Holy wow, holy wow, holy wow!
I accidentally stumbled upon this gem while doing a bit of research on St. Clare of Assisi. Apparently there is a church in Mexico that bears her name that boasts a small chapel with THIS AMAZING TABERNACLE as its centerpiece:
I accidentally stumbled upon this gem while doing a bit of research on St. Clare of Assisi. Apparently there is a church in Mexico that bears her name that boasts a small chapel with THIS AMAZING TABERNACLE as its centerpiece:
Go ahead and bask in its awesomeness for a few moments. I've never seen such an extraordinary concept for a tabernacle (outside of these in honor of the Incarnation). The theological significance is breathtaking.
For those of you not familiar, the pelican was revered as the most self-sacrificing of birds when it came to protecting and nurturing its young. In hard times, a pelican will stab its own heart to produce blood for its young to be nourished by. As such, this bird became a symbol of Christ's own willingness to give of Himself wholly to us from the Cross for sustenance. Thus, to have this image not only on the tabernacle of the Eucharist, but AS the tabernacle of the Eucharist... whew! Amazing. So, so amazing.
Beyond the theological significance of the imagery, the craftsmanship of the piece is beautiful, too. It looks like some sort of enamel outlined and embellished with gold details. The nest they are nestled in looks like a crown of thorns, does it not?
Here's a photo of the side chapel for reference:
For those of you not familiar, the pelican was revered as the most self-sacrificing of birds when it came to protecting and nurturing its young. In hard times, a pelican will stab its own heart to produce blood for its young to be nourished by. As such, this bird became a symbol of Christ's own willingness to give of Himself wholly to us from the Cross for sustenance. Thus, to have this image not only on the tabernacle of the Eucharist, but AS the tabernacle of the Eucharist... whew! Amazing. So, so amazing.
Beyond the theological significance of the imagery, the craftsmanship of the piece is beautiful, too. It looks like some sort of enamel outlined and embellished with gold details. The nest they are nestled in looks like a crown of thorns, does it not?
Here's a photo of the side chapel for reference:
I found these photos on Wiki-commons if anyone is interested in checking out more. :)
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