Biblical art in Catholic churches
Category: Gospels
The story of the healing of the blind man Bartimaeus comes to us from St Mark’s gospel (Mark 10:46-52). In Luke’s version he is unnamed (18:35-43) and in St Matthew’s account, he is healed along with another blind beggar. Christ was on his final journey to Jerusalem, where he was to suffer and die. A … Continue reading The Healing of Bartimaeus (Mark 10:46-52)
The story of Christ healing a paralysed man is included in three of the gospels (Matthew 9:1-8; Mark 2:1-12; Luke 5:17-26). Each of the accounts include individual details which enable us to build up a bigger picture of what happened. One day, when Christ was teaching the people at a house in Capernaum (probably St … Continue reading The Healing of the Paralysed Man (Luke 5:17-26)
St Luke’s gospel is the only one to include any details of the childhood of Christ. This is probably because he spoke to the Virgin Mary, who shared her memories of the Child Jesus with him. The main story he tells is of Christ’s disappearance during a family trip to Jerusalem – and of being … Continue reading Christ among the Doctors (Luke 2:41-52)
The scene of Christ being sentenced to death has a long history in Christian art. This is mostly due to the episode being the very first of the ‘Stations of the Cross’, the popular devotion that encourages Catholics to meditate on the suffering and death of Christ. Christ’s condemnation to death is covered in all … Continue reading Christ is condemned to death (John 19:4-16)
In his gospel, one of St John’s favourite themes was the contrast between light and darkness. He included a number of sayings on this subject. One of these was the following statement, made by Christ both to his disciples and to the people: “I am the light of the world” (8:12; 9:5; 12:46). Referring to … Continue reading I am the Light of the World (John 8:12)
This short episode in the life of Christ is only mentioned within St Luke’s gospel. Two miles to the east of Jerusalem lay a town called Bethany, where two sisters – St Martha and St Mary – lived with their brother Lazarus. There was always a welcome for Christ in this home. We know from St … Continue reading St Martha and St Mary (Luke 10:38-42)
St John, along with his brother St James Major, was one of the Twelve Apostles. He worked with his father Zebedee in the family fishing business on Lake Galilee. It was beside this lake that Christ first called the two brothers to leave their nets and to follow him (Matthew 4:21-22; 10:3). With the exception … Continue reading St John, Apostle and Evangelist (John 21:20-25)
