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Judah Maccabee (or Judas Maccabeus) was a Jewish priest and a son of the priest Mattathias. He led the Maccabean Revolt against the Seleucid Empire (167–160 BCE) related in the first and second books of Maccabees. In the early days of the rebellion, Judah received a surname Maccabee. The...
The woman with seven sons was a Jewish martyr described in 2 Maccabees 7 and other sources, who had seven sons that were arrested (along with her) by Antiochus IV Epiphanes, who forced them to prove their respect to him by consuming pig meat. When they refused, he tortured and...
Christ the King is a title of Jesus in Christianity referring to the idea of the Kingdom of God where the Christ is described as seated at the right hand of God (as opposed to the secular title of King of the Jews mockingly given at the crucifixion). Many Christian...
Kateri Tekakwitha, given the name Tekakwitha, baptized as Catherine and informally known as Lily of the Mohawks (1656 – April 17, 1680), is a Catholic saint who was an Algonquin–Mohawk laywoman. Born in the Mohawk village of Ossernenon, on the south side of the Mohawk River in present-day New...
This is a painting from the Deuterocanonical book Maccabees. It shows the moment when Antiochus IV (the king of the Seleucid Empire) began to force Jews to worship Greek Gods by royal decree (1 Maccabees Verses 44–50). The Maccabees were a group of Jewish rebel warriors who took control...
The Fatima Centennial U.S. Tour for Peace, took place March 2016 – December 2017, and commemorated the 100th anniversary of the apparitions of the Angel of Peace (1916) and the Blessed Mother (1917) at Fatima, Portugal. The goals of the World Apostolate of Fatima in arranging the U.S. Tour...
The exemplary Christian Mary Zhu Wu (c. 1850–1900), wife of the village's Catholic leader Zhu Tianxuan, was shot to death by the Boxers in her besieged parish church. After the priest was killed, the church was set aflame with other Christians inside it. Mary's faith...
Rita of Cascia, born Margherita Lotti, (1381 – 22 May 1457) was an Italian widow and Augustinian nun venerated as a saint in the Roman Catholic Church. After Rita's husband died, she joined an Augustinian community of religious sisters, where she was known both for practicing mortification of the...
The image of Jesus holding children is inspired by biblical verses in the Gospels: Luke 18:16, Matthew 19:14, Mark 10:14 and Matthew 18:1-3: "At that hour the disciples came to Jesus, saying: Who thinkest thou is the greater in the kingdom of heaven? And...
Perpetua and Felicity (Latin: Perpetua et Felicitas) were Christian martyrs of the 3rd century. Vibia Perpetua was a recently married well educated noblewoman, said to have been 22 years old at the time of her death, and mother of an infant she was nursing. Felicity, a slave imprisoned with her...
Lucia of Syracuse (283–304), also called Saint Lucia (Latin: Sancta Lucia) or Saint Lucy, was a Christian martyr who died during the Diocletianic Persecution. She is venerated as a saint in the Roman Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran, and Eastern Orthodox churches. She is one of eight women (including Saint Mary)...
The fonts of many Christian denominations are for baptisms using a non-immersive method, such as aspersion (sprinkling) or affusion (pouring). The simplest of these fonts has a pedestal (about 5 feet (1.5 m) tall) with a holder for a basin of water. The materials vary greatly consisting of...
Saint Matthias was, according to the Acts of the Apostles (written c. AD 80–90), chosen by the apostles to replace Judas Iscariot following the latter's betrayal of Jesus and his subsequent death. His calling as an apostle is unique, in that his appointment was not made personally...
One of the most highly venerated virgin martyrs of Christian antiquity, Agatha (231-251 AD) was put to death during the Decian persecution (250–253) in Catania, Sicily, for her determined profession of faith. Her feast day is February 5th. According to the 13th-century Golden Legend, the 15-year-...
A Procession, in Christianity, organized body of people advancing in formal or ceremonial manner as an element of Christian ritual or as a less official expression of popular piety. Public processions seem to have come into vogue soon after the recognition of Christianity as the religion of the Roman Empire...
Benedict of Nursia OSB (c. 2 March 480 – c. 21 March 547 AD) is a Christian saint venerated in the Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Oriental Orthodox Churches, the Anglican Communion and Old Catholic Churches. He is the patron saint of Europe. Benedict founded twelve communities for monks...
According to The Golden Legend, Margaret the Virgin was a native of Antioch and the daughter of a pagan priest named Aedesius. Her mother having died soon after her birth, Margaret was nursed by a Christian woman five or six leagues (6.9–8.3 miles) from Antioch. Having embraced...
This statue resides outside Saint Benedict's Parish in Chesapeake, Virginia. Benedict of Nursia OSB (c. 2 March 480 – c. 21 March 547 AD) is a Christian saint venerated in the Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Oriental Orthodox Churches, the Anglican Communion and Old Catholic Churches. He...
Elizabeth of Hungary (7 July 1207 – 17 November 1231) was a princess of the Kingdom of Hungary, Landgravine of Thuringia, Germany, and a greatly venerated Catholic saint who was an early member of the Third Order of St. Francis, by which she is honored as its patroness. Elizabeth was married...
Elizabeth of Hungary (7 July 1207 – 17 November 1231) was a princess of the Kingdom of Hungary, Landgravine of Thuringia, Germany, and a greatly venerated Catholic saint who was an early member of the Third Order of St. Francis, by which she is honored as its patroness. Elizabeth was married...
This church is dedicated to San Isidro, which is the Spanish name for Saint Isidore the Farm Labourer, also known as Isidore the Farmer (Spanish: San Isidro Labrador) (c. 1070 – May 15, 1130). He was a Spanish farmworker known for his piety toward the poor and animals. He is the...
According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church chapters 965–966: After her Son's Ascension, Mary "aided the beginnings of the Church by her prayers." In her association with the apostles and several women, "we also see Mary by her prayers imploring the gift of...
Elizabeth of Aragon, more commonly known as Saint Elizabeth of Portugal (1271 – 4 July 1336), was queen consort of Portugal, a tertiary of the Franciscan Order and is venerated as a saint of the Catholic Church. Elizabeth showed an early enthusiasm for her faith. She said the full Divine Office...
Ethiopia has close historical ties with all three of the world's major Abrahamic religions. In the 4th century, the Ethiopian empire was one of the first in the world to officially adopt Christianity as the state religion. As a result of the resolutions of the Council of Chalcedon,...
