The work of the Maltese artist, Manuel Farrugia, is something we have featured here before, beginning with his Ecstasy of St. Teresa and more recently The Glory of St. Dominic . Today we are pleased to be able to present another project which he has worked on for the Basili…
Fresco of the Nativity of Mary by Manuel Farrugia for the Senglease Basilica
The work of the Maltese artist, Manuel Farrugia, is something we have featured here before, beginning with his Ecstasy of St. Teresa and more recently The Glory of St. Dominic . Today we are pleased to be able to present another project which he has worked on for the Basili…
A Maundy Thursday Chasuble by the Dominican Sisters of Galway
The following chasuble was embroidered by the Dominican Sisters located in Galway, Ireland, however beyond that basic detail I have very little additional information -- so our readers will perhaps permit me to speculate on it a bit. Much in the style and design of the chas…
Repositorium Sanctae Eucharistiae - Historical Modes of Eucharistic Reservation: The Sacrament Tower
Throughout the course of history there has been more than one method of reserving the Eucharist. In our own time we are especially familiar with the model of a metal or stone tabernacle being integrated onto an altar or altar like structure -- whether a central high altar, …
The Roman Empire and the Early Roman Martyrs
At this time of the year I find my mind turns toward the Roman martyrs. This is no doubt for reason of anticipation of the great feast of Ss. Peter and Paul -- both of whom were martyred in Rome of course. In view of this, I thought it might be worthwhile to share some br…
Elements of the Byzantine Holy Table (Altar)
While our primary focus here at LAJ is the Latin rite, it is certainly of value and interest to round out some of our considerations with the Eastern lung of the Church and today I wanted to share with our readers some considerations of the altar -- or what they call the &q…
The Early Eighteenth Century Abbatial Church of St. Maurice in Ebermunster, France
L'Eglise St. Maurice is the former abbey church of the Benedictines of Ebermunster and while the church, like the name of the village itself, has a distinctly Austrio-Germanic tone to it, it is actually located in France. This influence is perhaps made all the more und…
Exhibition Features the Traditional Choir Dress of a Cathedral-Basilica's Founding Bishop
We were pleased to be sent the following photos from the curator of an exhibition taking place at the Cathedral Basilica of St. Mary's in Covington, Kentucky. That basilica recently dedicated additions to their facade and as part of their celebrations they established a…
Hand Illuminated Altar Cards by Pelican Printery House
Elizabeth Lemme of Pelican Printery House was recently commissioned by one of the new priests of the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter to create a customized set of hand-illuminated altar cards for him -- inclusive of a request to put the cards into an ordering of his choosi…
The Corpus Christi Canopy Preserved and Handed Down
My home parish of Saint Agnes in Saint Paul, Minnesota has done a superb job over the years preserving the custom of a beautiful annual Corpus Christi procession. This is an event that serious Catholics cherish, something they look forward to each year, something their chi…
Neopolitan Pentecost Antependium from 1731
If you think you've seen metallic antependia before, you may want to take a second look at this stunning example that was gifted by the Kingdon of Naples to the Custodia of the Holy Land in 1731. This Neopolitan frontal is set in gold and silver and includes a level of …
The Ongoing Revival of Liturgical Embroidery at Sacra Domus Aurea
The atelier of Sacra Domus Aurea has been quite busy in recent months with a number of new additions to their collection of embroidered works -- works that frequently utilize a nice mixture of historical as well as original design work -- so it seems like a good time to cat…
The Rite of the Blessing of the Sword from the Roman Pontifical
In the Catholic tradition the sword holds great lyrical symbolism in the Christian imagination. Chesterton says of soldiers: "A real soldier does not fight because he has something that he hates in front of him. He fights because he has something that he loves behind…
FilAurum: Catholic Vestments, Tabernacle Veils and More
F ilAurum , a vestment maker based out of Oxford, England, has its name derived from two Latin words: " filo " (thread) and " aurum " (gold), meaning "gold thread," in reference to the beautiful goldwork embroidery of traditional vestments. The vocat…
The Sources and Shape of the Carthusian Liturgy
[The following was originally published in 1940-41 in Magnificat , a quarterly liturgical periodical published in Great Britain. To augment the original article, we have added images which are not part of the original piece.]
The Liturgical Life of Nuns: the Little Office of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Sometimes the liturgical life of nuns is overlooked. Many orders of nuns participate daily in the recitation of the Mass and Office. Some convents in the monastic tradition have a daily sung conventual Mass and they sing the Breviary. Alternatively, others have historica…
St. John Cantius in Chicago: Longtime Centre for Liturgical Arts
St. John Cantius (they also operate Biretta Books , suppliers of everything from books to vestments) is one of the most impressive parishes in the United States and reputedly has one of the finest sacred music programs in North America. Every time I have found myself in Chi…
The Painted Antependia of George James Cutajar Zahra
Antependia are most frequently seen in textile form of course, but they also take other forms including metallic frontals as well as painted. We were recently contacted by a Maltese artist, George James Cutajar Zahra , about two antependia he was recently commissioned to pai…
Clear Creek Abbey Revisited: A Triumph of Modern Classicism in the Romanesque Footprint
In the history of the Church the Benedictines have always played a key role in the formation and preservation of Christendom. Since the time of St. Benedict each Benedictine monastery has been a little self-contained world, a "school of the service of the Lord," …
Pentecost as Depicted in the Art of Liturgical Books
The liturgical books of old were frequently characterized by their beauty, not only in the ornamentality of their binding, but also within in their art. What is well enough known to many is, of course, the full page crucifixion plate that sits opposite the Canon Missae / Ca…
A Sicilian Pontifical Set for Pentecost
As we are within the octave of Pentecost, we wanted to continue our tradition of sharing some Pentecost themed vestments around this time of the liturgical year and today we turn our attention to a set coming out of a Sicily. The set in question is made from red silk taffet…
The Abbey of Our Lady of Ephesus
The Rule of St. Benedict is, in many respects, one of the most significant documents in the history of the Church. Little wonder that from this Holy Rule grew in the ensuing centuries thousands of monasteries which became in time not only centers of religious life but also…
Rome and the Barberini Bees
Rome is a city filled with buildings where the symbol of the papal tiara and keys are nearly omnipresent. It would seem as though every other building sees its presence. But if the papal tiara and keys in general are first and foremost in this regard, it is closely followed…
New Altarpiece for the Dominican Church of Vittoriosa, Malta: "The Glory of St. Dominic" by Manuel Farrugia
We are pleased to present a painting representing "The Glory of St. Dominic" that was recently installed within the Dominican church of the Annunciation in Vittoriosa, Malta. The artist is a Maltesian named Manuel Farrugia and the painting itself depicts St. Domin…
The New Carmel in Wyoming: the Monks of the Most Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel
Yellowstone National Park and its surrounding national forests is a vacationland that is world renowned, where untouched lands and alpine vistas dip down to sheltered fjords, rock-walled gorges and flower-decked mountain fields. Located in the hinterlands near the edge is …
Liturgical Notes on Ceremonial Variations in the Use of the Paten in the Latin Liturgical Rites
The paten is a Eucharistic vessel that comes in the form of small circular disc, or plate, upon which the unleavened bread that the priest will consecrate sits. This vessel may well seem like an unlikely subject for discussion but for those interested in the Western liturgi…
Discalced Carmelite Monastery of Our Mother of Mercy and Saint Joseph
The liturgical arts are alive and well at the Carmel in Alexandria, South Dakota. Each year Our Lord leads various Catholic women here on the road to discernment, while others perhaps stumble upon it while on a road trip to see nearby Mt. Rushmore, a national memorial in t…
Liturgical Arts in South Dakota (Diocese of Rapid City)
Each year the famous backdrop of Mt. Rushmore National Memorial in the beautiful Black Hills and the nearby Badlands National Park of South Dakota attract many thousands of tourists to Rapid City from across the nation and world. These people make the journey to the untame…
New Statue of Our Lady for Oslo by Granda
The St John the Evangelist Parish in Groruddalen was established in 2013 to serve the growing Catholic community in Oslo. During the last few months Granda's workshop has produced this precious statue of Our Lady with the Child Jesus that has recently been installed in …
The Bronze Snake of Moses in the Basilica of Sant'Ambrogio, Milan
The Basilica of Saint Ambrose in Milan is surely one of the most interesting and spectacular churches of that venerable primatial See. It is filled with numerous treasures, not least of which the relics of St. Ambrose himself, located in the crypt church beneath the high al…
Newly Carved Reliquary Busts from King Richard's
Reliquary busts are something we have shown here before, usually originating in places such as Italy from the 15th through 19th centuries. While many find them of interest, it can be very easy to assume that these items are themselves consigned to be relics to the past, no …
