some leaders praising its biblical inspiration while others question its purpose and expense. Elder Claude Weaver, the church\u2019s leader, said the structure was designed to raise awareness about the return of Christ and was inspired by the […]","og_url":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/statue-at-local-church-sparks-debate-among-religious-leaders\/","og_site_name":"Antigua News Room","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/antiguanewsroom","article_published_time":"2025-10-02T21:11:27+00:00","article_modified_time":"2025-10-02T21:11:28+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1338,"height":1314,"url":"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/statue-e1758924322198.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Editor","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@AntiguaNewsRoom","twitter_site":"@AntiguaNewsRoom","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Editor","Est. reading time":"1 minute"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/statue-at-local-church-sparks-debate-among-religious-leaders\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/statue-at-local-church-sparks-debate-among-religious-leaders\/"},"author":{"name":"Editor","@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#\/schema\/person\/36cac05ef6398fe56ae3e6317f8535c5"},"headline":"Statue at Local Church Sparks Debate Among Religious Leaders","datePublished":"2025-10-02T21:11:27+00:00","dateModified":"2025-10-02T21:11:28+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/statue-at-local-church-sparks-debate-among-religious-leaders\/"},"wordCount":168,"commentCount":14,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/statue-at-local-church-sparks-debate-among-religious-leaders\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:1099\/h:1080\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/statue-e1758924322198.jpg","articleSection":["News"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/statue-at-local-church-sparks-debate-among-religious-leaders\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/statue-at-local-church-sparks-debate-among-religious-leaders\/","url":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/statue-at-local-church-sparks-debate-among-religious-leaders\/","name":"Statue at Local Church Sparks Debate Among Religious Leaders - Antigua News Room","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/statue-at-local-church-sparks-debate-among-religious-leaders\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/statue-at-local-church-sparks-debate-among-religious-leaders\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:1099\/h:1080\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/statue-e1758924322198.jpg","datePublished":"2025-10-02T21:11:27+00:00","dateModified":"2025-10-02T21:11:28+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/statue-at-local-church-sparks-debate-among-religious-leaders\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/statue-at-local-church-sparks-debate-among-religious-leaders\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/statue-at-local-church-sparks-debate-among-religious-leaders\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:1099\/h:1080\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/statue-e1758924322198.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:1099\/h:1080\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/statue-e1758924322198.jpg","width":1338,"height":1314},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/statue-at-local-church-sparks-debate-among-religious-leaders\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Statue at Local Church Sparks Debate Among Religious Leaders"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/","name":"Antigua News Room","description":"News As It Happens","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#organization","name":"Antigua Newsroom","url":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:1080\/h:1080\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/IMG_1584.jpeg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:1080\/h:1080\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/IMG_1584.jpeg","width":1260,"height":1260,"caption":"Antigua Newsroom"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/antiguanewsroom","https:\/\/x.com\/AntiguaNewsRoom","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/antiguanewsroom\/"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#\/schema\/person\/36cac05ef6398fe56ae3e6317f8535c5","name":"Editor","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536?s=96","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ad516503a11cd5ca435acc9bb6523536?s=96","caption":"Editor"},"url":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/author\/editor\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/anr-api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/252284","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/anr-api\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/anr-api\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/anr-api\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/anr-api\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=252284"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/anr-api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/252284\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":252285,"href":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/anr-api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/252284\/revisions\/252285"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/anr-api\/wp\/v2\/media\/251440"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/anr-api\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=252284"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/anr-api\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=252284"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/anr-api\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=252284"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}