AP Art History teacher reflects on Catholicism’s impact on his teachings

On late Red Day afternoons, Joel Tarbox can be found clicking through an elaborate slideshow of European Christian art and architecture for his seventh-period AP Art History students. When delving into the intricacies of concepts such as patronage and the various subjects present in a piece, he finds that his Catholic upbringing is instrumental in helping him understand and explain such art to his students.

“A good slice of European art revolves around the teachings of the Bible,” Tarbox said. “With the pantheon of characters in Christianity to keep track of, I feel that I can help decode the images better.”

His Catholic understanding is rooted in his childhood. Growing up in Maine, he said that Catholicism was “a part of daily life during the ‘80s.”

His mother went out of her way to ensure that he and his siblings attended weekly serves and mass until they reached adulthood. Holidays, especially Christmas and Easter, were also highlights of their religious experience.

From kindergarten until 11th grade, Tarbox attended a Catholic after-school program, the Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, that was taught by local nuns. He also attended a Jesuit high school and eventually attended Bowdoin College, where he served as vice president of the Newman Association, an on-campus Roman Catholic student ministry. 

Into Tarbox’s sophomore year, he began noticing some viewpoints of the Newman Association which he felt opposed to, sparking a deteriorating relationship with the faith.

“While I did enjoy the Newman Association, I couldn’t help but question some of the activities they did, specifically protesting against pro-choice rallies that popped up on campus,” Tarbox said. “I don’t want to promote abortion, but I understand that the choice exists for those who need it and couldn’t align myself to protest against it.”

Although he still remained Catholic, Tarbox also participated in a multitude of Buddhist studies courses to pursue his increasing interest in exploring other religions.

In his senior year in 1991, he decided to participate in a study abroad program offered by Bowdoin. He chose to visit and live with a Buddhist family in Sri Lanka, a traditionally Theravada Buddhist country.

While living in Sri Lanka, Tarbox recalls Buddhism intermingling and evolving with other religions such as Hinduism. Buddhists would regularly attend Hindu temples and vice versa to fulfill religious duties. During the Sri Lankan Civil War, he noticed that Buddhism provided people with a moral footing that guided them through daily life. 

“Living in Sri Lanka unveiled so much more about Buddhism and people in general than I anticipated,” Tarbox said. “Reading about profound Buddhist philosophies versus seeing them put into practice during the war was disappointing but also very relatable. It was very telling of human nature.”

  Upon returning, Tarbox said his experiences with how religion was used in Sri Lanka along with the Newman Association helped him find clarity regarding the disagreements he had with the Catholic Church as a political asset.

Tarbox’s unease about Catholicism ended up reaching a breaking point after watching the movie “Spotlight.”

The 2016 Oscar Best Picture recipient depicts the journey of two reporters for The Boston Globe investigating child molestation allegations against Catholic priests and the Church. The movie is based on an actual sex scandal in the Boston church uncovered by the Globe in 2002. Tarbox said the massive scandal broke his last ties to the religion. 

“One of the priests uncovered in 2002, after committing his crimes at Boston College High School, was sent to my high school to teach history, coach wrestling and serve as a parish priest,” Tarbox said. “It bothered me that someone committing such vile acts could be circulated so easily. What was even more repugnant was that he continued his behavior at my high school.”

Since then, Tarbox said he considered rejoining the church but found it difficult to weave past the atrocities committed by the priests representing the Catholic faith. He chose to detach completely after hearing a snippet from a priest at service commenting on an article in the Santa Cruz Sentinel regarding the issues.

“One of the priests said to a crowd that priests should be let go [in light of recent events], and with that, I decided to leave,” Tarbox said. “It’s immoral that victims are not prioritized.”                                                                                                                                                                

As of now, Tarbox considers himself agnostic. Though the politics regarding Catholicism eventually led him to separate from the church, he still finds immense value in its teachings and traditions.

When explaining Christian stories like the Fall from Grace and the Annunciation, prevalent in art from the Byzantines and the Renaissance, his forte shines in expounding all facets of the art from a religious stance from the era. 

In the Renaissance, art became integrated into society as a political and cultural asset in the fractured city-states of Italy. Tarbox finds that his Catholic education is a powerful tool for explaining how Catholicism and Protestantism clashed at the time and what art blossomed from these religious implications.

Tarbox said his favorite piece from this era is The Feast in the House of Levi by Paolo Veronese. With the influence of Catholicism in Italy, he said that Veronese defied the Church by including people not commonly seen in Renaissance art while depicting the biblical Last Supper, like Muslims and Black people. When Veronese was put on trial for heresy by the Church, he gained acquittal after agreeing to repaint the piece, only to rename it to its current name instead of the Last Supper.

Tarbox admires this piece’s underdog element with Veronese thwarting the Church. He said such art throws a splash of fresh humanity into an era like the Renaissance, which sparked both the blooming and constricting of human identity. Tarbox said that religion has opened his eyes to what truly defines humanity in art.

“Human attributes like love, violence, sexual relationships, politics and religion is fascinating and beautiful when you look closely,” Tarbox said. “So much of our world is visual, and examining art and our surroundings is a powerful unfurling of perspectives that we may have glazed over otherwise.”