Beauty beneath the grime: Basilica’s Stations of the Cross undergo restoration July 31, 2014By George P. Matysek Jr. Filed Under: #IamCatholic, Arts & Culture, Baltimore Basilica, Local News, News, Parishes Gently wielding a thin bamboo skewer tipped with a bit of rolled cotton, Nancy R. Pollak gingerly dabbed the painting of Jesus.
In streets of Little Italy, St. Leo parishioners remember Christ’s sacrifice April 18, 2014By George P. Matysek Jr. Filed Under: Arts & Culture, Local News, News For parishioners of St. Leo, the annual Good Friday commemoration was meant to bear witness to Christ’s crucifixion and death.
Christmas stamp features Walters Art Museum treasure by Raphael December 5, 2011By George P. Matysek Jr. Catholic Review Filed Under: Arts & Culture, Local News, News A Raphael masterpiece that hangs in the Walters Art Museum in Baltimore is getting national attention this holiday season as the U.S. Postal Service features the “Madonna of the Candelabra” as one of its 2011 Christmas stamps.
A rare birthday present for St. Joan of Arc November 16, 2011By George P. Matysek Jr. Filed Under: Arts & Culture, Blog, The Narthex Pope Benedict XVI minces no words when he describes the medieval judges who interrogated and sentenced St. Joan of Arc to death 580 years ago. The French clergymen were aligned with St. Joan’s political opponents, the pope said in a Jan. 26 general audience, and they “lacked charity and the humility to see God’s action in […]
Special report: Deep-rooted Polish faith faces secular challenge July 21, 2011By George P. Matysek Jr. Catholic Review Filed Under: Archbishop Mitchell Rozanski, Arts & Culture, Local News, News, World News Poland, one of Europe most Catholic nations, is facing new challenge in the practice of the faith as more people turn to Western secularization.
SPECIAL REPORT: Baltimore has special connection to popularizing devotion to the Infant of Prague July 14, 2011By George P. Matysek Jr. Catholic Review Filed Under: Arts & Culture, Local News, News, World News Every year, more than 1 million pilgrims from around the globe travel to the Czech Republic, praying in front of the Infant of Prague. They carry on a practice that stretches back hundreds of years.
Catholic artist inspires with personal paintings July 15, 2010By George P. Matysek Jr. Catholic Review Filed Under: Arts & Culture, Local News, News D’Adamo hopes to share his Catholic faith and help others find a closer connection with their faith through art. His work, which includes gripping images of God, Moses and moments from the life of Christ, was featured in an art exhibit last fall at St. Ignatius in Baltimore.
Walters displays illuminated Scriptures February 19, 2009By George P. Matysek Jr. Filed Under: Arts & Culture, Local News, News Its transparent wings beating in a flutter of motion, the locust almost seems ready to jump from the calf-skin parchment on which it is painted. Resting on a delicately arching green leaf, the insect is a physical reminder of a passage in the sacred text that fills the page.
Girl depicted in statue says Polish pope changed her life December 11, 2008By George P. Matysek Jr. Catholic Review Filed Under: Arts & Culture, Local News, News As Melissa Brent crept closer to the 7-foot, 850-pound bronze statue, not even a steady late-November rain could dampen her joy.
Clarksville parish becoming hub for classical music June 14, 2007By George P. Matysek Jr. Catholic Review Filed Under: Arts & Culture, Local News, News “Down through the centuries the Catholic Church has always been a great patron both of the visual and musical arts,” said Monsignor Luca. “It’s in that spirit we would like to offer these concerts to all the people of our community.”
Basilica windows sparkle in new home December 21, 2006By George P. Matysek Jr. Catholic Review Filed Under: Arts & Culture, Baltimore Basilica, Local News, News On a recent sunny afternoon, the stained glass windows at St. Louis in Clarksville sparkled with a radiance few could have imagined when they stood in their original home at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Baltimore. Illuminated by the mid-day sun, brilliant shades of cobalt blue, deep purples and fiery reds seemed to leap from the glass and command a visitor’s gaze.
James Goettsche, Vatican organist, pulls out all the stops September 22, 2005By George P. Matysek Jr. Filed Under: Arts & Culture, Local News, News For the last 16 years, he has served as principal organist of the Basilica of St. Peter in the Vatican and organist to the pope – the first American to hold either post.