This is a magnificent 30 minute overview of the places in Jerusalem in which Our Lord spent His last hours. Please share with your families and others who would benefit from it. […]
Good Friday/Easter 2021: Christ’s Embrace
Jesus Christ Our Lord and Redeemer silently hangs in agony on the Cross. His bloody arms stretched wide as if to embrace us. We safely stand at a distance. We are mute […]
St. Francis of Assisi: A “Nice” Man or a Soldier of Christ?
What is the man-in-the-street’s perception of St. Francis of Assisi? Is it one that is only shaped by the art that portrays him as soft and sweet, as just the saint of […]
Starlings and Some Stress Release
I posted the video below many years ago. It is one of the most spectacular and very short nature films that I have ever seen (see credits below). Hopefully, in this time […]
Candlemas – The Presentation of Christ in the Temple
Today, February 2nd, we celebrate the holy day of the Presentation of Christ in the Temple of Jerusalem. St. Joseph and Our Blessed Mother Mary, as devout Jews, realized the injunction […]
Vatican Creche – 2020 – A Contemptuous Insult
The Vatican, last week, unveiled the 2020 Christmas crèche in St. Peter’s Square. Historical tradition explains that St. Francis of Assisi was the first to promote the display of the birth of […]
The Suicide of a Nation
This list is not a typical statement for my blog owing to the fact that it normally concerns sacred art and catechesis; however, I felt I needed to compose and share my […]
Guardian Angels
Today the Roman Catholic Church celebrates the Memorial of our Guardian Angels. In the second reading from the Office of Readings in the Liturgy of the Hours (pg. 1454, Book IV), there is […]
St. Thérèse of Lisieux – “The Little Way” to Jesus Christ
St. Thérèse of the Child Jesus (of Lisieux) died, a victim of tuberculosis, at the age of 24 on September 30, 1897. Every year her Memorial is celebrated in the Roman Catholic […]
Sacred Art – Its Fate When a Catholic Church Closes Its Doors
A subscriber recently asked me about the process of the movement of sacred art from a local church or cathedral into a secular or religiously affiliated museum and is there a specific […]
St. Lawrence – Deacon and Martyr
Today we celebrate the feast of St. Lawrence, a deacon and third century martyr. St. Lawrence was one of the seven deacons of Rome who served as the Pope’s ministers during Holy […]
Holy War: The Battle for Our Souls and the Soul of the Church
What is our strategic plan in the Holy War to save our personal faith? The overall plan is simple: it is to win the war for our soul. Our tactics are paramount. […]
Elijah, Pagans, and Our Lady of Mt Carmel
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 […]
Chinese Martyrs and the Beautiful Art of Ken Jan Woo
This post was previously published in 2012; however I desired to rewrite and republish it because of the crisis the Chinese Catholic Church, that is loyal to Rome, is experiencing this day. […]
The Virgin Mary – Racial Supremacy and Artistic Diversity
Artistic images of the Blessed Mother of Jesus, as portrayed by different cultures within historical periods, have been part of world history for centuries. Below are a few examples of these images. The […]
Iconoclasm and Shaun King
In the June 22, 2020 issue of Newsweek an on-line article by Aila Slisco reported some statements by political activist Mr. Shaun King. She states: “He [King] also remarked that stained glass […]
Holy Saturday/Easter 2020
Today, Holy Saturday, is observed by the Western and Eastern Rites of the Catholic Church, and other denominations as the Anastasis (Greek, “resurrection”), or the Harrowing of Hell by Jesus Christ. In […]
Good Friday 2020
Father, by the merits of your Son’s passion, death, and resurrection hear us in our troubles and fears. Strengthen us against anxiety and illness. This day allow us to join Jesus’ suffering with […]
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 […]
Do Pagans Go To Heaven or Hell?
The author of the interesting and challenging blog site on sacred art and its analysis called Catchlight sent me two questions yesterday. They related to my last post which was entitled Fatima Messages, Pagans […]
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 […]
The Assumption of Our Mother Mary – We Venerate Her Today
We celebrate the Solemnity of the Assumption of Mary. In her honor let us review some the Church’s truths; dogmas which progressed to the point of Venerable Pope Pius XII proclaiming the […]
Bernini’s Bronze Sculpture of Four “Giants” of the Church
Today, May 2nd, is the “Memorial” day of St. Athanasius, a Doctor (profound theologian) of the Church. There are four “giants” of the Nicene and Post Nicene period, all are known as […]
Sacred Icons and Sacred Images – the Nicene Debate Continues!
I would like to thank one of my readers who identified the contemporary icon of St. Spyridon (thanks Carol!). The iconographer is the Catholic priest William Hart McNichols. He is a very […]
St. Athanasius and St. Spyridon: A Correction and Another Interpretation – Let’s Take A Closer Look!
I am always very appreciative of my readers writing to me and providing new information and interpretations of sacred icons and images. Happily, that occurred last evening when a reader, Mr. John […]
St. Athanasius – Coptic and Eastern Orthodox Icons
St. Athanasius of Alexandria was “the Lion” of the Council of Nicaea. He was instrumental in providing well argued testimony rebuking the heretic Arius during the Council’s debates. His verbal skills, as […]
Saint Nicholas Slaps a Heretic! A Reflection Appropriate for Palm Sunday
The extensive Gospel reading for Palm Sunday relates the Scriptural and historical truth that Jesus triumphantly entered Jerusalem, yet, five days later He was arrested, put on trial, tortured, and executed. As […]
Luke 15: 1-3, 11-32. The Prodigal: Which Brother Are We?
I once heard a friend repeat a quote by the author Katherine Mansfield: If you wish to live, you must first attend your own funeral.” How true. We begin to live life […]
The Holy Trinity – Communication Through Word and Art
Is communication just a trait of human beings? Is it a trait of God? The Dogma of the Holy Trinity is one of the great Mysteries of the Christian Faith. All Christians acknowledge […]
God is a God of Compassion
“God of all compassion, Father of all goodness, to heal the wounds our sins and selfishness bring upon us You bid us turn to fasting, prayer, and sharing with our brothers and […]
Luke: 16: 19-31 – Is Lazarus in Your House?
This passage from the Gospel of St. Luke is a parable about a destitute man named Lazarus and a rich man, who at times is called by the name Dives (the word dives […]
Christ in the Wilderness: Lent – the Season of Preparation – Luke 4: 1-2.
Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, where for forty days He was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing […]
Apologists – Additional Saints Prior to the Council of Nicaea
Today’s post will continue to add to my two previous posts: The Apologists (Defenders of the Faith) – Part 7, and The Apologists – Comparing Icons. The men below are also known […]
Icons – Important Similarities/Differences
Can you pick out the seven similarities between the two sacred icons of Church Apologists that are below? The differences? Let’s take a look at the two icons above. Both are […]
Christian Witness and Sacred Art – The Early Church Fathers – Part 7
A Challenge: Are you as a Christian artist willing to internalize the message of the saint, scene, or Scripture passage you are artistically representing, and then, correctly portray it according to Church […]
Amazing Grace – Amazing Piano!
Okay, we have reached Wednesday, the supposed day that if we can just get through it we will be on the downward slide toward the weekend. In an attempt to put a […]
Early Church Fathers – A Short Bibliography
I mentioned in my last post of February 3, 2019 that I am presenting some material on the early Church Teachers and “Fathers.” Why is this necessary? People studying and painting sacred […]
The Apostolic Fathers in Roman Catholic Sacred Art – Part Six
This post and an upcoming posts will very briefly explain some of the major figures in the Church history during the period of AD 65 through AD 155 – the period known […]
Roman Catholic Sacred Art: A Prayer to Accompany The First Theological Theme
“And only where God is seen does life truly begin. Only when we meet the living God in Christ do we know what life is. We are not some casual and meaningless product […]
Roman Catholic Sacred Art – Part Five: The First Theological Theme
In the past four posts I briefly reviewed the following topics: Part 1: What is Art, Part 2: Roman Catholic Sacred Art – Categories, Part 3: Roman Catholic Sacred Art – Painting […]
Roman Catholic Sacred Art – Three Major Stages
Allow me to wish everyone a belated Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! I can do that because, liturgically, we are still in the Christmas Season! That Season ends this Sunday […]
Art Schematic of Church Painting
This is an easier way to view the material within yesterday’s post. Copyright © 2011- 2018 Deacon Paul O. Iacono All Rights Reserved
Roman Catholic Sacred Art – Categories
Tonight we will use yesterday’s post as a starting point to examine Roman Catholic painting. I mentioned that there are seven disciplines within the definition of Art. One of those disciplines is […]
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 […]
St. Joseph’s Art Workshop: Lesson 4 – Applying Color and Modeling the Face
Just wanted to notify the people who are following the art lessons in my St. Joseph Art Workshop tab that I just published Lesson 4: Applying Color and Modeling the Face. You […]
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 […]
St. Joseph’s Art Workshop – Lesson 3 – Applying Pigment
To all those that have expressed interest in the FREE on-line sacred art workshop that I am offering here at fraangelicoinstitute.com please note that yesterday I posted Lesson 3 in Exercise 1: […]
Fra Angelico – “Heaven on Earth” Exhibition – Part 2 – Ascension, Pentecost, the Last Judgement
I hope you had a blessed Feast of Pentecost! Please read Part 1 of “Fra Angelico – Heaven on Earth” (posted here on May 16, 2018) in order to receive a proper […]
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 […]
