Abstract This paper discusses Saint Peter's Cathedral, situated in the Vatican, Italy. Saint Peter's Cathedral, also known as the Basilica of Saint Peter, stands in what was once the Circus of Nero in Rome, where Saint Peter was crucified in 61 A.D. In around 200 A.D., an altar was constructed at the site and Saint Peter's body was buried beneath it. It examines its architecture and history, the way it was, the way it has changed over time and the way it is today. It looks at how it serves as the home church for the Pope and is a glowing testament to the art and architecture of the Renaissance, one of the most influential periods in world culture.
From the Paper "Saint Peter's contributed to the art world in many ways. Artists were in great demand to paint the many walls and ceilings, and contribute to art works to be placed in the cathedral, so many artists were kept busy in Italy during the time, thereby increasing the awareness and employment in the arts. There are also many mosaics is the church, so a wide variety of artisans were kept busy for decades decorating the massive structure. Art flourished during the Renaissance, and Saint Peter's kept artisans busy, and helped them develop new methods for their crafts, as Michelangelo did when he created the iron beam system to support the massive concrete dome (Editors)."
Abstract A paper on the crucifixion of Jesus. The paper explores what exactly was done to him and why he chose to die. The paper explains that crucifiction was unanimously considered the most horrible form of death, worse even then burning, since the "cross" precedes "burning" in the law-books.
Abstract This paper traces the history of the Jewish people from the age of the patriarchs to when Abraham and his descendants were selected as the chosen people and to the nomadic period after the Jewish exodus from Egypt. The paper goes on to discuss the time that the Jewish people came to and lived in Israel after the exodus from Egypt, the time of King Solomon, the exile of the Jewish people from Israel, and the life of the Jewish people under Persian, Greek, and Roman rule. The paper concludes the historical account at the period just after the Romans crucified Jesus.
From the Paper "The Hebrews do not actually appear in history until about 1224-1211 B.C.E. during the reign of Marniptah, king of Egypt (Ancient pg). Marniptah was the son of Raamses I, 1290-1223 B.CE, who is thought to be the kind of Egypt at the time of the Hebrew exodus (Ancient pg). In an account of Marniptah's military campaign in Asia, 1220 B.C.E., inscribed in granite is listed all the conquered peoples including the Israelites, who are mentioned as "now living in Canaan" (Ancient pg). Before this, the only history is that which was written by the Hebrews themselves who trace their origins to a "single individual, Abraham, who comes originally from Mesopotamia" (Ancient pg). This pre-Egyptian Hebrew history is referred to as the age of the patriarchs, which means father-ruler (Ancient pg). More than a thousand years had passed before this era of history was written down, and although it is impossible to date, most scholars place it somewhere between 1950-1500 B.C.E. (Ancient pg)."
Abstract This paper discusses how, by utilizing the best-established facts surrounding this topic, the question as to what really happened after Jesus Christ was crucified at Golgotha can be addressed with some certainty, while allowing room for much speculation. It looks at how a majority of contemporary Christian scholars, who study the Holy Bible and, especially, the New Testament, genuinely believe that the disciples saw the risen Jesus after his crucifixion, whereas the lack of hard data to support this belief leads others to believe that the story is, in fact, a myth.
From the Paper "In support of the information that Paul, Peter and James supplied about the resurrection of Jesus Christ, it is clear that the disciples experienced some kind of visual manifestation, for "it is almost impossible to dispute that at the historical roots of Christianity lie some visionary experiences. . . understood as appearances of Jesus, raised by God from the dead" (West, 235). But is it truly as clear as West maintains? Could the apostles have possibly fabricated all the material with the intention that it serve as the basis for their new religion, being Christianity? Logically, any new religion must have converts and the information provided to these converts must be strong and infallible, for without a solid foundation to lie upon, the entire structure will collapse."
Abstract This paper explains that, although these religious undertones may not be seen during the first reading, Flannery O?Connor writes stories that reflect her strong Roman Catholic faith. The author points out that in her encounter with The Misfit, the Grandmother increasingly calls on her religion to restore The Misfit's faith, thus hoping to save her own life. The paper relates that, after being shot, the Grandmother and God finally have come to peace; her legs are crossed in a position similar to that of Jesus on the cross upon which he is said to have been crucified.
From the Paper "After all of the other attempts to get through to The Misfit, the Grandmother starts to see The Misfit from a Jesus-like perception. It is at that same moment, while looking into The Misfit's face, that the grandmother's head clears and states to him, "Why you"re one of my babies?. The church teaches us that we are all God's children no matter what we do or say. It is from these teachings that The Grandmother comes to realize this life altering realization. Simultaneously, the grandmother "recognizes briefly and dimly that she and The Misfit are bound together by the mystery of life and death" which is something up until now "she has able to ignore". The Misfit and grandmother are spiritually connected to each other by the blood and body of Christ that are said to be given in order to free one of sin. When the grandmother reaches out to touch The Misfit and become one with him that he "spring back as if a snake had bitten him and shot her three times through the chest". ?
Abstract This paper discusses the question of who was responsible for killing Jesus. A "Newsweek" article on this topic is analyzed, providing the framework for answering this question. The paper presents leading questions and supplies the answers that lead to the ultimate conclusion.
From the Paper "The actual truth about past events, as far as accuracy is concerned, is difficult to guarantee. This is because of the fact that one cannot really rely on accounts that may have been recorded with bias. However, the records about the life of Christ, His trial, and His death, are believed to be considerably accurate. This may be asserted because of the fact that, to a great extent, the four Gospels of Mathew, Mark, Luke and John, directly relate to each other in descriptions of events that took place in the life of Christ. Also, whatever came to pass in the life of Christ was prophesized in the Jewish scriptures much in advance of Christ's birth. Hence, there is little room left for skepticism if one takes into account the authenticity of dates and times in these recordings."
Abstract This paper explains that Catholic belief states that Jesus did not divide himself into three different parts--the Father, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit--but rather Jesus continually reflected the wishes of his Father. The author points out that beginning with the first miracle Jesus performed until his last miracle on earth, the purpose of each miracle was to glorify God and to show that his authority came from God. The paper relates that Jesus agreed to come to earth as a baby, perform a ministry and to be crucified to express the glory of God, which continues today. The paper includes several quotations.
Table of Contents:
Miracles of Jesus and How They Expressed God
Jesus' Love Reflects God
Jesus Reflects God by His Ministry
From the Paper "Jesus expresses his love for mankind by becoming a human. "At the same time the Church has always acknowledged that in the body of Jesus 'we see our God made visible and so are caught up in the love of the God we cannot see." The church recognizes the love Jesus had for mankind because the human form of Jesus was created as a gift of love to mankind. The human form of Jesus showed the individual characteristics God has toward people including his great love. Jesus as a human expresses the divine nature of God."
Tags: crucifixion, miracle, love, characteristics, father
Abstract This paper presents a formal, iconographic and historical analysis of the "Pieta" by Michelangelo. It defines the pyramidal aspects of the sculpture's composition and the Christian iconography of the Holy Trinity. It also looks at the historicity of the piece as it relies on classical and natural stylization that were in line with Michelangelo's humanist perspectives for Mary after Jesus was crucified.
From the Paper "This aspect of critical commentary is revealed through the objectives of Michelangelo to create a sculpture that would echo the divine nature of Christ, yet with the humanist values of naturalism that he espoused in depiction of human relationships. The divine nature of Christ and Mother reflect the unity of religious vision with Mary sorrowfully looking down on her dead son, yet they are both keenly aware of the significance of the Passion and the Crucifixion. This aspect of the iconography of the sculpture dictates the human suffering involved in Christi's life on earth, yet with the divine serenity of peace on his face with the realization that he has fulfilled his promise to humankind (Hibbard, 1985, p.270). This is the humanist Christian iconography that emulates a divine relationship between mother and son, but not without the deified presence of Christ fulfilling his redemption of sin for humankind by his crucifixion."
Abstract The pieta is the scene, shown in Christian art, where the Virgin Mary holds the life-less body of her son, Jesus after he had been crucified. This paper examines how Michelangelo made a great candidate for sculpting Pietas, because of his ability to portray the true human form, as well as his talent with pathos. The paper reviews and compares Michelangelo's Rome Pieta, Florentine Pieta and his Rondanini Pieta. The paper also includes photographs.
From the Paper "The biggest question regarding the Florentine Pieta is what happened to the left leg of Christ. Michelangelo did not break off the leg in his frustration, but rather the frustration was caused because of a defect in the marble block that made it impossible to create the left leg without adding a separate piece of marble. At that time, connecting different pieces of marble was frowned upon because it was "not worthy of a true artist." (Wilde 184). Evidence for this is the curved socket carved in the left thigh that shows where the leg was planned to be. Perhaps, Michelangelo made preparation for the new piece of marble, but being a man who "had an almost metaphysical conception of the significance of the unviolated block" (Wilde 184), he was unable to bring himself to it, and in the heat of the moment, attacked his creation. Though, it is also believed that Michelangelo had in fact created the knee of Christ, and that it either broke from the backlash of his hammer or that it was taken off by Calcagni because the marble was too defective to create the rest of the leg."
