Easter Sunday

Giotto
No. 37 Scenes from the Life of Christ: 21. Resurrection (Noli me tangere)
1304-06
Fresco, 200 x 185 cm
Cappella Scrovegni (Arena Chapel), Padua
Web Gallery of Art http://www.wga.hu/frames-e.html?/html/g/giotto/index.html

Good Friday-- Entombment

Giotto
Entombment
1320-25
Tempera on wood, 44,5 x 43 cm
Berenson Collection, Settignano

Web Gallery of Art http://www.wga.hu/frames-e.html?/html/g/giotto/index.html

Good Friday--Lamentation

Giotto
No. 36 Scenes from the Life of Christ: 20. Lamentation (The Mourning of Christ)
1304-06
Fresco, 200 x 185 cm
Cappella Scrovegni (Arena Chapel), Padua

Web Gallery of Art http://www.wga.hu/frames-e.html?/html/g/giotto/index.html

Good Friday--Crucifixion

Two more from Giotto

No. 35 Scenes from the Life of Christ: 19. Crucifixion
1304-06
Fresco, 200 x 185 cm
Cappella Scrovegni (Arena Chapel), Padua






Crucifix
1320-25
Tempera on wood, 45 x 43 cm
Alte Pinakothek, Munich


both images from Web Gallery of Art http://www.wga.hu/frames-e.html?/html/g/giotto/index.html

Good Friday

Giotto
No. 34 Scenes from the Life of Christ: 18. Road to Calvary
1304-1306
Fresco, 200 x 185 cm
Cappella Scrovegni (Arena Chapel), Padua
Web Gallery of Art http://www.wga.hu/frames-e.html?/html/g/giotto/index.html

Holy Thursday--The Last Supper

The story continues with the scenes from the Passion of Christ.


I've decided to use Giotto's Scenes from the Life of Christ frescoes for Holy Week (see Sunday, March 28, Palm Sunday)
Today's: No. 29 Scenes from the Life of Christ: 13. Last Supper 1304-06
Fresco, 200 x 185 cm
Cappella Scrovegni (Arena Chapel), Padua
Web Gallery of Art http://www.wga.hu/frames-e.html?/html/g/giotto/index.html

Palm Sunday

Giotto di Bondone
No. 26 Scenes from the Life of Christ: 10. Entry into Jerusalem 1304-06
Fresco, 200 x 185 cm
Cappella Scrovegni (Arena Chapel), Padua
(Web Gallery of Art http://www.wga.hu/frames-e.html?/html/g/giotto/index.html)

Easter Sunday

www.catholicgreetings.org
www.holyecards.com

Happy Easter

The Crucifixion

Good Friday 4/10/09

The Last Supper

(Dali: Sacrament of the Last Supper; 1955. www.photobucket.com)

Palm Sunday

The beginning of Holy Week


for more information:

http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/11432b.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palm_Sunday

Paradise

Today's picture of the day from Art and the Bible is Lucas Cranach the Elder's Paradise. I enjoyed reading their commentary on the painting and wanted to share it with you. Visit the site at http://www.artbible.info/art/large/506.html
Here is what they had to say about it.



This panel shows a number of tableaux from Genesis.

Background, center: Eve is created out of one of Adam's ribs. On the foreground the two are addressed by God, who often made a stroll through the Garden.

Background, center-right: Eve has Adam take a bite from the forbidden fruit. Suddenly they are ashamed of their nudity, and hide behind a bush. But the archangel finds them and chases them out of the Garden (background left).

One might be tempted to think that Cranach used rubber dolls as models for Adam and Eve, as they don't seem to have any bones.



If you click on the picture to view a larger size of the image, you will see all sorts of interesting things going on in the background. I especially like God's head gazing down out of the cloud.

Remember, O man, thou art dust, and to dust thou shalt return

—Genesis 3:19












Turn away from sin and be faithful to the Gospel.
—Mark 1:15













Repent, and hear the good news.
—Mark 1:15



For more Ash Wednesday photos visit
andrew4jc.blogspot.com
For more information on Ash Wednesday
and Lent visit www.newadvent.org or www.wikipedia.org


photos from photobucket.com

Christmas

Handel's Messiah is one of my favorite musical compositions. I always listen to it during the Christmas and Easter seasons. I love to attend performances of it and for several years while living in Memphis, sang with the choir of Cavalry Episcopal Church with the Memphis Symphony Orchestra when they performed it as the opening of their Advent Season. Here is the text of the Christmas portion with a little art to go along with it.


Handel's Messiah
George Frederic Handel (1695-1759)
http://www.worshipmap.com/lyrics/messiahtext.html
________________________________________
Part I
(1) Overture
(2) Comfort Ye
Isaiah 40:1-3
1. Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God. 2. Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem, and cry unto her, that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned. . . .
3. The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.






(3) Every Valley
Isaiah 40:4
4.Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill made low, the crooked straight, and the rough places plain.
(4) And the Glory of the Lord
Isaiah 40:5
5. And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together:for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.
(5) Thus saith the Lord
Haggai 2:6,7
6. Thus saith the Lord of Hosts; Yet once, a little while and I will shake the heavens, and the earth, and the sea, and the dry land; 7. And I will shake all nations, and the desire of all nations shall come
Malachi 3:11. The Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to His temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in:Behold, He shall come, saith the Lord of Hosts.
(6) But who may abide the Day of His Coming?
Malachi 3:2
2. But who may abide the day of His coming? and who shall stand when He appeareth? For He is like a refiner's fire.
(7) And He shall Purify
Malachi 3:3
3. And He shall purify the sons of Levi. . . that they may offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness.




(8) Behold A Virgin Shall Conceive
Isaiah 7:14 (Matthew 1:23)
Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a Son, and shall call his name EMMANUEL, God with us.


(9) O thou that tellest good tidings to Zion
Isaiah 40:9
9. O thou that tellest good tidings to Zion, get thee up into the high mountain; O thou that tellest good tidings to Jerusalem, lift up thy voice with strength; lift it up, and be not afraid; say unto the cities of Judah, Behold your God!




Isaiah 60:1
1. Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee.
(10) For behold, darkness shall cover the earth
Isaiah 60:2,3
2. For, behold, darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people; but the Lord shall arise upon thee, and His glory shall be seen upon thee. 3. And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising.
(11) The people that walked in darkness
Isaiah 9:2 (Matthew 3:16)
2. The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light: and they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined.







For unto Us a Child is born
Isaiah 9:6
6. For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given: and the government shall be upon His shoulder: and His name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, the mighty God, the everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace.
(13) Pastoral Symphony


(14) There were shepherds abiding in the field
Luke 2:8
8. There were shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flocks by night.
Luke 2:9




9. And lo! the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.
(15) And the Angel said unto them
Luke 2:10,11
10. And the angel said unto them, Fear not; for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. 11. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.
(16) And suddenly there was with the Angel
Luke 2:13
13. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,
(17) Glory to God
Luke 2:14
14. Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.
(18) Rejoice greatly, O Daughter of Zion
Zechariah 9:9,10 (Matthew 21:5)




9. Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee. He is the righteous Savior. . 10. . . And he shall speak peace unto the heathen.





(Messiah text:1998 Bruce L. Johnson
Produced by Techsys, Inc.)

Burning, Breaking, and Knowing

Today's Art of the Day from the website Art and the Bible (http://www.artbible.info/) is Caravaggio's version of Supper at Emmaus painted in 1606. This is Caravaggio's second version of the subject. He painted an earlier one in 1601.
















One of Rembrandt's versions of this subject (http://www.artbible.info/art/large/342.html) was featured on Art of the Day on 9/2/08. This one was done in 1628. Rembrandt did two other versions in 1648.



These paintings illustrate one part of one of my favorite Bible passages, Luke 24: 13-35, the story of the two disciples walking to Emmaus after Jesus' crucifixion and the things that happen to them on the way and after their arrival there.


It was the morning of the Resurrection, Easter Sunday. Two disciples walk from Jerusalem to the town of Emmaus about seven miles away. Along the way, they discuss the events that have transpired since the arrest and execution of their beloved teacher, Jesus. As they walk along, they are overtaken by another traveler who listens in on their conversation and and asks them what they are talking about (here is a Rembrandt drawing to the right). They cannot believe that someone who has been in Jerusalem for the past few days cannot know about the things that have been going on there. They cannot comprehend why these things have happened and that some of the women among their group have reported that Jesus was alive, risen from the dead. Then the stranger chides them for not being able to understand the significance of the events that have taken place. With great authority he begins to explain to them how the events are the fulfillment of earlier scripture foretelling what must happen to the Christ. They listen attentively, hanging on his every word, amazed at his knowledge, and eager for more. When they reach Emmaus, the stranger says he must go on his way, but the two disciples beg him to stay with them and have supper. When the stranger blesses and breaks the bread, their eyes are opened and they recognize him for who he truly is, Jesus the Lord, but just as they become aware of his identity, he vanishes from their sight (the Rembrandt drawing at the left). They speak of how their hearts burned within them as he spoke to them on the road and opened the scriptures to them. They decide to hurry back to Jerusalem right then to tell the other disciples of the experience. They find the others gathered together, saying that the Lord has risen and appeared to Simon. Then the two tell them about the events on the way to Emmaus and how Jesus was known to them in the breaking of the bread.


These four paintings all depict the reactions of the two disciples after they discover who their companion is. Here are the other two that Rembrandt did in 1648.




















In all four of the paintings, the two disciples react with awe and amazement. In the paintings, they are shown variously throwing their hands up, gripping the table, looking awe-struck, and in one of the Rembrandts, one of them is kneeling in the shadows at the feet of Jesus.



I get excited when I read this story. I think about how the disciples said that hearing Jesus speak and explain the scriptures to them made their hearts burn within them. That is the way it should be. We should experience that burning excitement in our hearts when we hear or read scripture. Then in the breaking of the bread Jesus was made known to them. Yes! I think of the whole experience of the Mass, including the Liturgy of the Word with the scripture readings and the Liturgy of the Eucharist with the Eucharistic Prayer, the Fraction Rite (the Breaking of the Bread), and Holy Communion. The words, "Take this, all of you, and eat it; this is my body which will be given up for you." During the Mass, the bread is blessed and broken just as Jesus did at the Last Supper and at the Supper at Emmaus. A hymn that we sometimes sing says,"We remember, we celebrate, we believe." We do this each time we attend Mass: remember, celebrate, believe. Our hearts burning within us, He is made known to us in the breaking of the bread.


For more information:
http://catholic-resources.org/ChurchDocs/EP1-4.htm
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/03255c.htm
http://www.catholic.org/prayers/mass.php
http://www.stagnescathedral.org/Parish/mass/mass.htm
http://www.sttoms-purdue.org/Liturgy2/liturgy/guide%20through%20mass.htm
I could not find publication information for the hymn, "We Remember" at this time.
All art is from Art and the Bible http://www.artbible.info