One of the most historic chapels in America is Caldwell Chapel at the Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. Bishop Sheen prayed here as a student as well as when he came here later to be a professor. He spent nearly a quarter of a century as the Catholic Univer…
Caldwell Hall Chapel at Catholic University of America
One of the most historic chapels in America is Caldwell Chapel at the Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. Bishop Sheen prayed here as a student as well as when he came here later to be a professor. He spent nearly a quarter of a century as the Catholic Univer…
Church of the Holy Family in Dayton, Ohio with Mural by Gerhard J. Lamers
One of an array of beautiful churches in southwestern Ohio is the church of the Holy Family in Dayton. Visitors are welcomed by a 1920s Italo-Romanesque Revival gem that was dedicated one hundred years ago. The exact day was Tuesday, Jan. 12, 1926, chosen to be near the dat…
A Collection of Canopies
[This article is simply a photographic survey of various altar canopies coming from various centuries. For more information about altar canopies, please see our article The Altar and It's Canopy from December 2022.]
The Roman Rite in the Holy Land: Feast of the Most Holy Sepulchre of Our Lord Jesus Christ
In the Latin Patriarchate, July 15th is the feast of the Most Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem. Not many people know this special liturgical celebration exists, but it is an ancient Latin Rite feast that has some really beautiful prayers. In the Patriarchate of Jerusalem it is c…
The Madonna Della Pace Icon in Venice
In past articles we have looked at some important important Byzantine icons in Venice -- specifically the Madonna Nicopeia (located in the Basilica of San Marco) and the Madonna della Salute (located in the Basilica of Santa Maria della Salute). Today we are going to take a…
The Renovation of Immaculate Conception Catholic Church in Omaha, Nebraska
Immaculate Conception Church in Omaha, Nebraska was constructed in the early twentieth century when still served by the Order of Friars Minor. By our own time, the parish was in need of some re-vivification and re-enchantment, and so it was that Erik Bootsma Architecture an…
Bishop Sheen's Private Chapel in NYC
Bishop Sheen was a national celebrity of the electronic age. This unique role began from the time he was first on radio in 1928. Then in 1950 he was named the National Director of the Society for the Propagation of the Faith. His national recognition reached a new level whe…
Book Review: Sacred Signs by Romano Guardini
It brings great satisfaction to see Sacred Signs by Romano Guardini in print as one of the new 'OS JUSTI THEOLOGICAL CLASSICS' (a series of wonderful books edited by our good friend, Dr. Peter Kwasniewski). This treasure is a gem of the early Liturgical Movement in …
House Chapel of the Institute of the Good Shepherd in Rome
The Casa San Clemente is the religious house of the Istituto del Buon Pastore in Rome. The renovated apartments include a house chapel in a designated room with a beautiful altar dedicated to Pope St. Clement of Rome. Romans have a great devotion to St. Clement, who was the…
Before and After: St. Scholastica's Church in Erie, Colorado
What do you do when you have a small parish church that needs some "re-enchanting" but, being a small church after all, you clearly won't have endless budget at your disposal? While I do not know the situation of St. Scholastica, I think it fair to say that m…
Griccia Franciscan Alb in Assisi
This alb in on display at the Basilica of St. Francis is Assisi. It was made in Umbria of pure linen in the 17th-19th century. The border was made with gold thread, red silk, ands sequin embroidery -- thought to date from the 17th century. The linen is probably from the ear…
Examples of the Pax Instrument (Instrumentum Pacis) Featuring Ss. Peter and Paul
The "instrumentum pacis," "pax brede" or "pax" has various names, but its function is always the same: it is a small hand held tablet used as a way of passing the liturgical sign of peace amidst the clerics within the context of the Mass. (For…
A Moveable 'Altarpiece' From New Jerusalem Studios
At St. Mary's High School in Phoenix, Arizona, New Jerusalem Studios -- a family run business that focuses on the creation of large scale sacred art murals -- was engaged to help in the creation and execution of a new mural. The mural was commissioned for the occasion o…
A Successful Synthesis of Gothic Revival and Mid-Century Modern
One of the more common ways in which Catholic churches and chapels today get 're-enchanted' is by reclaiming liturgical appointments from historic parishes and repurposing them into new settings. Such is the case of St. Dominic Catholic Church in Brick Township, New…
Before and After: Holy Name Catholic Church in Sheridan, Colorado
Partnering with Integration Design Group , Holy Name Catholic Church in Sheridan, Colorado recently underwent a noteworthy renovation. Now this particular parish church was originally built in the mid-1960's with some later interior renovations taking place in the late 1…
The Ancient Roman Diptych of Ss. Peter and Paul
Located within the Vatican Museums in Rome are two very interesting, and small, depictions of the apostles Ss. Peter and Paul. Originally these took the form of a diptych -- meaning that the two portraits were connected in the middle in such a way that they could be closed …
An Early Christian Reliquary Chest: The Late Antique Capsella Reliquiario of Grado
Housed in the Treasury of the Basilica of Sant'Eufemia in Grado is a silver reliquary chest that is dated to circa A.D. 500. The chest is quite small, measuring only around 11.4cm (4.5") long, 6.8cm (3.5") high and 6.8cm (2.7") wide and as such, it is w…
A Survey of Some Byzantine Sculptural Works
When you think of ecclesiastical art in the East, we naturally think of the (painted) icon, but did you know that the East also has a rich sculptural tradition? The sculptural tradition of the Christian East tends to mainly situate itself within the earlier centuries of Byz…
A Robust, Hand, Wood-Carved Statue of St. John the Baptist
For the feast of St. John the Baptist, we have the opportunity to share another hand-carved statue coming from the polychromed series of saints that have een coming out of the workshop of Hape Sculpture , located in Val Gardena, a beautiful valley set within the Dolomites of…
The Oldest Church in Paris: Saint-Julien-le-Pauvre
The wonderful parish of Saint-Julien-le-Pauvre is a favorite church in Paris, located just a few minutes walk from the famous Notre Dame Cathedral. From its attached rose garden tourists and pilgrims alike take photos of the massive cathedral, rising across the river on an …
Watts and Co.'s Pugin Inspired 'Holy Name' Vestments
Watts & Co of London is well enough known for its long history and tradition of hand-embroidered Catholic vestments as well as its beautiful range of distinctive silk damask chasubles in general. One of their most popular ranges are their Holy Name vestments which are …
The Tradition of Handwoven Liturgical Rugs
In Catholic lands there is a longstanding custom of hand-knotted liturgical rugs. Of course this is the complete opposite of carpet, which does not belong in church, mainly due to the value of acoustics. Rugs on the other hand, when artistic and suitable for the sacred litu…
The Basilica of Santa Prassede: Chapel of St. Zenon
One of the oldest and most important churches in Rome is Santa Prassede (in Latin: Basilica Sanctae Praxedis ). Here is where Sts. Cyril and Methodius lived while in Rome in the adjoining Benedictine monastery complex. Here visitors gather to see the pray before one of the c…
The Sixth Century Archepiscopal Throne of St. Maximianus of Ravenna
Ravenna is, of course, famous for its Italo-Byzantine churches and mosaics, however a relic that frequently gets less attention is the beautiful carved episcopal throne of the sainted archbishop of Ravenna, Maximianus (+556). Before we discuss the throne in particular, let&…
A French Chalice and Paten at the Louvre Museum
Recently while touring the Louvre in Paris with a priest friend, we noticed this rare gem. In some ways a miracle, given that the lion's share of ecclesiastical metalware in France went missing during the French Revolution and the Napoleonic Wars, stolen and looted by r…
Silk, Light and Texture: A New Cope from Atelier LAVS
The Italian firm, Atelier LAVS , have been featured here before, most especially their especially splendid precious mitres which are always immediately identifiable when seen worn on the heads of Catholic prelates today -- which they frequently are, particularly within Italy…
Harrison Design and the Church of Mary Our Queen in Peachtree Corners, Georgia
The architects at Harrison Design , a firm based out of Atlanta, Georgia with various other satellite offices, undertood a project in recent years to design a new church for the parish of Mary, Our Queen in Peachtree Corners, Georgia. Harrison Design themselves note that the…
Further Examples of the Formale Coming in Other Forms
In two previous articles we covered the topic of the formale -- a decorative clasp used by senior prelates when wearing the cope, placed over the spot where the cope connects at the front. The first article covered the general history of the formale , while our more recent …
The Venerable Archconfraternity of the Most Holy Trinity of Pilgrims and Convalescents
In Catholic countries, as in the Diocese of Rome, the role of the (arch)confraternity plays an undisputed role. It follows a very successful model that helps keep serious church members - and especially men - volunteering and actively involved in church life.
French Engraver François Houat's 1694 Edition of the Missale Romanum
Typography and liturgical printing are one of those areas that frequently get neglected in our contemporary considerations of the liturgical arts and yet a well published liturgical book is not only of practical value, it is also yet another manifestation of the beauty that…
An Early Eighteenth Century Monstrance Gifted by Pope Benedict XIII
The Terra Sancta Museum in the Holy Land has many important and prominent treasures of liturgical art within their collections and while we only just recently shared some of their monstrances, with Corpus Christi being observed in many places this past weekend, we couldn…
Boldly Coloured Copes from Sixteenth, Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries
The dominant design trends for vestments in recent centuries has gone something like this: some sort of damask is used over the entirety of the vestment, with galloons separating the orphreys form the rest of the design. Sometimes, the orphreys might be gold, however, to di…
Three Monstrances from the Collections of the Terra Sancta Museum
Within the collections of the Terra Sancta Museum are many stunning monstrances and to honour this time of the year I thought we would look at just three examples coming from their collections. The first monstrance we will look at today was crafted in Paris during the ninet…
Markos Kampanis' Romanesque Image of Christ in Majesty at Mary Help of Christians Parish in Chester, Illinois
M arkos Kampanis is a painter and muralist based in Athens, Greece. As one might expect, his work is heavily influenced by the Byzantine iconographic tradition, but the scope and potential of his work also extends well beyond that, seeking to "bridge tradition and moder…
The Fresco of the Annunciation at Wadi al-Natroun Monastery in Egypt
When one thinks of Coptic art, one tends to think of very highly stylized icons. Now of course, most icons in the iconographic tradition are highly stylized, including Byzantine and Russian icons for example, but the Coptic tradition took it to a whole other level, with ico…
A Set of Gold Vestments with the Trinitarian Eye
One of the most popularly misunderstood symbols in some parts of the world is that comprised of a triangle with an eye placed within it. Now symbols are the sort of thing that can have various meanings assigned (or re-assigned) to them of course, but within a Western Christ…
Beauty and Catechetical Symbolism: Sacra Domus Aurea's New Pentecost Set
Before we leave the great feast and Octave of Pentecost for yet another year, I wanted to share the following vestment that recently came out of the atelier of Sacra Domus Aurea , an atelier based out of Italy that specializes in vestments of various cuts and styles, all of …
Pentecost Vestments from Nineteenth Century France
For our final Pentecost consideration during what remains of the traditional observance of the Octave of Pentecost, I thought we would take a brief look at some nineteenth century, French vestments. The vestments in question are absolutely indicative of the French style and…
Croci Dipinte: Hand-Painted Italian Crucifixes by the Dal Molin Stefano
Medieval Italian crucifixes are something both distinctive and appealing. The most famous medieval, Italianate crucifix is, without a doubt, the famed San Damiano crucifix associated with St. Francis of Assisi, though there are of course others. Crucifixes such as these are…
Antependia for Pentecost
As we continue our Pentecost considerations this week, I wished to turn our readers attention to various antependia -- that is to say, altar frontals -- which would have been specifically intended for use on Pentecost Sunday, as well as the entire octave of Pentecost as wel…
The Chartres Pilgrimage (Pèlerinage de Chartres)
The Chartres Pilgrimage, also known as the Le Pèlerinage de Chartres, is a walking pilgrimage organized each year in France in conjunction with the liturgical feast known as the Solemnity of Pentecost (Whitsunday). It draws roughly 20,000+ participants from 22 countries, ma…
The Local and Universal Church: A Unique Quebecois Themed Vestment for Pentecost
Over the years we have presented a variety of Pentecost themed vestments. Most of these vestments include the usual elements of the Pentecost dove, while some have included symbols of Pentecost fire, but today we are going to feature something a little bit different. It is …
Antonello Gagini's Exquisite 'Madonna di Trapani' in Palermo
Earlier in the month, we did an article on a beautiful, classical like statue of the Madonna of Trapani found in the Basilica santuario di Maria Santissima Annunziata in Trapani, Sicily and today we are pleased to be able to present another "Madonna of Trapani," t…
Rugo Stone and McCrery Architects Team Up at Holy Spirit Church in Annandale, Virginia
R ugo Stone and McCrery Architects combined their respective talents at Holy Spirit Catholic Church in Annandale, Virginia in the year 2021 for a project that involved the installation of new and beautiful stone altars, sanctuary pavement, mosaic works and two pieces of cust…
