Art Of The Month
There is something about this month’s piece of art which I find absolutely astonishing. This work, completed in 1649 is entitled, “The Face of Christ” by Claude Mellan who was an expert engraver. I wonder if you can spot its astonishing quality? It is one single uninterrupted line! It begins at the tip of the nose of Jesus and spirals out from there. If you Google the piece you can zoom-in and see the continuous line.
Underneath the image, Claude wrote, “Formatus Unicus Une.” These words, meaning “one formed in one”, could apply not only to the drawing but also to the Christ Himself. Mellan was inspired to produce this work having meditated on the miracle given to Veronica when she wiped the face of the Redeemer on His road to His death at Calvary; the cloth retaining the True Likeness of Christ. The image is known a vera icon (true image), giving rise to the name “veronica”.
The event is not recorded until the Middle Ages but is commemorated by the Sixth Station of the Cross. The work is also entitled “The Sudarium of Saint Veronica. Sudarium is a Latin word translated as a “sweat cloth” used for wiping the face and neck clean and dry. There is a cloth kept in the Cámara Santa of the Cathedral of San Salvador, Oviedo, Spain which might be the Sudarium but, because of contamination, it has not been possible to date it back to the time of Christ.
Devotion to the Holy Face of Jesus arose in France where it was believed that those who contemplate the the Face of Jesus here on earth, shall see it radiant in heaven. Pope Pius XII in 1958 formally declared a Feast of the Holy Face of Jesus. In his 2005 book On the Way to Jesus Christ, Pope Benedict XVI performed an analysis of Holy Face devotions. He stated that discipleship involves seeing Jesus in the face of the poor and the oppressed, and caring for them, but to properly see Jesus in the face of those in need, believers first need to become better acquainted with Jesus through the Eucharist.
Monsignor Monaghan
