Everyone should know that angels exist. But how would you react to meeting an angel who descended to earth like lightning before your very eyes? If you were superhuman or supremely holy you might sit down and have a conversation with him about his “dazzling robes” as the Gospel of Luke describes them (Luke [...]
“I think Mother Nature was trying to create one tiny perfect jewel, and she got it perfectly right.” ~The Hummingbird Whisperer The video below will be the most delightful two minutes you will spend today. It features a charming French lady who is sometimes called, “that crazy hummingbird lady” or, more commonly, “the hummingbird [...]
Harry Clarke was his name. He was an absolute master at creating wonder with bits of colored glass and light. Even surpassing Louis Comfort Tiffany, who I consider one of the best of our age, Clarke may hold the title for the greatest stained glass artist of all time. He certainly can lay claim [...]
“Color is to the eye what music is to the ear.” ~ Louis Comfort Tiffany The name Tiffany usually calls to mind fine jewelry, which is thanks to Charles Lewis Tiffany (1812-1902), whose enterprising work established what today we know as Tiffany & Co. Historian Paul Johnson said that Charles Lewis, originally a merchant [...]
The first recorded piece of human art is believed to be a tiny, 30,000-year-old sculpture of a goddess found in Australia (called the Venus of Willendorf). The extraordinary Lascaux caves in southern France give us a record of Stone Age man (15,000 years ago) telling of his hunting exploits in remarkable cave drawings. From [...]
His name was Verrocchio (sounds like Pinocchio). That’s the short answer to our title question. Andrea del Verrocchio (1435-1488) was a Florentine master of arts and the tutor to the young Leonardo da Vinci. The longer description of Verrocchio is quite engaging. He was a man who had an enormous influence on the world [...]
Do angels intervene in sacraments? We know from our earliest instructions in the faith that angels exist and are concerned about our welfare. Anyone who has learned the traditional Guardian Angel Prayer (“Angel of God”) knows that they are sent “to light, to guard, to rule and guide” us throughout life. (See the text [...]
During the Advent season, we bring you an inspirational piece of Renaissance music that is based on a quote from St. John’s gospel. Nearly five hundred years old, this hymn has a timeless beauty that will be a gift to our world for as long as there are voices to sing it. But first [...]
The title of this article is a quote from a favorite book of mine by Fr. Thomas Dubay, entitled The Evidential Power of Beauty: Science and Theology Meet (Ignatius Press: 1999). In it he discusses the vast wonder of the created world. He, more than anyone I’ve read, sees the natural world as a [...]
Have you ever found yourself so transfixed by the beauty of something that you become totally absorbed in it, or found yourself listening to a single piece of music over and over because it speaks so deeply to your heart and soul? That is what happens to me each time I listen to the [...]