Biblical art in Catholic churches
Category: Gothic Revival
Most people probably know of the angel Gabriel because of his role in the Nativity. He was the one who told the Virgin Mary that she was to give birth to Christ (Luke 1:26-38). The New Testament says that he also informed St Zechariah about the birth of St John the Baptist (Luke 1:11-20). However, … Continue reading St Gabriel the Archangel (Daniel 9:20-27)
The Twelve Prophets were a dozen of the most famous prophets from Jewish history. In the name of God, they called the people to repentance, spoke out against injustice and made spiritual observations about the politics of the day. The Twelve were Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habbakuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah and Malachi. … Continue reading The Twelve Prophets (Sirach 49:10)
St Matthew’s gospel tells us that Christ once gave a long talk to the people, while seated on a mountain (Matthew 5:1-7:29). This great speech became known as ‘the Sermon on the Mount’. During this sermon, Christ covered many topics, including how to do good works, keep the Law of God and develop real faith. … Continue reading The Beatitudes (Matthew 5:1-12)
Christ’s personal invitation to four fishermen to become his disciples started a new chapter in both their lives and his. As Pope Benedict XVI explained: “The Gospels agree in mentioning that the call of the Apostles marked the first steps of Jesus' ministry, after the baptism he received from John the Baptist in the waters … Continue reading Christ calls his First Disciples (Matthew 4:18-22)
The gospels include a story about how two of the apostles asked Christ for a personal favour (Matthew 20:20-28; Mark 10:35-45). The two were St James and St John, the sons of Zebedee. They decided to involve their mother, who had left home to look after Christ and her sons, in the plan. One day, … Continue reading St James & St John’s Request (Matthew 20:20-28)
The story of Cain and Abel is of a family feud that ended in tragedy. It speaks of one man’s simple faith – and another’s murderous rage. Later, Abel’s bloody death also became a symbol of the sacrifice of Christ. Genesis says that Adam and Eve’s two eldest children were Cain and his brother Abel. … Continue reading Abel is Murdered (Genesis 4:1-16)
The Wisdom of Solomon is a unique biblical book. It was one of the last books of the Old Testament to be produced and it was the only one written in Greek (about 50 BC). The author was probably a Greek-speaking Jew who lived in Egypt, where there was a large Jewish community at the … Continue reading The Death of God’s Son (Wisdom 2:12-20)
