Pope Francis

Raúl Segarra designed this mosaic of Pope Francis.

Rosary

In Roman Catholicism, the rosary is a set of prayer beads, a tool to aid in prayer and meditation. As the practitioner counts their way around the necklace, they recite a number of prayers in a prescribed order, including the Lord's Prayer, the Hail Mary, and the Doxology. Praying the rosary is particularly important as an aspect of Marian devotion. Cmaddison made this LEGO rosary.

Habemus LEGO

At the blog Shower of Roses, Jessica's son built We Have A Pope! :: Lego Edition. I love the details like the microphone, the Swiss guards and the fact that someone in the crowd has an umbrella.

Pope Francis

A couple of LEGO renditions of the new Roman pontiff have emerged: Greg50's Habemus Papum and Custom Concepts' custom Francis.

Sede vacante

Yesterday was Pope Benedict's final day in office. On Wednesday he held his final general audience in Saint Peter's Square, the large open area at the front of the Vatican. St. Peter's Basilica and Square by Arthur Gugick



Normally, there would be an official period of mourning before moving forward, but as Benedict is the first Pope in centuries to retire, rather than pass away, this is not needed. So very soon the Cardinals will gather in conclave. Cardinal by Bikicsmilan.



After a celebration of the Eucharist, they will seal themselves in the Sistine Chapel. Creation of Adam by Brendan Powell Smith.



The Cardinals will go through a series of secret ballots, and presumably much prayer and discussion. If they do not come to a decision, the ballots are burned, and an additive makes the smoke from the burning black. The smoke announces to the waiting world that a decision has not yet been made. Sede vacante by Jojo.



In past centuries the voting could go on for quite a long time before a Pope is chosen, even years. In more recent conclaves, the rules have been changed so that after a set number of days of ballots there is a run-off between the top vote-getters, so that a decision is ensured within two weeks of the opening of the conclave. At the point where a decision is made, the ballots are burned in a way that white smoke is released, and the declaration is made 'Habemus Papum' 'We have a Pope'. Habemus papum by Jojo.

Benedict XVI

Keeping in the theme of Pope Benedict XVI, also from Legoland Windsor we get this picture of the Wall of Fame, full of famous figures. There in the bottom row you can see the outgoing pontiff - right between Hagrid and Madonna. I'm sure he's proud.

Pope Benedict XVI

As anyone who reads this blog surely already knows, today Pope Benedict XVI announced that he will retire at the end of this month due to his advanced age and illness. This makes him the first Pope to step down from office before death in centuries. In 2010, Benedict visited London, and Legoland Windsor commemorated the event in brick form, which seemed an appropriate model to highlight today.

John Paul II

Tomorrow Pope Benedict is set to beatify his predecessor in the pontificate, John Paul II. Beatification is official recognition by the Catholic Church that an individual is in Heaven and can intercede with God. This is the last step before declaring someone a saint. John Paul II was known for his travels, visiting 129 countries while he was Pope, and he often rode in the Popemobile (here by Esbenkolind) so he could greet the crowds. After the attempt on his life in 1981, the vehicle was fitted with bulletproof glass.

1077

During the middle ages, there was a constant back and forth between the church in Rome and local political authorities over who would control the power. At one point, Pope Gregory VII declared that as God was the sole source of authority, the Pope could choose to remove any sitting emperor. For his part, Holy Roman Emperor Henry IV of Germany felt that he could appoint church officials, and threatened to remove his support for Gregory as Pope. Gregory excommunicated Henry, and in 1077 (here by Jojo), Henry traveled to Canossa, where he did penance and received forgiveness from the Pope. A few years later, though, Henry invaded Rome and forced Gregory to flee.

Rosary

Roman Catholics often pray the rosary. A rosary is a necklace of beads that is used to count a series of repeated prayers (a combination of the Lord's Prayer, Hail Mary's, and the Doxology). Mementomoose made several different LEGO rosaries that you can purchase. They'll even do custom versions in color schemes of your choice.

Do this in remembrance

"This is my body, broken for you." Christ said this as he passed bread to his disciples, and ever since Christians have repeated this ceremony as the sacrament of holy communion. However, there has been great debate over what communion actually entails. While many Protestants see this ceremony as wholly symbolic, Catholics believe that when the priest lifts the host and says hoc est corpus meum, the bread is somehow changed into the actual body of Christ, as shown here by Bruceywan.

Hail, Mary

A Marian procession is an old tradition that is not practiced today as much as in the past. Mister Zumbi made a LEGO version. Who knew that Batman was Catholic? :)

Il papa!

Rakoua built a model of the Pope. For more building at this scale, check out MinilandBricks.

Dissolution of the monasteries

England's Henry VIII was locked in a struggle with the Catholic Church, including over his desire to divorce Catherine of Aragon. This finally resulted in the Act of Supremacy in 1534, declaring the Church of England with himself as head. The monasteries continued to be a center of Catholic power, with the monks holding large amounts of property and acting as local authorities. The Suppresion Acts of 1536 and 1539 declared that these monasteries were disbanded, and their property was taken over by the state. SlyOwl illustrated this, winning the religious life category from last year's Colossal Castle Contest.

When in Rome

Peggyjdb presents a great rendition of the Pantheon in Rome (this is actually a work-in-progress, as she intends to come back to the project and add the full dome). Built around 126 AD (after two earlier incarnations were each destroyed), this massive temple was devoted to all of the Gods of ancient Rome - i.e. Jupiter and company. The building was recommissioned as a Catholic church in 609 AD, which prevented it from falling into disrepair, though the interior has gone through many changes over the centuries. The structure also houses the tomb of Raphael and other prominent figures.

Ordo Fratrum Minorum

Matthew 10:9 - "Do not take along any gold or silver or copper in your belts." In 1209 Francis of Assisi was so impressed by a sermon on this passage that he took a vow of poverty. The power of his example and sanctity of his life brought others to him, and eventually Pope Innocent III formally sanctioned their order. Still today, Franciscans are one of the best known religious orders within the Catholic Church, and they still hold to Francis' original teachings about poverty. Naneto presents this representation of a Franciscan friar. Btw, this scale of building is called Miniland, as this is the type of model you see in the Legoland theme parks. For more about this style of LEGO building, see one of my other blogs, MinilandBricks.

Agostino Novello again

I previously noted three creations by Italian LEGO builder Mautara illustrating miracles attributed to Agostino Novello. He's completed a fourth scene, saving a child fallen from a cradle, thus completing his recreation of the panels from an altarpiece by Simone Martini. Mautara has said that his next project will be a LEGO recreation of a fresco of Saint Mauro from the Abbey of Monteoliveto, so I'm looking forward to seeing that.

Forgive me, father, for I have ...

LEGO builder zgrredek has some fun with the Sacrament of Penance, more simply known as confession. The idea of confession in Christianity goes back to James 5:16 - "Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed." In the Catholic tradition, the Church is held to be heir to the promise of Christ to his disciples in John 20:23 - "If you forgive anyone his sins, they are forgiven."
From the LEGO building standpoint, note that minifigs don't have knees, but here zgrredek has come up with two different solutions to get more realistic poses.



Found via Klocki, another LEGO blog.

The Spirit of God descending like a dove

In the very front of Saint Peter's Basilica in the Vatican stands the Cathedra Petri, or the Altar of the Chair of Saint Peter. This monument, completed by Bernini in 1666, holds a chair that Peter is said to have sat on as he taught the church in Rome. The whole monument is topped by a stained glass window, also by Bernini, depicting the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove - imagery repeated in all four gospel accounts of the baptism of Christ.



When Brian Korte was in the Vatican on his honeymoon, he was so impressed with this image that he decided to recreate it in LEGO form. His mosaic is built of all transparent LEGO elements, so it can work as a real stained glass (okay, stained plastic) window. All of Brian's LEGO mosaics can be found at Brickworkz, and you can even commission him to create one for you. Brian has said he plans on making more mosaics from religious-themed art, so you can expect to see more of his work on this blog.

Agostino Novello

Welcome once again to any new readers who may have found me via the New York Times article.

Matteo Di Termini was born in the thirteenth century in Sicily. After being nearly killed in battle, he left his career in law and government and entered a monastery, taking on the name Agostino (later Agostino Novello). He rose to prominence in the Catholic Church and was widely known for his brilliance, his humility and his charity. He had a particular love for children and for the elderly, and after his death was associated with several miracles, often involving saving children. He was beatified by Pope Clement XIII. Italian LEGO builder Mautara illustrated three miracles attributed to Agostino: saving a child from a fall, saving a child from a wolf and saving a knight who fell in a ravine, all taken from this altarpiece by Simone Martini. Given that inspiration, I'm guessing we can expect one more miracle to be illustrated by Mautara.