Bible bookmark: a simple object that can come in use in hard times, letting us quickly find a sentence that gives us strength and hope.

Reading the Bible is a precious and important habit for any Christian. Such practice induces a dialog with God, but also a moment of deep introspection and reflection that helps us better face our anxieties and daily adversities. The importance of reading the Bible is such that during the last few yeas, real tutorials appeared online helping people doing it for the first time. Many of those tutorials suggest beginning the reading with the New Testament, of an easier comprehension, especially for novices. Other propose a real reading plan, with a list of Bible books to read in succession for a better understanding. Since we live in a hectic world, where every action is dominated by rush and urgency of what is next, some sites recommend a daily plan to read the Bible, of twenty or even ten minutes. This plan includes a few minutes of reading, the confession of sins, meditation and listening to God’s voice and prayer.

Actually, those who believe should be able to dedicate much more time to the Bible, but as it happens in other contexts, it is not important how much you do, but how you do it. Psalm 37:7 says: ‘Be still before the Lord, and wait patiently for him’. With this attitude, you can easily listen to God with serenity and awareness in any moment of the day, with no anxiety of doing too little or not look devoted enough. God does not need that we clock out, especially concerning our faith!

Having said that, there is no doubt that the Bible is an inexhaustible source of quotes and passages that can come to our rescue in any moment of the day and can give us strength to face the small and big problems we encounter every day.  Faith supports us and comforts us, especially during hard times; it helps us overcome difficulties. And reading the Bible can be a precious help in this case. Not the whole Bible, of course, and not every day.

Each one of us can find some quotes or passages that have a particular meaning. Powerful sentences, of intense and passionate spirituality, but with a further meaning for each one of us because they’re tied to a special moment, feeling, a good or a bad event, and that make us reflect, inspire and console us. Sentences taken from the word of God which we can take comfort from when life seems too complicated.

Here are the benefits of a religious bookmark. Remembering in any moment where we can find those precious words, giving us the chance to read them again and again every time we feel the need, until they become part of our day. Can just one sentence influence a whole day? Can it become the base for a new conception of life? Clearly, we are not taking about common sentences.

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Bookmark for Bible in leather

Suitable for the Bible and available in different colours.

Here is our proposal: put bookmarks on the pages of the Bible that have the sentences that are most significant to you. That way, you will be able to find them in no time any time you will feel the need. You’ll be able to feel all the strength and courage they express within yourself, and feel the power they release.

A few example? It’s hard to find one, because reading and meditating on the Bible, and anything else, is a very subjective matter. But there are some sentences in the Bible that can fit into any battle, for anyone facing a hard time, or just the beginning of a new week. We tried to collect some to give you an idea of where you could put your bookmarks.

Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. He Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. (Deuteronomy 31: 6,8)

Fear the Lord, and you will have nothing else to fear. If your trust is in him, you will never act like a coward. (Sirach 34,14)

The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and he helps me. My heart leaps for joy, and with my song I praise him. The Lord is the strength of his people, a fortress of salvation for his anointed one. (Psalm 28:8)

So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. All who rage against you will surely be ashamed and disgraced; those who oppose you will be as nothing and perish. Though you search for your enemies, you will not find them. Those who wage war against you will be as nothing at all. For I am the Lord your God who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, do not fear; I will help you. (Isaiah 41: 10-13)

Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me. Your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil. My cup overflows. Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever. (Psalm 23: 4-6)

Test me, Lord, and try me. Examine my heart and my mind. (Psalm 26:2)

Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. (John 14:27)

I lift up my eyes to the mountains — where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth. The Lord will keep you from all harm — he will watch over your life; The Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore. (Psalm 121: 1,2,7,8)

Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” (Joshua 1:9)

But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain. (Corinthians 15: 57-58)

Christmas light projectors are very impressive machines with many possible options for decorations. These objects let us create a nice atmosphere in an inside or outside enironment immediately and with not much effort. They are perfect to create the right atmosphere in joyful events such as Christmas, a birthday, Halloween, or a wedding.

They are not toys, and are made of a lighting source such as halogen, led or laser bulbs, inserted into a lamp usually made of plastic or aluminium. This led halogen light projects a ray of light at a certain distance on a wall or on plants.

As we mentioned earlier, you can create spectacular images in just a few seconds, with no effort at all, and you don’t even need an electrician or a technician to set them up since they are very, very easy to use. It’s actually a big pro, given the fact that the installation cost is usually the highest cost in such settings.

Thanks to light projectors you can easily light up difficult areas such as very high walls, and also in a safe way given the low tension needed by the projector.

You can find two types of projectors in stores: led and laser.

In Holyart catalogue you can find various types of projectors: led and laser.

Characteristics of the laser projectors:

• they have higher intensity compared to led projectors;
• they have a low energy consumption;
• their technology has a good maturation point;
• they allow to cover wider and farther areas;
• they are safe and low-tension: class 1 and 2 lasers do not damage your sight;
• if the distance increases, the light intensity decreases gradually and slowly;
• the effect is clearly visible even on plants and trees if you use a green laser;
• the light is directional, that means that it project the light only towards the interested point, causing no disturb to neighbors;
• they are more expensive than led models;
• limited number of colors available (green, red, blue);
• the type of images that can be projected is limited to dots, images outlines, small stars;

Characteristics of the led projectors:

• low price;
• low energy consumption;
• the projection of images can be with full light;
• there are multiple shades of colors (also white);
• they occupy less space as they are more compact;
• there are also color changing led models;
• the outcome is good only in short distance;
• the higher the distance, the lower the light intensity;
• the projection loses intensity on plants and trees;

Light projectors can be used both for indoor and outdoor use.

With this devices you can decorate your house, your garden, public places, the dancefloor of a bar, a gazebo ceiling, a pool, walls, either internal or external, trees and plants, windows, Nativity scenes.

In Holyart catalogue you can find various types of laser and led projectors:

• stars-themed laser projectors;
• hearts-themed laser projector;
• Christmas-themed led projectors (gifts, balls, bows..);
• laser projector with 12 images such as moon and moving dots;
• 6 led projector with rotating half-sphere;
• 3D led projector with water waves effect;
• laser projector with snowflake theme for outdoors and indoors;

Indoors projectors come with a support base or fixing support. Outdoors projectors are inserted into the ground with their stake or into a vase with soil or gravel.

Some suggestions for making the best use of your projector:

1. To have a better result, the light projector should face towards dark, not illuminated, walls. Darkness is fundamental: to project Christmas images or for a starry night effect on walls, there should not be illuminated areas.
2. As a reference, you should take the consumption (Watts) to understand how powerful the light is:

between 1 and 5 Watts consumption indicates low power and brightness. The lower the consumption, the lower the distance between the course of the light and the surface to light up has to be.

3. How to understand the right balance between projecting too close or too far. If you place the projector too far, you might have a very big image that covers a wide area, but that is quite blurry. Even if you place it too close, the projection will not have enough space to shape up.
4. It is also very important to place the projector straight: for a better result you should place it upright in relation to the surface you want to project the image on. A projector placed obliqually on a surface in respect to the wall, will project a deformed image.
5. You should also pay attention to the color of the lights: green is advisable for projection of plants, so that it gains volume and intensity. Blue and green are the brightest colors even at long distances. If you prefer red or white, you will have to make sure that the wall is smooth and that the projector is not too far from the wall.

We are almost there. Winter hit us after a long and hot summer, and fall seemed hesitant to drive away the warm season. It will soon be the time to begin thinking about how to decorate our home in view to Christmas, the ultimate holiday.

Just like evry year, we will face the dilemma of how we should decorate our Tree, but most of all, of how we should place the lights on it so that it looks sparkling and creates a perfect atmosphere; lastly, it has to be safe. It seems easy, but it’s not. If you want to proceed the best way possible, you need to set an exact goal and adopt a technique that lets you create what you have in mind and get the best results.

First of all, you need to choose your Christmas Tree. We already wrote much about that, especially lingering on pros and cons of real trees on one side, and artificial trees on the other side. The choice of the tree will be tightly connected to what we plan to do with lights. In fact, many artificial trees are already equipped with LED lights, solving a long series of problems mainly concerning the issue of wires connected to the light strings; being already integrated into the branches, there is no risk to find them hanging down, and look awful, besides being a dangerous threat to children, pets and… distracted friends.

If you prefer a real tree, or an artificial tree that has no integrated lights, you will need to plan an efficient technique to place the lights on your Tree and get a final uniformity and a great effect.

Lights will have to be in harmony with the decorations of course, and will have to be placed so that they are emphasized, highlighting brightness and colors.

First, you will have to decide how many lights your Tree will need, what type (LED or incandescent), cold or warm light, monochrome or multicolored.

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Frosted Christmas tree 230 cm with pine cones 400 lights external use

LED or incandescent lights? Warm or cold light?

Modern LED lights are surely brighter than the traditional incandescent lights. They also offer a remarkable advantage in price, as they guarantee a great saving on your bills. They are then worth the initial investment, which is anyway quite limited, considering that for a Christmas tree that is about 2 meters tall, you will need to spend about 60-90 Euro.

Incandescent lights require more attention, especially concerning safety, but offer a warmer light compared to LED, and a more traditional atmosphere. Plus, energy saving lights will not cost much more than the modern LED lights.

There are also solar-powered lights, ideal for trees on the outside, and globe lights, which are delicate and offer a great scenic effect.

Concerning the choice between warm or cold lights, you can choose them based on the furniture and color of your home, or the decorations that you chose to hang on your Tree. Cold colors, such as white with blue shades, enphasize elegance, while warm colors, such as yellow and red, create a more enveloping and suffused atmosphere. It is imprtant to choose the color trying to avoid violent contrasts.

Safety first

Safety regulations must be kept in mind while choosing any kind of light. Better to avoid lights of questionable origins. You always have to remember that they are electronic devices with tension inside that can reach up to 230V, and that will be switched on for weeks in our houses, therefore it is fundamental to know how they were made. First, you need to check the CE marking, which guarantees the respect of the safety regulations established at European level concerning the minimum necessary requirements so that lighting decorations can be sold inside the EU. Some producers of lighting decorations send their products to independent labs, which give them further certifications, guaranteeing higher quality. Periodic controls at the production fatories allow other certifications such as GS and IMQ.

Check then that the CE marking is correct and not counterfeit, that the producer country and the details of the import are clearly reported, and that all information are written in Italian.

Once the box is open, it is good practice to test the traction of the wires connected to the controller to make sure they don’t come out, and the resistance of the controller itself, pushing it hard.

If the lights will be placed outside, they mush have the Schuko plug. Besides the generic instruction “for external use”, they must report the grade of protection against wheater events: from IPX3 (againts spraying water), to IPX4 (against splashing of water), IPX5 (water jets), IPX7 (immersion).

Lastly, but that is not to be taken for granted, you must be careful when installing. You need to be cautios, protecting wires, sockets, especially with children around, and if you plan to decorate your tree outside, remember to protect plugs and transformers from temperature changes.

If one of the bulbs on the string is burned or broken, it must be replaced with one of the same kind, or just give up using that string at all.

How many lights?

How many lights are necessary to decorate a Christmas tree? It depends. It depends on the size of the tree, of course, but also on the personal taste of who will decorate it. For a small tree, around fifty lights are enough; for a tree about 2 meters tall, you might need even three hundred. There is no fixed scheme, also because the effect changes a lot according to the type of decoration chosen and the effect you want to obtain. The important thing is to distribute them well, leaving no empty spaces that would create an ugly effect, and keep in mind that after the lights, we will have to place decorations and garlands, which should be illuminated and enlighted by the lights.

Buy Now:

Modern LED lights

More than 150 lights on Holyart

Remember that LED lights are much brighter than incandescence lights, so you’ll need fewer.

How to put lighting decorations together on your Christmas tree

There are different techniques, different schools of thought.

You can begin from the top of the tree and wrap the light strings all around it, going down in a spyral until the base and fix the wire to the pedestal. The string can be placed among the bigger branches and hidden behind the smallest branches. The same effect can be obtained starting from the base of the tree towards the top, but hiding the wire could be more difficult. A beautiful effect can be obtained by creating an internal and an external spyral, that will evenly fill all the areas of the Tree.

Starting from the top, you can draw a triangle with the light chains and then fill it with lights fixed to every branch.

Alternatively, you can take many short light strings and wrap them following a spyral pattern around each single branch, so that the wire is hidden by the needles.

In addition, it is very popular to drape the lights among the branches, starting from the top or the bottom, using at least two light chains, one for the inside and one for the outside of the branches. Also in this case the wire will have to be placed properly so that it is not visible, maybe using some bands to fix it to the branches.

The most precious decorations should be placed near a spotlight

Watch out for empty and dark areas.

Pope Francis’ pacific revolution. On the fifth anniversary of his election, recently celebrated, let’s see how the Church has changed and if it is changing under the lead of this special man.

‘There is nothing greater and more fruitful than love: it bestows all dignity to the person, while, on the contrary, hatred and vengeance decrease it, marring the beauty of the creature made in God’s image.’

Pope Francis uttered that during the Angelus in Piazza San Pietro on Sunday, February 24 2019. We chose to open our article with that, as we want to commemorate Jorge Mario Bergoglio’s actions who became the 266th Pope of the Catholic Church and Bishop of Rome from March 13 2013. It is also a wish for all of his achievements during these years to keep animating and inspiring the Church.

Pope Francis and Love

It is not by chance that the sentence we chose is about love. Love, and in particular the love God feels towards us, is the core of Pope Francis’ doctrine, who never gets tired of repeating how unique and special it is. The Pope often speaks about what he calls ‘The gratuity of Salvation’. We are so used to hear that Jesus, son of God, descended to Earth for love, to save us, and that he died for us, that we don’t even realize the greatness of such revelation anymore, as if we would be afraid in recognizing it. The Pope invites us to rediscover the mystery of this love every day, a limitless love, and to welcome it with the wonder it deserves.
But not just that. Pope Francis always reminds us that Jesus’ message for us was a message of love, and even more, an example of love for God Father, but also for brothers and sisters: “And for that, Jesus says: ‘The greatest love is this: loving God with all our life, heart, strength, and love our neighbor as ourselves’. Because that’s the only commandment that is worthy of the gratuity of salvation of God. Then Jesus adds: ‘In this commandment are included all of the others, because that one calls all of the others’. But the source is love; the horizon is love. If you closed the door and took the key of love away, you will never be worthy of the gratuity of salvation you received.”
Therefore, it is not possible to separate prayer, the observance of Commandments, that is, love towards God, from the love for your neighbors: “Are we able to recognize God’s face in one another? We cannot separate the religious life from the other.”
Of course, the love Pope Francis talks about is not a love made of only good words, but made of concrete facts. “The true love is concrete, it can be found in works, and it is a constant love. It not just a mere enthusiasm.”

A humble Pope

A Pope that speaks of love, then. Always ready to be humble, to kneel not just before God but also before men. Just think of the time he first showed on the Vatican Balcony on March 13 2013 to salute the crowd that came to praise him in Piazza San Pietro, and he wasn’t wearing any golden and ermine ornaments. Instead of blessing the people, he asked all of the present to bless him. “And now I would like to give the blessing, but first I want to ask you a favor. Before the bishop blesses the people, I ask that you would pray to the Lord to bless me — the prayer of the people for their Bishop. Let us say this prayer — your prayer for me — in silence”. No Pope had ever addressed the crowd with such simplicity.

The way of the Good Shepherd

Pope Francis led then his revolution, humbly and with love, and on such foundation, he has conducted his apostolic program for five years, and each crowd becomes a family. The Church he prophecies is a Church that goes forth, that goes where men are, on the streets of the world.
But how should men of church move? During the Mass celebrated on Monday, October 30 2017 at Santa Marta, the Pope defined that rule, that lifestyle that must come from the heart, as all Jesus actions did. ‘Jesus always shows this way, close. Many times in the Gospel we see that such closeness comes from what Jesus feels in his heart: ‘Jesus was moved’, says a passage of the Gospel, he feels mercy, he comes closer’.
Pope Francis indicates five verbs of closeness that Jesus experienced himself, and that should be an example of life and conduct for shepherds, but in general are valid for everyone: to see, to call, to talk, to touch and to heal. Nice words are not enough, we need to take action and touch those next to us with our own hands, especially if they’re suffering. The good shepherd must be meek and humble of heart, must not be ashamed of touching the wounded flesh, and cannot say: ‘Well yes, that’s fine, yes, I’m close to you in the spirit’.

Love again then, and closeness, presence. Because ‘a good shepherd is close, always’.

Theological studies and communication

Pope Francis put his doctrine of love and humility at the base of a deep reformation in the approach to theological studies, aimed to sustain and promote the spread of his Church that goes forth.

The teaching of theology and doctrine must adapt to modern times, to the needs of the current world, like the language. It is not by chance that Pope Bergoglio wanted to reform the Vatican media as well, promoting initiatives as the documentary movie “A selfie with the Pope”, built thanks to the selfies taken by the faithful with the Pope during his journeys, celebrations and hearings. A Pop Pope, as the Rolling Stones magazine defined him.

Holyart cannot but reserve a special place in its catalog to articles related to Pope Francis, starting from the statues of Sleeping Saint Joseph. We all know that Pope Francis has always been devoted to this particular representation of a sleeping Saint Joseph. ‘On my desk I have a picture of a sleeping Saint Joseph. And while he’s asleep, he takes care of the Church! Yes! He can do that, we know. And anytime I have a problem, a difficulty, I write a little note on a piece of paper and put it under Saint Joseph, so that he can dream about it!’ said the Pope many times. There are also many other devotional objects dedicated to this revolutionary Pope, suitable for any special occasion, for example a First Holy Communion: party Favors, bracelets, rosaries, pictures, key holders with the picture of the Pope and papal cross of the Good Shepherd. Many ways to always remember him and feel him a bit closer every day.

Saint Teresa of Avila was a Spanish nun and mystic. One of the few women declared a Doctor of the Church, she reformed the Carmelite order and proposed a model of faith based on the friendship between man and God and on a deeply human dimension of Jesus Christ. Why do we venerate her?

The cult of the saints has very deep roots.
In every age and civilization there have been displays of celebrations and devotion for famous and ‘special’ men and women, who stood out in their lives for actions, works and thoughts. It would be reductive to consider the cult of the saints a derivation of such idealization of exceptional deaths.

In the new Christian world, risen from the ashes of the Roman Empire, still dangerously influenced by pagan rituals and millenary beliefs, the cult of the saints is at the beginning a heritage of old traditions. The devotion towards saints and martyrs comes from a condition of instability and turmoil due to the deep social, psychological and even urbanistic changes.

The cult of the saints is born and grows simultaneously to the inner and outer changes experienced by the Church since its origins. Bishops officialized and encouraged it since the beginning, but we must not think of it as a form of popular religiousness, limited to the ignorant small people, still upset by pagan legends and stories, nor as a way to convert ignorant masses more easily. We must not think that this religious display, born in cemeteries and at the tombs of the blessed, involved only women and poor people, the forever ‘weak’ ones, excluded from the ‘high’ religion. It is not like that. On the contrary, the cult of the saints involved all social classes since the beginning, eliminating the barriers between rich and poor, between men and women.

On one side, it is true that the will to invoke invisible protectors can be tied to ancient pagan beliefs. On the other side though, it is the first time that believers do not turn to supernatural beings, but to deceased people, who lived and acted in a historical context that is not too far from theirs.
The Latin word ‘sanctus’, past participle of sancīre, meant something inviolable. And that is what a Saint is, a human being tied to the divinity, and as such, worthy of veneration and respect. At the same time, they are protectors, someone to turn our prayers to, so that, strong with their sanctity, they can work as an intermediary between us and God.

Holyart always hosted many in-depth articles about the cult of the saints in its blog. To name a few: Saints that changed the world, or more specific ones Saint Augustine of Ippona: philosopher, bishop and theologian, Saint Agnes: story of a virgin and a martyr, or even Padre Pio and the Order of the Capuchin Friars Minor.

Today we talk about Saint Teresa of Avila, Spanish nun and mystic.

Who was Saint Teresa of Avila, or, as she is sometimes also known as, of Jesus?

Her real name was Teresa Sánchez de Cepeda Dávila y Ahumada, born on March 28th 1515 in Avila, Spain. There in Avila, she entered the Carmelite Convent of the Incarnation at the age of 20, taking the name of Teresa of Jesus. Her youth was marred by a serious disease, which forced her to bed for a long time. For four days, she was even in a coma, as dead. But that didn’t prevent her from living a full religious life, and to become one of the most important figures of the Catholic Reformation. Since she was young, she actively participated in the reformation of the Carmelite order, and in 1562, she founded the first Reformed Carmelite convent in Avila, followed by 16 more in the whole country.

Saint Teresa wrote many texts collecting the points of her mystic-spiritual doctrine.

First point, the evangelic virtues as basement of the whole Christian and human life. Such vision included the need to detach from earthly goods to embrace poverty, but also love of neighbor, humility, determination and theological hope.

But Saint Teresa also preached the need for a deep harmony with the great Biblical characters and for some sort of needed friendship between man and God. In her ‘Life’, talking about prayer, she wrote: ‘Mental prayer is a friendly intercourse, with him who we know loves us‘ (Life, 8:5).

Moreover, she deepened the subject of Christ’s humanity, lingering on the fact that Christian life should be a personal relationship with Jesus, based on love and imitation, with the final aim of uniting with Him. To get there, the Saint preached the need for meditation about the Passion and the Eucharist. All her human and religious life was reaching out towards this perfection of love, this fullness of and within Christ. In her most famous work, the ‘Interior Castle’, path of the soul looking for God, describes such fullness realizing in the union with Christ through the mystery of his humanity.

We like to think of Saint Teresa of Avila also for her deep modernity. On February 2 2011, during the General Audience on Wednesday, Pope Benedict XVI said about her: ‘In our society, which all too often lacks spiritual values, St Teresa teaches us to be unflagging witnesses of God, of his presence and of his action. She teaches us truly to feel this thirst for God that exists in the depths of our hearts, this desire to see God, to seek God, to be in conversation with him and to be his friends. This is the friendship we all need that we must seek anew, day after day. May the example of this Saint, profoundly contemplative and effectively active, spur us too every day to dedicate the right time to prayer, to this openness to God, to this journey, in order to seek God, to see him, to discover his friendship and so to find true life; indeed many of us should truly say: “I am not alive, I am not truly alive because I do not live the essence of my life”. Therefore, time devoted to prayer is not time wasted, it is time in which the path of life unfolds, the path unfolds to learning from God an ardent love for him, for his Church, and practical charity for our brothers and sisters‘.

When is Saint Teresa celebrated

Saint Teresa was declared blessed in 1614, and then saint by Pope Gregory XV in 1622. Paul VI in 1970 included her among the Doctors of the Church, along with Catherine of Siena. She is celebrated on October 15th, the day of her death. It is said that her last word were: ‘O my Lord and my Spouse, the hour that I have longed for has come. It is time to meet one another.‘

The ecstasy of Saint Teresa

The ecstasy of Saint Teresa, also known as Transverberation of Saint Teresa, is a marble and bronze sculptural group made between 1647 and 1652 by Gian Lorenzo Bernini. It is set in the Cornaro Chapel, Santa Maria della Vittoria, Rome.
The statue depicts the Holy Mother with her head reclined, clothes are disordered, her eyes are closed and her mouth is slightly open; she is pierced by a beautiful angel with a flaming spear. In her writings, Teresa described this episode, specifying that it was actually the spear held by the angel that reawakened her love for God. It is a typical example of a mystic ecstasy representation, one of the recurrent themes in baroque art.
The statue expresses mysticism but also sensuality, as if the intensity of the religious feeling would invade her so much that she felt some sort of overwhelming passion, involving both mind and body.

The prayer to Saint Teresa of Avila

Among other things, Saint Teresa of Avila also composed a beautiful prayer dedicated to the regret that we all feel sometimes of having wasted our time instead of using it to do something good. A very human and current feeling, to which the Saint gave her personal and sensitive interpretation.
God, in his endless benevolence, transforms even that lost time in something good, in a ‘benefit’. A consolation that is also a spur to do better in the future.

Here is the prayer.

O my God! Source of all mercy!
I acknowledge Your sovereign power.
While recalling the wasted years that are past,
i believe that You, Lord,
can in an instant turn this loss to gain.
Miserable as I am,
yet I firmly believe that You can do all things.
Please restore to me the time lost,
giving me Your grace, both now and in the future,
that I may appear before You in wedding garments
because, if You want it, You can do it.
Amen.

Saint Teresa on Holyart

In our online store, you will find many articles dedicated to Saint Teresa of Avila: statues, rosaries, prayer cards and many more. Take the Statue of Saint Teresa of Avila with crown of natural thorns made of maple wood from Val Gardena into your home. It is carved in Italy in a company in Val Gardena; thanks to their skills in carving woods, they create works that are amazingly beautiful in both shape and kind. The statue is very detailed and refined to the detail, as you can see from the face details, the clothes and the hands.
It is a product of high prestige and quality. Very appreciated, the oval Medal of S. Teresa Avila in silver-plated metal, 1.5 cm tall, containing the portrait of the Saint. Suitable for any occasion, the Prayer Card of Saint Teresa of Avila, original prayer card from the company Fratelli Bonella. The image, printed on cardboard and decorated with golden motifs depicting Saint Teresa of Avila, has the novena dedicated to Her on the back side.

Keeping a crucifix in your home. A choice for many, a duty and a need for a Christian. Symbol of Jesus’ sacrifice, it keeps Evil in all of its shapes away and reminds us about the love of God in every moment.

The crucifix (also called crucified Christ, from the verb ‘to crucify’, hang with nails) is a fundamental symbol in Christian religion. It is, as we all know, the representation of Jesus on the cross at the moment of his death. Jesus is usually half-naked, his head leaning on his shoulder, his forehead ringed by a crown of thorns. His hand are nailed to the arms of the cross, his feet to the shaft. Two fingers of his right hand are bent to indicate number two, symbolizing the second person of the Holy Trinity. Jesus shows the wound inflicted by Longinus on his ribs. Usually, the writing I.N.R.I. is engraved just above his head, which means Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews (Iesus Nazarenus Rex Iudaeorum). It is the Titulis crucis, that is, the reason behind his death sentence, which was mandatory in such executions.

Throughout centuries, many different iconographies spread to represent the Crucifixion, such as the Christus triumphans, Christ triumphant overs death, alive on the cross and in a frontal position with his head up and his eyes opened, popular since the XII century. The Christus patiens of Byzantine inspiration in the following century, represents a suffering Christ with his head on his shoulder, his eyes closed and his body tense because of the agony.

Among modern crucifixes, the stylized crucifixes are the most popular: they have pleasant, sober and elegant lines, but are also simple and essential for a new and unique design.

It is interesting to see how there have been so many reinterpretations, even though today the main representations of the Cross are based on medieval models; those reinterpretations are connected to the artistic style of the author, to the materials available, but also to the devotional expressions typical of the place they are made. Let’s think for example to some representations that are particularly raw in the South of Italy, or even more in South America or Mexico, where Jesus is often represented while bleeding and humiliated, surrounded by soldiers that act cruelly towards him, condemned by powerful ones, in an expression of the adverse fate people suffered throughout centuries of persecutions.

Besides the artistic representations and the evolution of the image of Jesus crucified, what we want to remind here is that the crucifix is a very powerful Sacramental for the Catholic Church. Here is the definition of Sacramental, as stated in the Catechism of the Catholic Church: ‘Holy Mother Church has, moreover, instituted sacramentals. These are sacred signs which bear a resemblance to the sacraments. They signify effects, particularly of a spiritual nature, which are obtained through the intercession of the Church. By them men are disposed to receive the chief effect of the sacraments, and various occasions in life are rendered holy’ (Catechism 1667)
Keeping a crucifix in our home is a way to always remember Jesus’ sacrifice, his immense love for us, but is also a way to keep evil away, because the crucifix is the symbol of Satan’s defeat. Each time our eyes will look at this precious image, we will be able to draw new strength from it to help us get rid of temptations and evil, strong with Jesus’ love for us and the immortal example of his great sacrifice.

There are crucifixes of any size and material, from wood to metal, often a precious one, and even glass. Art history is full of examples of such representation, made by famous artists as pictures, bas-relief or chiseling, for example the works by Giotto, Michelangelo, Cimabue, Donatello and so on.

We will present the crucifixes you will find in the Holyart catalog, and which you can comfortably choose from our online store. You will find wooden or silver crucifixes, wall or table crucifixes, and many other solutions that can be perfect for any home and furniture.

Saint Benedict Cross

Saint Benedict Medal is a powerful Sacramental recognized by the Catholic Church. In particular, it is recommended as instrument for exorcisms and purification from evil influences. It has engravings on both sides. On one side, it shows Saint Benedict holding a cross in his right hand and the book containing his monastic Rule in his left hand. Other symbols (a broken cup, a raven and a poisoned loaf) recall episodes of the Saint’s life. On the back side of the medal, there is a big cross surrounded by the engraved words of a powerful exorcism.

In Holyart catalog, you will find the authentic Saint Benedict Crosses, in metal, olive wood and other fine woods, but also resin, neutral or colored, like the beautiful Medjugorje Crucifix with Saint Benedict Medal in size 26×18 cm, handmade by Medjugorje artisans. Or else, the wonderful Saint Benedict Cross with inlay work in wood, satinized and galvanized aluminum to protect it from deterioration over time, made of silver-plated brass. The body is nailed to the cross with nails on the back and the medal, with all of the letters, is not melted with the cross but manually inserted in the hole of the cross.

Ceramic, clay and ceramic crucifixes

About ceramic, clay and porcelain, Holyart offers a wide variety of Crucifixes made of artistic ceramic, porcelain stoneware of various sizes and colors, of refractory clay made by the Ceramica Centro Ave of Loppiano (Florence), and porcelain models by the artist Francesco Pinton. An exquisite model is this Corpus Christi from Naples in terracotta, hand painted with oil colors, and glass eyes; it is 45 cm high and is a high quality handmade product made by Neapolitan highly skilled artisans. A more modern and stylized crucifix is this stylized Corpus Christi in refractory white clay, 44 cm high, handmade, hand molded in clay and then baked at more than 1000°C. Finishing and working are entirely handmade in order to give the object pleasant, sober and elegant lines.

Table Crucifixes

In our store you will also find crucifixes with bases for tables or altar, in wood or metal, such as the Crucifix with curved cross base made of Valgardena colored wood (available also in wood color), handmade by artisans from Valgardena, who follow the best local artistic tradition. Artisans and artists carve Alps wood and paint it with mastery in each single detail. It is a very fine and high quality object.

Saint Benedict cross in satin aluminum with a precious wood inlay, 40x20 cm. The crucifix and the medal are in silver-plated brass. The crucifix is nailed to the cross. This Saint Benedict cross is entirely hand-crafted, very precious and guaranteed.
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Medjugorje crucifix with Saint Benedict medal measuring 34x19cm. This item is made in Medjugorje by local craftsmen.
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Bas-relief Jesus Christ body, 44 cm. Bas-relief in fireclay depicting the corpus of Chirst. This stylized clay statue is first hand worked, then baked at more than 1000° degrees and hand finished. A very prestigious religious item, 100% made in Italy by the famous Ceramics Center Ave of Loppiano (Florence).
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Table crucifix with base, curved cross in coloured Valgardena wood. Sculpture in maple wood, hand made by the Valgardena craftsmen following the local artistic tradition. These artisans sculpt the Alps wood with great skills and ability. This is a fine article of high quality. You can chose the size you want: - 29cm cross (12cm Corpus Christi) - 35cm cross (15cm Corpus Christi) - 42cm cross (20cm Corpus Christi). Also available in different finishes (upon request).
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Wooden Crucifixes

In our store, you will find wooden crucifixes of any kind and size, from the most classic ones to more stylized and modern ones. The most used is olive wood; it is handcrafted in all of its details: the crosses, Christ’s bodies, the cherry tree, the fir tree and so on. The Medjugorje Crucifix in fir wood on roots is very particular; it is entirely handmade by woodworkers in Medjugorje (Bosnia Herzegovina), it is made of fir wood and it is sustained by roots. Wood is first cleared, then sealed, and later colored and varnished. A very high quality product with durability guarantee.

Metal Crucifixes

Holyart metal crucifixes are made of silver-plated or gilded bronze and brass by artisans that still use traditional techniques. Elegant and original lines for this Silver-plated and gilded metal crucifix, where the cross is made of silver-plated and gilded grapes and grapevines. Made by a small Italian firm with artisanal techniques, where metal undergoes multiple working phases to guarantee quality and durability.

Stone Crucifixes

Most of Holyart stone Crucifixes are handcrafted by the nuns of the Atelier d’Art of Bethlehem (France), or in Medjugorje stone from Mount Podbrdo. They are refined products, high quality and unique in their kind. For example, the Easter cross in Bethlehem stone, made of Pyrenees stones by the nuns of the Bethlehem Monastery in France, with artisanal techniques and a unique style, which make it an exquisite and high quality object.

Glass or Plexiglas Crucifixes

Holyart glass and Plexiglas crucifixes are modern and innovative. These crosses are all handmade and are 100% Made in Italy. Some are reproductions of famous crucifixes from Italian art history, made of Plexiglas by important artists. Others are made of glass and have a modern style, but they are the result of a handcrafting, which comes from Murano artisan masters techniques. For example, the Topaz glass Crucifix with gilded body, a wall crucifix worked with a topaz effect and Christ’s body in gilded metal.

Wall Tau

The Tau, symbol of Redemption and Cross that was so dear to Saint Francis, is once again in the Holyart wall Taus; they are made of different materials, such as olive wood, ceramic, leather, bark, and are all suitable to be hanged to the wall. One example can be the Olive wood Tau Cross: the tau shaped cross is made of olive wood and Jesus’ body is made of silver-plated brushed metal. It is made in Italy with only Italian materials.

Crucifix, gold-plated with grape branches 24cm and silver-plated body of Christ. This cross is made in a small Italian company with artisan methods; it's a high quality article and it's guaranteed to last in time.
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The Compassion, Jesus during the terrible moment of his passion is supported by John and Mary, they suffer with Him and their sufferings generates a sense of love and peace. The characters in this marvellous statue have their eyes closed, a sign of their sorrow, accepted without complaints and with humility. This crucifix is entirely hand-made and hand-painted by the nuns of the monastery of Bethleem.
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Olive wood tau body of Christ in silvery metal 37 cm. This Tau cross is made in Italy and it is suitable for wall hanging.
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The Compassion, Jesus during the terrible moment of his passion is supported by John and Mary, they suffer with Him and their sufferings generates a sense of love and peace. The characters in this marvellous statue have their eyes closed, a sign of their sorrow, accepted without complaints and with humility. This crucifix is entirely hand-made and hand-painted by the nuns of the monastery of Bethleem.
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