Florence, Italy - Modern technology has revealed rich details of paintings by the artist, Giotto, that have been hidden from view for centuries. Giotto is considered one of the most important painters of the 2nd millennium and first in a line of great painters who contributed to the Italian Renaissance, a period which included da Vinci, Michelangelo and Raphael, among others.
Using ultra-violet light and other non-invasive diagnostics, restorers were able to see details of the Giotto paintings in the Peruzzi Chapel in Florence's Santa Croce Church that have been obscured over time.
In the early 1700's, the paintings were whitewashed over to make way for a new design, then other restorers removed the white paint in 1840 using steel wool pads and harsh solvents which also removed much of the original image. The bleached appearance people see today is very different from the indications of the original work now being carefully mapped by the current preservation team.
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
Monday, March 8, 2010
Teens meet
Nevada, USA - An enlightening event has taken place in Reno, Nevada. The Fifth Annual Catholic Diocesan Youth Rally involved teenagers from various parts of Nevada who gathered for hear guest speakers and participate in a variety of workshops.
It is the thrust of the special symposium some might find of particular interest - it was an interfaith event the coordinator, Father Charles T. Durante, Pastor of Saint Teresa of Avila Catholic Community of Carson City, said was organized to teach participants that in order to truly live in peace and harmony people must strive to understand each other.
The teens gathered to hear from area Muslim-Hindu-Buddhist-Jewish leaders: Muslim imam Abdulrahim Barghouthi, Hindu statesman Rajan Zed, Buddhist priest William S. Bartlett, and Jewish rabbi Teri E. Appleby all spoke and explained the tenets of their respective faiths, highlighting similarities.
It ended with recitation of Gayatri Mantra (the sacred mantra of Hinduism from the 3,500 year-old scripture Rig-Veda).
Workshops were held on "The Church, Sex, and Teens", "Spirituality", "Rosary Making", "Lies Young Women/Men Believe", "Following Jesus: A Dangerous Adventure", "Self image and image of God", "Gang Prevention", and other topics.
It is the thrust of the special symposium some might find of particular interest - it was an interfaith event the coordinator, Father Charles T. Durante, Pastor of Saint Teresa of Avila Catholic Community of Carson City, said was organized to teach participants that in order to truly live in peace and harmony people must strive to understand each other.
The teens gathered to hear from area Muslim-Hindu-Buddhist-Jewish leaders: Muslim imam Abdulrahim Barghouthi, Hindu statesman Rajan Zed, Buddhist priest William S. Bartlett, and Jewish rabbi Teri E. Appleby all spoke and explained the tenets of their respective faiths, highlighting similarities.
It ended with recitation of Gayatri Mantra (the sacred mantra of Hinduism from the 3,500 year-old scripture Rig-Veda).
Workshops were held on "The Church, Sex, and Teens", "Spirituality", "Rosary Making", "Lies Young Women/Men Believe", "Following Jesus: A Dangerous Adventure", "Self image and image of God", "Gang Prevention", and other topics.
Holy Tweeter
Embracing the age of social networking, the Dalai Lama is now on Twitter. Tweeting links to his official website where webcasts show him talking about the life story of Buddha, or about his recent appearance on the Larry King show in Los Angeles, or sending condolences for the people of Chile - these are a few of the posts from the revered spiritual leader.
“He has an inordinate amount of followers. It is testimony to the remarkable outreach he has,” says Patricia Carrick, chief executive of the Tibet Relief Fund. “Whether people are Buddhist or not, they respect his spirituality and humanity. He often does talks on universal responsibility, when he says everyone is responsible for making the world a better place. This is part of living that out.”
It was shortly after his recent meeting with President Obama at the White house the Dalai Lama began to tweet.
“He has an inordinate amount of followers. It is testimony to the remarkable outreach he has,” says Patricia Carrick, chief executive of the Tibet Relief Fund. “Whether people are Buddhist or not, they respect his spirituality and humanity. He often does talks on universal responsibility, when he says everyone is responsible for making the world a better place. This is part of living that out.”
It was shortly after his recent meeting with President Obama at the White house the Dalai Lama began to tweet.
Terrorism condemned
London, UK - Condemning terrorism in his 600 page fatwa, Dr. Tahir ul-Qadri - a leading Muslim scholar, describes al-Qaeda as an "old evil with a new name." Challenging the promises made to suicide bombers of rewards in the afterlife, he emphasizes in his religious ruling that Islam forbids the massacre of innocents.
"Extremist groups based in Britain recruit the youth by brainwashing them that they will 'with certainty' be rewarded in the next life," says Shahid Mursaleen, spokesman for Minhaj-ul-Quran in the UK. "This fatwa injects doubt into the minds of potential suicide bombers. Dr Qadri's fatwa has removed this key intellectual factor from their minds."
The fatwa, a binding religious document concerning Islamic law issued by a religious scholar, sets out point-by-point rebuttals used by terrorist recruiters to enlist youth to their cause.
"Extremist groups based in Britain recruit the youth by brainwashing them that they will 'with certainty' be rewarded in the next life," says Shahid Mursaleen, spokesman for Minhaj-ul-Quran in the UK. "This fatwa injects doubt into the minds of potential suicide bombers. Dr Qadri's fatwa has removed this key intellectual factor from their minds."
The fatwa, a binding religious document concerning Islamic law issued by a religious scholar, sets out point-by-point rebuttals used by terrorist recruiters to enlist youth to their cause.
Monday, March 1, 2010
Pothole monks
Calcutta, India - Official neglect by the National Highways Authority of India and the state public works department led two Hindu monks from the Ramakrishna Mission to tackle a repair of a of a large pothole on the Bally (Vivekananda Setu) bridge in Calcutta, West Bengal, India.
“Every day I face problems while crossing the bridge because of the crater. So I decided to fill it up,” said Swami Divyananda, a member of the board of trustees of the Ramakrishna Mission. “As a citizen of the country I felt I should do something when the authorities are not doing their job. I hope the authorities now repair the road.” The monks brought a number of gunny bags of gravel to the dangerous hole and filled it up, surprising early morning commuters.
One motorist said, "the cracks started appearing five months back. Thanks to the authorities’ neglect, it grew into a death trap. We are grateful to the monks but what the bridge needs is a thorough repair.”
“Every day I face problems while crossing the bridge because of the crater. So I decided to fill it up,” said Swami Divyananda, a member of the board of trustees of the Ramakrishna Mission. “As a citizen of the country I felt I should do something when the authorities are not doing their job. I hope the authorities now repair the road.” The monks brought a number of gunny bags of gravel to the dangerous hole and filled it up, surprising early morning commuters.
One motorist said, "the cracks started appearing five months back. Thanks to the authorities’ neglect, it grew into a death trap. We are grateful to the monks but what the bridge needs is a thorough repair.”
Religious hyper-realism
Washington, D.C. - An extraordinary exhibit of religious artwork will be at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.D. Included will be eleven paintings by Diego Velazquez, Francisco de Zurbaran and others contrasted with 17th century hyper-realistic wooden sculptures in the exhibit, "The Sacred Made Real."
The collection of Spanish sacred art took Xavier Bray of London's National Gallery, who coordinated the exhibit, several years to negotiate the details with the churches and monasteries who lent the precious works for this special exhibition. "It's realism that goes further than realism," Bray said of the show.
The Roman Catholic art encompasses imagery of the passion of Christ, the Immaculate Conception and depictions of saints. The rare exhibit remain on view during Holy Week and will run through the end of May.
The collection of Spanish sacred art took Xavier Bray of London's National Gallery, who coordinated the exhibit, several years to negotiate the details with the churches and monasteries who lent the precious works for this special exhibition. "It's realism that goes further than realism," Bray said of the show.
The Roman Catholic art encompasses imagery of the passion of Christ, the Immaculate Conception and depictions of saints. The rare exhibit remain on view during Holy Week and will run through the end of May.
Elephant blessing
Melbourne, Australia - On last Thursday, Buddhist monks blessed a baby elephant at the Taronga zoo in Melbourne, Australia. Mali (Thai for jasmine flower), a baby African elephant, is the first birth for the zoo and only the second pachyderm to be born in Australia.
Thai monks arrived from three Buddhist temples to perform the holy ritual. Humming with a rumbling hum and chanting, the orange robe-clad monks began their sacred naming and blessing ceremony taking turns using bamboo sticks dipped in a bowl to lightly splash the baby's face with water as the little elephant ran in circles around its mother, Dokkoon, rolled in the sand, chased magpies and played with a red rubber ball.
Several elephants were brought to Australia in 2006 as part of a program facilitated by the Thai government. Elephants are long linked to good luck and are a hallowed national symbol in Thailand.
Thai monks arrived from three Buddhist temples to perform the holy ritual. Humming with a rumbling hum and chanting, the orange robe-clad monks began their sacred naming and blessing ceremony taking turns using bamboo sticks dipped in a bowl to lightly splash the baby's face with water as the little elephant ran in circles around its mother, Dokkoon, rolled in the sand, chased magpies and played with a red rubber ball.
Several elephants were brought to Australia in 2006 as part of a program facilitated by the Thai government. Elephants are long linked to good luck and are a hallowed national symbol in Thailand.
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