Ciao Amici…
I’m sending good thoughts and prayers your way, wherever you are in the world, as we go through this crisis together.
Today, I am reflecting at home, in my Hollywood, California bungalow…
March 25, Catholics celebrate the day Mary receives a startling announcement: “The Divine is Within You!”
It comes from the Angel Gabriel, who swoops in to tell this virgin she is pregnant with the Son of God…nine months before Christmas…surprising news…
Pope Francis called out for prayers around the world today at noon. I filled my table with Annunciation images from Italian masters, gathered over so many years, and prayed the rosary…
I’m so grateful to have stood before these images in Italy’s museums and churches. They were created after the Black Plague of the century before–where 50 million people–half the population of Europe were wiped out by disease…
It gives me a new understanding of the Renaissaince in the Big Picture of History. I’ve always loved how Renaissance painters threw themselves into interpreting the action packed Annunciation scene, capturing a moment when a woman’s life is forever changed…and Mary humbly accepts her destiny.
Fra Angelico’s painting above, from San Marco in Florence, is the most famous artistic interpretation of the event…
Here are some more favorites…Leonardo DaVinci’s painted when he was just 26…(now displayed in the Uffizi)
Sandro Botticelli’s…(also in Uffizi)
Filippo Lippi’s…(in Palazzo Barberini, Rome)
Fra Angelico’s in Cortona’s Museo Diocesano…
Antonella da Messina’s, who painted his without the angel, from Sicily’s Galleria Regionale…
Titian’s…the Venetian Renaissance…(in Scuola San Rocco, Venice)
Venetians felt so connected to Mary that they chose the day to officially establish their Republic in 421AD. In 1630, they experienced a plague that wiped out 45,000 citizens, a loss of 1/3 of their population…the Santa Maria della Salute church, that big white beauty that welcomes you to the Grand Canal, was built to thank the Blessed Virgin Mother for delivering them from the plague.
And Florence became a Republic in the 12th century, and also traditionally celebrated their New Year on March 25, that lasted until the 18th century. This day has always been a day of grand parades and celebrations in the city. Florence experienced the Black Plague in 1338, their population was reduced from 110,000–120,000 inhabitants to 50,000 in 1351.
This year in Italy, this day will be silent. “You can’t imagine THE SILENCE,” I hear from the many Italian friends I’ve talked to over these past weeks–from Sicily to Venice and lots of places in between…
And stilll… as we virtually hold each other’s hands through this, and look into each other’s eyes through screens, I hear their great faith, their strength…
I hear The Divine in them, as they simply say:
We will get through this.
We will be back.
We will sit here together in this beautiful place and talk about this time as a memory…
Peace and Blessings to you ALL…
STAY HOME. XOX Susan
