THE CHURCH AND COMMERCE, INDUSTRY, SCIENCES, AND ARTS. (By the Very Rev. T. Le Menant des Chesnais, S.M.)

New Zealand Tablet, Volume 51, Issue 51, 22 April 1898, Page 5

THE CHURCH AND COMMERCE, INDUSTRY, SCIENCES, AND ARTS. (By the Very Rev. T. Le Menant des Chesnais, S.M.)

IX. — PAINTING, SCULPTURE, AND ARCHITECTURE. The origin of Christian art may be traced to the Catacombs of Rome. There it is that the first Christians painted on the walls those extraordinary sketches so much valued as an expression of the faith and manners of the early days of Christianity. How simple* yet how true and grandiose, their Biblical allegories : the dove, with its olive branch, returning to the ark, an emblem of the faithful soul admitted into the Church, and thence into heaven ; the phoenix rising again from its ashes, a symbol of the immortality of the soul ; the Good Shepherd in search of the strayed sheep, or bringing it back on His shoulders to the fold, so vividly representing the love of Jesus for sinners ; the history of the Patriarch of Idumea (Job), so well calculated to animate Christians to bear persecutions with resignation ; Daniel in the den of lions, signifying the providence of God over the just, and the ultimate triumph of piety and innocence ; the passage of the Red Sea and the drowning of the army of King Pharoah, showing how, sooner or later, the wicked are punished by a just and all-seeing God. In reading the inscriptions in the Catacombs, one is perfectly astonished not to find one single word of complaint against the persecutors who so cruelly afflicted them, nor a word of praise on account of the herooic fortitude of the martyrs. The works of Bosio and Bottari are manifest proofs of what I here assert. After the conversion of Constantine, Christian art progressed wonderfully. Superb basilicas were raised in Rome, Constantinople, and the principal towns of Europe and Asia. Mosaic decorations, invented under the Emperor Claudius, were adopted for Christian churches, and, by their durability, they immortalised the works of Christian artists. The image of Christ was placed majestically over the sanctuary, and engraved on gold and silver coins, with the words of the promise made to Constantine: Li hoc signo vinees ("By this sign thou shalt conquer "). The four evangelists ; the images of Sts. Peter and Paul— these two great pillars of the nascent Church ; Christ in the midst of His twelve apostles ; the f our-and-twenty elders prostrate before the Throne of the Lamb— a lively expression of the triumph of Christ over Paganism— became the favourite themes of Christian artists. In order to understand what we have now to say, one should be well acquainted with the rules of CHRISTIAN ICONOGRAPHY. In Christian iconography everything has a symbolical meaning. Thus : The nimbus, which encircles the head alone or the entire figure, denotes a holy person. The nimbus on the head is always vertical, to distinguish it from the crown, which is placed horizontally. When the nimbus encircles not only the head, but the entire body, it is called an aureola. The aureola is restricted to the Divine persons, to the Virgin Mary, or canonised saints. The general idea of the nimbus and aureola is that of apotheosis or glorification. When a nimbus is given to a living person having a great reputation for sanctity, it is invariably square. When both the nimbus and aureola are united together, it is called a glory. In Pagan iconography the nimbus is given to the gods, to kings and emperors, to artists, and to the personification of the constellations. The name of Jehovah, inscribed within a radiating triangle, is an emblem of the Holy Trinity; a hand extended from the clouds, either in the act of blessing or grasping a crown, is an emblem of God the Father ; the lamb, with a cross, is symbolical of Jesus crucified ; the sheep are symbols of the apostles and of faithful souls ; the cross upon a rock, or eminence, represents Christ crucified ; the Good Shepherd is symbolical of the love of Jesus for sinners ; a fish, with the word iclitus, represents the Holy Eucharist, or Jesus as the food of the Christian soul ; the dove is emblematic of the Holy Ghost, and also of the just ; a golden dove, with six wings, represents the Church ; a black bird signifies an evil spirit ; the dragon represents the demon ; a dragon at the feet of a saint means a victory over sin and the world ; the hind, or Btag, is an emblem of solitude and prayer ; the crucifix, held in the hand, signifies a preacher ; the lily is an emblem of purity and chastity ; the crown of thorns is an emblem of sufferings for Christ's sake ; the globe is an emblem of sovereignty : the serpent is an image of sin and Satan— it albo signifies the fall of man : the pomegranate is an ancient emblem of hope ; ears of wheat, in the hand of the infant Jesus, figure the Eucharistic bread, and grapes the Eucharistic Wine or the Blood of Christ, both truly, really, and substantially contained in the Blessed Sacrament ; the olive' is a sign of peace ; the palm is the emblem of martyrs ; the rose is an emblem of love and beauty ; the" cedar, because of its height expresses greatness ; the mitre and pastoral staff signify a bishop or an abbot ; a book in the hand represents a missionary, or the

founder of a religious order ; the whole head shaved represents a monk— a short circle shaved represents a cleric or priest. The following- are the coloursi of the various religious orders :— Black is the colour of the Augustinians, and, later on, of the Servites, the Oratorians, the Jesuits, and the Marists ; white is the colour of the Cistercians, the Camaldulese, the Trinitarians, and the Trappists ; white over black signifies a Carmelite, or Premonstratensian ; black over white represents a Dominican. Of course, modern Orders were not represented by ancients artists ; but as it is useful to know the colours of their habits, I thought it were better to give them here. Next time we shall continue this interesting study.