Articles Under: Liturgical Catechesis

To view a full resolution of this artwork on a smartboard, click here . In the traditional hierarchy of painting, still life has often been viewed as the lowest genre to pursue. While history and religious painting served a moral or spiritual purpose, frequently involving an engaging narrative or drama, still life painting served to depict believable props rather than focusing on the objects themselves. This changed in the Dutch Golden Age as commercial prosperity in the port cities increased the wealth of the 17th-century middle class. With interest in beautifying their homes, the modest still life increased in popularity,... Read more

I suspect that most Catholics who have some familiarity with the Bible and the Eucharist could tell you that the Eucharistic celebration, rooted in the Last Supper, has connections with the Passover of Exodus and Jewish practice. We know that Jesus celebrated the Last Supper in the context of the Passover Feast and that he and his apostles used some of the same foods used at Passover, such as unleavened bread and wine. I’m not sure that most of us, however, appreciate the depth of the connections. They are not just historical or biblical trivia, either—they reveal the profundity of... Read more

There is an interesting phenomenon that occurs in nearly every culture across history: man ritualizes worship. All over the world the similarities are astounding—animal sacrifices, burnt offerings, gifts of grain, the joy of ecstatic praise. It points to a universal sense within man that not only recognizes that there is a God but also knows that man is called to represent the created order before the Creator. This universal orientation toward the divine can help us recognize what it means to become Eucharistic missionaries. A Little World Man is similar to the dust of the earth, the plants that grow,... Read more

In his important apostolic letter Dies Domini (“Keeping the Lord’s Day Holy”), St. John Paul II argues that to rest is to re-member (put together again) the sacred work of creation on the day set aside for worship, thus orienting times of rest toward a deeper contemplation of God’s vision of humanity. “Rest therefore acquires a sacred value: the faithful are called to rest not only as God rested, but to rest in the Lord, bringing the entire creation to him, in praise and thanksgiving, intimate as a child and friendly as a spouse.” [i] The human need for rest... Read more