Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Aug 12, 2025 /
14:54 pm
As advocates in Baltimore work to end violent crime in the area, officials with the Archdiocese of Baltimore are bringing to the city a sculpture of Jesus mourning a homicide victim.
The statue, made by Catholic artist Timothy Schmalz, is titled “Thou Shall Not Kill.”
On Aug. 9 the archdiocese held its third annual gun buyback program, inviting citizens to surrender their guns for cash to help lessen violence in the city. The Baltimore City Police Department, St. Joseph’s Monastery Parish, and the Health by Southwest coalition helped the archdiocese sponsor the event.
Following the success of the buybacks, St. Joseph’s Monastery parish priest Father Mike Murphy, the archdiocese, and community leaders are working to bring Schmalz’s work of Christian public art to the city.
The life-sized statue by Schmalz portrays Jesus weeping over a murder victim who has multiple gunshot wounds.
The original piece was created in 2024 and is at the Father Augustus Tolton Peace Center, a hub for violence prevention programs in Chicago. The statue that will be placed in Baltimore is awaiting final approval of its designated location.
Schmalz is an internationally acclaimed Canadian sculptor known for his Christian works of art, including statues of saints, angels, and his well-known depictions of Jesus portrayed as a homeless man.
More than 50 bronze works of “Homeless Jesus” are installed in locations around the world including Capernaum in Israel and Vatican City.
In April, a new Vatican-commissioned sculpture by the artist titled “Be Welcoming” was placed in St. Peter’s Square to inspire people to open their hearts to the poor. The bronze statue depicts a man seated on a bench who appears to be homeless, carrying a backpack on his shoulder and a stick in one hand.
In Baltimore, the goal for this year’s gun buyback program was to receive around 300 guns after buying nearly 160 in 2023 and 300 in 2024. By July the organizers had raised about $60,000 to fund the purchases of guns brought in. The 2025 buyback ultimately collected 410 firearms.
The latest buyback occurred as crime, including gun violence, has been dropping in Baltimore, though the city has long struggled with high levels of violent crime.
From 2015–2022 the city recorded more than 300 homicides annually, including 348 in 2019, which almost equaled the record of 353 in 1993.
Tessa Gervasini is a staff reporter for Catholic News Agency.
