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[German Version] (Matisse-Chapel, 1947–1951). As a favorite to Sister Jacques-Marie, his former nurse, the renowned painter, H. Matisse, agreed to advise upon the construction plans for a new chapel. The elderly artist recognized the rare opportunity of a complete environment dedicated to his art. He seized the moment, becoming architectural planner, interior designer, and artist as well as the creator of liturgical objects and vestments. He crafted a space filled with mystical light and joyful co…

[German Version] I. New Testament The legend in Mark 9:2–13 proclaims Jesus as Son of God in the presence of his innermost circle of disciples. This is clearly an important compositional element for Mark: the beginning (1:1, 11), middle (9:7), and end (15:39) of the Gospel bear witness to Jesus as God’s Son. The combination with 8:27–33 breaks through Jesus’ incognito and defines his mission – passion (Passion/Passion traditions) and resurrection (II). For a moment, the disciples receive an insight i…

[German Version] I. Ancient Judaism – II. Art I. Ancient Judaism According to Gen 1–5, Adam and Eve were the first human couple. Although the two figures play a major role in ancient Judaism, their importance is often overrated. The tendency to see a widespread myth of Adam in Second Temple sources is connected with the pivotal role of Adam in the Pauline epistles (Rom 5; 1 Cor 15). The fall of Adam and Eve does not play a role in all schools of ancient Judaism. One significant strand of tradition, represented by Jubilees, 1 Enoch, and the Dead Sea Scrolls (cf. …

[German Version] I. Ancient Near Eastern Art – II. Greco-Roman Art – III. Christian Art I. Ancient Near Eastern Art The earliest datable representations of animals in ancient Near Eastern art stem from the Mesolithic Period, and the oldest representations of the human form from the Neolithic Period (reworked male skulls or imitations of the same, cf. Kenyon; stylized or three-dimensional figurines of sitting, corpulent women). Anthropomorphic ¶ (Anthropomorphism) deities are usually distinguished from humans through attributes (for the exception of the “naked…

[German Version] I. History of Religion – II. New Testament – III. Church History – IV. Dogmatics – V. Practical Theology – VI. History of Liturgy – VII. Law – VIII. Missions – IX. Art I. History of Religion From the standpoint of the history of religion, baptism is not a general type of rite (Rite and ritual) but a lustration ritual that is carried out not only in Christianity but also in historically related religions such as …

[German Version] I. History – II. Christian Liturgy – III. Practical Theology – IV. Art History – V. Music I. History 1. Origins. “Christmas,” the nativity feast or birthday celebration of Christ on Dec 25, comes from Middle English Christmesse, Christ's Mass; cf. Dutch Kerstmis. The German Weihnachten, “holy nights,” refers to the twelve days between Dec 24 and Jan 6. The Lat. natalis, dies nativitatis, or nativitas domini nostri Jesu Christi is reflected in Span. navidad, Ital. natale. Gk ἡ γενέθλιος ἡμέρα τὰ γενέθλια, ἡ κατὰ σάρκα γέννησις τοῦ κυρίου/ hēgenéthlios h…

[German Version] I. Names and Terms – II. Religious Studies – III. Ancient Near East and Old Testament – IV. New Testament – V. Church History – VI. Philosophy of Religion – VII. Fundamental Theology – VIII. Dogmatics – IX. Judaism – X. Islam – XI. History of Art and Literature I. Names and Terms 1. Devil The secular Greek noun διάβολος/ diabolos comes from one of the meanings of the verb διαβάλλω/ diaballō, “separate, sever,” which led to meanings such as “accuse, slander, deceive.” From the Greek noun came Latin diabolus, from which the English …

[German Version] (May 22, 1848, Wolkenburg – Feb 25, 1911, Munich), German painter recognized for his depictions of the Christian Scriptures in contemporary, late 19th-century settings. His interest in painting from nature emerged at Mihaly Munkácsy’s painting school in Paris (1879). Returning to Munich in 1880, M. Liebermann encouraged him to paint en plein-air and to reconstruct the works of the Dutch masters with these new cool tones, natural light, and open brushwork. Uhde’s paintings of scenes in the life of Jesus spurred controversy from the very first, Suffer the Little Chil…

[German Version] I. New Testament – II. Early Church – III. History of Art I. New Testament Named after her home town of Magdala on the west bank of the Sea of Gennesareth, she was presumably a prosperous (Luke 8:2f.) businesswoman (for the fishing industry in Magdala=Tarichaeae, see Josephus) who traveled extensively (hence the reference to her place of origin; cf. 15:21, 43). Mary was clearly unmarried (cf. Mark 15:40; Luke 8:3; John 19:25), and her age is unknown. She may have belonged to the same generati…

[German Version] (Jul 15, 1606, Leiden – Oct 4, 1669, Amsterdam), painter and graphic artist. Among the leading European masters of the 17th century, Rembrandt was the chief religious artist of the Protestant tradition. His works were profoundly influenced by those of Caravaggio, Adam Elmsheimer, and P.P. Rubens, especially with regard to advancing tenebrism and dramatic theatricality. Renowned as a portrait painter, he was able to transfer his gift of projecting onto canvas his psychological pene…

[German Version] (from the Lat. bestiarius, “concerning the beasts”). A bestiary is an Old-French moralizing natural history, which merged the 4th-century Greek Physiologus with local myths, legends, and symbols of animals. Rivaling the Bible in popularity, bestiaries described the training, breeding, and medical care of animals (mammals, birds, reptiles, and fish). Typically, a bestiary recounted the history, legends, natural characteristics, and symbolism of 100 animals, while the Greek and Latin editions of the Physiologus described only 49 (or …

[German Version] (baptized Nov 7, 1598, Fuente de Cantos, Spain – Aug 27, 1664, Madrid), Spanish painter, renowned for his devotional images. Zurbarán painted narrative cycles, series, and altarpieces for churches and monasteries throughout southern Spain (Seville, Guadalupe, Jerez). His popular depictions of monks or saints (e.g. St. Francis) in meditation or prayer were simply arranged but emotionally direct. His works affirm his devotion to Mary as he created a significant Marian iconography ( Immaculate Con­ception, 1661). Zurbarán’s later works, painted in Madrid …

[German Version] The liturgical dramas or plays on the theme of Christmas or Christ's Nativity event, the goal of which was the glorification and adoration of God. The initial pedagogical function was to teach the faith through by presenting sacred history and to encourage appropriate moral behavior in a mode accessible to the otherwise illiterate Christian populace. The earliest forms of liturgical dramas were the annual retelling of the scriptural events during the La…

[German Version] I. History of Religions – II. Dance, Gesture, Movement and Religion – III. Dance, Gesture, Movement and the Christian Tradition I. History of Religions In contrast to pure movement, dance consists of intentional, differentiated, recurring and rhythmic elements. Initially, natural rhythms such as the beating of the heart, rainfall or animal sounds were imitated and translated into movement. In early forms of culture, da…

[German Version] The term liturgical art identifies the “tangible expressions of the Christian liturgy – all the objects, vestments, (Vestments, Liturgical) paraments (Vestments/Paraments), liturgical vessels, and instruments fundamental to the celebration and aesthetics of Christian worship. Traditionally liturgical art has distinguished between movable and immovable objects. The principal immovable object is the altar, while the principal movable object is the cross (Cross/Crucifixion). A careful s…

[German Version] from the perspective of art history. Primary avian symbol in the Bible and Christian art. The fundamental significance of the dove is as a symbol for the soul, purification, and the Holy Spirit. In the Hebrew Bible, Noah sent a dove in search of dry land after the Flood. It returned with an olive branch in its beak, evidence that the flood waters had receded. This became the universal sign of peace (Gen 8:11). ¶ The sacrifice of doves was appropriate for the ritual purification of a newborn child according to the …

[German Version] (Aug 24, 1552, Bologna – Aug 11, 1614, Rome), an Italian painter, trained by her father, Prospero Fontana. Her work balances influences of Antonio Allegri Correggio (c. 1489–1534) and Sebastiano Piombo (c. 1485–1547) with Mannerism and emergent Bolognese style. She was renowned as a portrait and history painter. Fontana was the first woman to be named official painter to the papal court under Clement VII and to be elected to the Rome Academy. Not an iconographic innovator, she cre…

[German Version] (Feb 2, 1846, Sorau, Niederlausitz – Feb 5, 1924, Frankfurt am Main), painter and graphic designer. His first commission was bookmarks and illustrations for Geschichte von der Geburt unseres Herrn Jesus Christus (1869). He obtained an honorary doctorate in theology from the Halle faculty. As “Protestant painter” he received civil and church commissions: Christ und die Kinder (1888) and Allegorie der Erziehungsgedanken antiker and christlicher Kunst (1899–1902). Diane Apostolos-Cappadona Bibliography Works include: “Christentum, Religion und Kunst,” GlWis …

[German Version] (Feb 19, 1876, Hobita, Romania – Mar 16, 1957, Paris), modernist sculptor. Brancusi spent his childhood in Romania. He studied at the Bucharest School of Fine Arts and in 1905 entered the École Nationale des Beaux-Arts. In 1906 he exhibited his works in the Salon des Beaux-Arts, and he apprenticed at A. Rodin 's studio in 1907. …

[German Version] (May 6, 1861, Calcutta – Aug 7, 1941, Shantiniketan, West Bengal), author, philosopher, educator, and social reformer. Tagore was the first Asian to win the Nobel Prize for literature (1913). He founded his school, Santiniketan (Abode of Peace), in 1901, and his Visva-Bharati (World University) in 1921; both were premised on the integration of the arts and spirituality into rural reconstruction, social values, and East-West understanding. A polymath, Tagore corresponded extensivel…