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Three boats approach the German city of Cologne where Saint Ursula, on her way back north after a pilgrimage to Rome, was martyred together with her virgin companions. Ursula, identified by her crown and golden halo, sits under a baldachin in the stern of the foreground boat; their imminent arrival...
Saint Pothinus (French: Saint Pothin) was the first bishop of Lyon and the first bishop of Gaul. He is first mentioned in a letter attributed to Irenaeus of Lyon. The letter was sent from the Christian communities of Lyon and Vienne to the Roman province of Asia. According to Alban...
Seychelles, officially the Republic of Seychelles, is an archipelagic island country in the Indian Ocean at the eastern edge of the Somali Sea. It consists of 115 islands. Its capital and largest city, Victoria, is 1,500 kilometres (932 mi) east of mainland Africa. Other nearby island countries and territories...
During his devotions in the wilderness, Saint Bruno, the founder of the Carthusian order, a monastic community committed to solitary meditation, experienced a vision. Gazing intensely up at the sky, the saint tentatively reaches out to touch the mystical illusion of angels appearing in the sky. To the left, two...
Traditionally, the four Gospel writers have been represented by the following symbols (as indicated in the question): St. Matthew, a divine man; St. Mark, a winged lion; St. Luke, a winged ox; and St. John, a rising eagle. These symbols are taken first from the Prophet Ezekiel (1:1-21)...
The National Black Catholic Congress is an American Catholic nonprofit founded in 1987 by Bishop John Ricard, as a spiritual successor to Daniel Rudd's Colored Catholic Congress movement of the late 19th century. This is a photo from the 1892 congress. Front and center is Fr Augustus Tolton,...
This folio tells part of the biblical story of David and his rebellious son Absalom. In the upper left, King David, crowned and enthroned, is dismayed to hear the news that Absalom has conspired against him and invaded his lands. Unwilling to fight, David withdraws from his palace but leaves...
The crucifixion of Jesus occurred in 1st-century Judea, most likely in either AD 30 or AD 33. Jesus' crucifixion is described in the four canonical gospels, referred to in the New Testament epistles, attested to by other ancient sources, and is established as a historical event confirmed by...
The Franciscan Church of the Annunciation (Slovene: Frančiškanska cerkev Marijinega oznanjenja or commonly Frančiškanska cerkev) is a Franciscan church located on Prešeren Square in Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia. It is the parish church of Ljubljana - Annunciation Parish. Its red colour is symbolic of the Franciscan monastic order. Since 2008,...
Three kings pay homage to the Christ Child, who in turn makes a sign of blessing. Jesus Christ, his mother the Virgin Mary, and Mary's husband Joseph have haloes and wear simple garments, while the Magi are dressed in exotic clothing and jewels and bear exquisite gifts. Caspar,...
Polycarp was a Christian bishop of Smyrna. According to the Martyrdom of Polycarp, he died a martyr, bound and burned at the stake, then stabbed when the fire failed to consume his body. Polycarp is regarded as a saint and Church Father in the Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, Catholic, Anglican...
Leo Petrović (28 February 1883 – 14 February 1945) was a Bosnia and Herzegovina Franciscan and historian. Petrović, a native of Klobuk, Ljubuški, entered the Franciscan Province of Herzegovina in 1900, and was ordained a priest in 1905. He held various monastic and ecclesiastical positions, including being a general vicar of...
Made just eight years before Rembrandt's death, this painting depicts Saint Bartholomew holding a knife in his right hand, a reference to the fact that he was skinned alive when martyred. One of Rembrandt's neighbors may have posed as the model for the saint. By showing...
The Book of Samuel calls David a skillful harp (lyre) player and "the sweet psalmist of Israel." Almost half of the Psalms are headed "A Psalm of David" (also translated as "to David" or "for David") and tradition identifies several with specific...
Adigrat is a city and separate woreda in the Tigray Regional State of Ethiopia. It is located in the Misraqawi Zone with an elevation of 2,457 metres (8,061 ft) above sea level and below a high ridge to the west. Adigrat is the last important Ethiopian city south...
Giovanni Francesco Barbieri, called il Guercino or simply Guercino, meaning “The Squinter”, a nickname referring to a congenital eye condition from which he suffered. In 1621, Guercino was called to Rome from his hometown of Cento, Ferrara, to paint this portrait of Pope Gregory XV (1554–1623). Despite being a...
Please Subscribe or Donate [https://sdcason.com/donate] to Help Keep This Site Free! Saint George (Greek: Γεώργιος; died 23 April 303), also George of Lydda, was a Christian who is accepted as a saint in Christianity. According to traditional rumors, he was a soldier in the Roman army. His...
The Catholic Church regards Good Friday and Holy Saturday as the Paschal fast, in accordance with Article 110 of Sacrosanctum Concilium. In the Latin Church, a fast day is understood as having only one full meal and two collations (a smaller repast, the two of which together do not equal...
The Discalced Carmelites, known officially as the Order of the Discalced Carmelites of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel (Latin: Ordo Fratrum Carmelitarum Discalceatorum Beatae Mariae Virginis de Monte Carmelo) or the Order of Discalced Carmelites (Latin: Ordo Carmelitarum Discalceatorum; abbrev.: OCD), is a Catholic mendicant order with roots...
Following a model established for papal portraits by Raphael two decades earlier, Sebastiano del Piombo painted Pope Clement VII (Giulio de'Medici, reigned 1523–1534) in three-quarter length and seated in an armchair, positioned diagonally to the picture plane. In a letter dated July 22, 1531, Sebastiano told...
Anthony or Anthony the Great (c. 12 January 251 – 17 January 356), was a Christian monk from Egypt, revered since his death as a saint. He is distinguished from other saints named Anthony such as Anthony of Padua, by various epithets of his own: Saint Anthony, Anthony of Egypt, Anthony...
The Carmelites, formally known as the Order of the Brothers of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel (Latin: Ordo Fratrum Beatissimæ Virginis Mariæ de Monte Carmelo) or sometimes simply as Carmel by synecdoche, is a Roman Catholic mendicant religious order for men and women. Historical records about its origin...
In this depiction of the lamentation of Christ, Fernando Gallego looked to Northern European paintings for inspiration but included distinctly Spanish elements such as a subdued palette and unidealized figures. Unlike Netherlandish artists who were interested in depicting the natural world in minute detail, Gallego concentrated on the pietà'...
Irenaeus (c. 130 – c. 202 AD) was a Greek bishop noted for his role in guiding and expanding Christian communities in what is now the south of France and, more widely, for the development of Christian theology by combating heresy and defining orthodoxy. Originating from Smyrna, he had seen and...
