Sacred Scripture has always celebrated the beauty and significance of the mountain in Israel called Carmel. It is significant for two reasons: In a dramatic contest with the priests of the pagan […]
The Virgin Mary – Artistic Diversity and Race
Artistic images of the Blessed Mother of Jesus, as portrayed in different cultures and historical periods, have been part of world history for centuries. Below are a few examples. The various images […]
Virgin Mary: Trust and Obedience in the Lord
On this solemnity of the Annunciation, March 25th, we remember St. Luke’s account of the Annunciation: “Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town of […]
Fatima Messages, Pagans in the Vatican, and the End Times
October 13, 2019 commemorates the last message in the apparitions of the Blessed Virgin Mary by three Portuguese children. The children’s ages were six through nine, and they lived in the town […]
What is Art?
Hello! Glad to be back after a series of learning experiences which took me away from the keyboard. I see from the website’s analytics that we are still popular on a worldwide […]
Fra Angelico’s Four Reliquaries for the Church of Santa Maria Novella – Part 4 of the “Heaven on Earth” Exhibition
Today’s post is Part 4 in my series that began on May 16, 2018 concerning the recently concluded exhibition of extraordinary egg tempera paintings by the Dominican friar Beato Fra Angelico. The […]
Fra Angelico and the Armadio degli Argenti – Part 3 of the “Heaven on Earth” Exhibition
Today’s post is Part 3 in my series that began on May 16, 2018 concerning the recently concluded exhibition of extraordinary egg tempera paintings by Fra Angelico. The exhibition was held at […]
Fra Angelico – The “Heaven on Earth” Exhibition – Part 1
The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston, Massachusetts is the only venue in America for the extraordinary “Fra Angelico: Heaven on Earth” exhibition. This amazing collection of reliquaries which express the life […]
Albert Lapierre – Sacred Artist and Iconographer
This past July I had the pleasure of restoring an icon that was written by the fine artist, Albert Lapierre, from Attleboro, Massachusetts. It is a beautifully done and was commissioned by […]
Mary, The Holy Mother of God – The Sign of Our Unity
We celebrate on this the first day of the New Year the Solemnity of Mary, the Holy Mother of God. Mary, by this very title, is the Holy Mother of the human […]
The Magnificat of Mary – A Beautiful Analysis By The Venerable Bede
In this morning’s selection from the Office of Readings in the Roman Breviary, the Venerable Bede, an English monk presents a beautiful analysis of Mary’s joy-filled song – The Magnificat. Bede was born […]
Our Lady of Guadalupe – An Icon of The Woman Who Will Crush The Serpent
Today’s feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, the patroness of all the Americas, recalls the apparition of our Blessed Mother on the hill of Tepeyac in present day Mexico City. This approved apparition occurred […]
The Immaculate Conception of Mary – The Beauty of the New Eve
We are about to begin the second week of Advent and as you may know the word Advent has its root in the Latin word adventus which means “coming.” The liturgical term […]
Our Blessed Mother’s Poverty of Spirit
Our Gospel today (Luke 21: 1-4) asks us to reflect on how we express our love for God. At first glance, the poor woman in the Gospel looks reckless. Yet, love, regardless […]
Our Lady of Sorrows – Seven Sorrows – Seven Graces
Today is the memorial of Our Lady of Sorrows. The Roman Breviary tells us that in a sermon by St. Bernard of Clairvaux he explains that “The martyrdom of the Virgin is […]
The Most Holy Name of Mary
This is my third post in as many days on Our Blessed Mother Mary. September is an appropriate time to remember the significance of Mary in the life of the Church and, […]
Mary – The Mystical Spouse of the Holy Spirit and the Wife of Joseph
The question may be asked “How is the word “spouse” used in reference to Mary and the Holy Spirit? We have all read the nativity accounts of St. Matthew and St. Luke […]
The Nativity of Mary – Our Blessed Mother
On September 8th the Church celebrates the feast of the birthday of Mary, our Blessed Mother. Tradition tells us that Mary was the daughter of Saints Joachim and Anne. She was betrothed to […]
The Queenship of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Today is the memorial of the Queenship of Mary. Through the centuries, sacred icons and images have expressed the Queenship and Coronation of the Holy Theotokos – the Mother of God. The […]
Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Calls Us To Holiness
The book of Exodus mentions the Egyptian city of Rameses. If you travel to the Egyptian University Museum of Antiquities, in one of the side rooms, you will see two interesting artifacts: […]
The Solemnity of the Annunciation – The Confident Sacrifice Of A Pure Heart
Many years ago, Blessed John Paul 2 spoke to the seminarians of Rome on this, the Solemnity of the Annunciation. He began his homily with the phrase: “Fear not!” Echoing the archangel’s comments […]
Five Days Before Christmas: A Unique Story About The Graciousness of God
A very clear narrative greeted us in yesterday morning’s Gospel by St. Luke. He tells us that both Zechariah and his wife Elizabeth were both righteous before God: walking in all the […]
A Beautiful Pregnant Young Woman And Her Message To A Weary World
Today’s feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, the patroness of all the Americas, recalls the apparition of our Blessed Mother on the hill of Tepeyac in present day Mexico City from December […]
The Immaculate Conception – A Time To Reflect On The Meaning of Mary
1) Mary’s Personal History Tradition tells us that Mary was the daughter of Saints Joachim and Anne. They were devoted Jews who raised their child to be loyal and pure within the […]
A Custodian of Beauty – The Talent of Artist Jamie Medeiros
After an article explaining the mission of the Fra Angelico Institute for the Sacred Arts appeared last June in our Diocesan newspaper, the Rhode Island Catholic, I received a call from a […]
Our Lady of the Rosary
All the events of human history have to be backlit by the reality of our faith that God does not abandon His people. An example of this truth is today’s memorial of […]
The Triumph of the Cross and Our Lady of Sorrows by Jed Gibbons
Today we celebrate the feast of the Exaltation – or Triumph – of the Holy Cross. The early Catholic Church was intensely persecuted during the first 280 years of its life – […]
The Birth of Mary – The Pure Disciple Who Shows Us the Way
We cannot allow this day, September 8th, to slip by without celebrating the nativity of our Blessed Mother. For as the Invitatory in the Roman Breviary says for today’s feast: “Come, let […]
The Eternal Now and the Coronation of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Today is the memorial of the Coronation of our Blessed Mother. Sacred icons and images have expressed the Queenship and Coronation of the Holy Theotokos – the Mother of God – for […]
The Dormition – Assumption of Mary
Over the past two weeks, our Sunday Gospels have stressed the truth that to be a faithful disciple of Christ we must keep our focus – in good times and bad – […]
