The All Saints Episcopal Church mandala causes me to reflect on three major themes: First, what Jesus went through in order to accomplish his work. Not just the physical scourging and crucifixion, but one who was sinless was made to be a sin offering (2 Corinthians 5:21). That Good Friday […]
12 o’clock. Keys. Peter. This symbol refers to Matthew 16:18-19. 18 “And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. 19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you […]
11 o’clock. Hatchet and book. Matthias, who replaced Judas (Acts 1). Tradition holds that he was beheaded or first stoned and then beheaded. The scene is depicted in The Martyrdom of Saint Matthias. When the twelve disciples are portrayed together (excluding the Last Supper), Matthias is often used instead of […]
10 o’clock. Sailboat with cross shaped mast. Jude also called Thaddeus or Lebbaeus. The tradition is that Jude traveled widely, and that he was martyred by being clubbed to death. The scene is depicted in another gruesome fresco: The Martyrdom of Jude Thaddeus. In part 15, we move to Matthias […]
9 o’clock. Saw and fish. Simon the Zealot. Known as a relentless fisher of men and believed according to one tradition to have been sawn in half. The scene is depicted in the gruesome fresco: The Martyrdom of Simon the Zealot. We come across some interesting names: James the Greater, […]
We have gone through eight of the apostles. I have focused on their martyrdom and given links to dramatic depictions from Baroque art. Apostle after apostle. Christian or non-Christian; mature Christian or just beginning your walk with Christ; you ask yourself questions about what happened to the Apostles: Why would […]
8 o’clock. Fuller’s club and sword. James the Less, son of Alphaeus. Having ‘the Less’ appended to your first name feels painful. Apparently our second James was given this title either because he was short in stature, or younger than James the son of Zebedee. James is tough to pin […]
7 o’clock. Three bags of money. Matthew the tax collector. As mentioned earlier, Matthew, like many of the apostles, is represented in art by a number of different symbols. The winged man is use to represent him as a Gospel writer. Here, three bags of money are used to represent […]
6 o’clock. Knives. Bartholomew (also likely named as Nathaniel). The tradition is that Bartholomew was flayed and then crucified. In Michelangelo’s painting of the Last Judgment in the Sistine Chapel, Bartholomew is the apostle holding his own skin. Ouch. Hold on Kerry. Are these guys that you are blogging on, […]
5 o’clock. Spear and rope. My best guess is Thomas, who is often referred to as doubting Thomas. The tradition is, that Thomas eventually traveled to India to spread the Gospel. The spear refers to Thomas’ martyrdom by being run through with a spear. While the spear definitely fits with […]
