Cathedral Tour, Part 1

A while ago Mel asked for a tour of the Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis, and I said I’d work on it. I thought I would start a multi-part tour now in honor of today’s feast.

Happy Feast of Saint Louis, king of France!

The Cathedral Basilica of Saint Louis is colloquially referred to as the New Cathedral because it replaced the Cathedral of St. Louis, King of France, which is located near the historic riverfront of St. Louis, surrounded by the Gateway Arch grounds.

The Cathedral is currently celebrating its first Century—1907-1914 to 2007-2014. Workers began clearing ground for the building on May 1, 1907, and on October 18, 1914, dedication of the Cathedral and its first mass took place, when the superstructure was complete. The first Mass was celebrated six years to the day after the laying of the cornerstone. Consecration of the church took place more than a decade later on June 29, 1926. Even after consecration, completion of the cathedral's mosaics was not accomplished until 1988. The Cathedral was designated a basilica by Pope John Paul II on April 4, 1997. The church is best known for its large mosaic installation.

Two years ago the Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis was chosen to exhibit an incredible piece of artwork—a bronze, life-size replica of Michelangelo’s Pietá. It is one of twelve bronzes cast by the Marinelli foundry from plaster molds taken directly from the pristine original marble in the Vatican in 1932. One of two pieces being exhibited in North America, it is on loan from the owners, Legacy Sculptures and Renaissance Sculptures, LLC. The piece will soon move to its next exhibition location site, so I have chosen to feature this beautiful and inspirational work first.
A History of Michelangelo’s Pietá (as taken from the writings of John T. Spike, noted historian of 15th-18th century Italian art and reproduced in the parish bulletin)

When Michelangelo completed the Pietá in 1499, he was 24 years old and the premier sculptor in Italy. Though he lived to be almost 90, and carved sculptures of inimitable force and compassion, Michelangelo never again achieved the sublime expression of the Pietá. The Pietá was commissioned by Cardinal Jean de Villiers de la Grolaye, an aged Benedictine, who sought a monument for his tomb at St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican. Jacopo Galli, a Roman banker and one of the sponsor's who commissioned the work on behalf of Cardinal de la Grolaye, wrote" Michelangelo will complete the said work within one year, and that it shall be the most beautiful work in marble to be seen in the Rome today, and such that no master of our times shall be able to produce better." It took Michelangelo two years, not one, to complete the Pietá, but in all other respects, the claims made by Galli were without doubt fulfilled by the remarkable work of art.

The scene of the Pietá, in which Christ's body is placed across his mourning mother's knees, is not mentioned in the Bible, but during the middle ages was cited as one of the "Seven Sorrows of the Virgin". The serenity of Michelangelo's interpretation is a departure from the prior tradition. Our deepest feelings are touched by the sight of Christ, as if in death he has again become a child gathered up in his mother's arms. Her expression is mild and contemplative, and the Savior's torso and limbs are smooth, hardly showing the mark of his sufferings. This rendition reflects Michelangelo's training in Renaissance philosophy, based on St. Augustine's teachings, that held that "God is beautiful, beautiful on heaven and earth...beautiful in the arms of his parents...beautiful in leaving this life and in retaking it; beautiful on the Cross, in the tomb, and in heaven (Augustine, Expositions on the Psalms) It was Michelangelo's genius to embody in a sculpture his personal longing for the purity and divinity of God. In this Pietá, where others had seen only tragedy, Michelangelo found immortality.