Artwork and drawings of the life of Saint Gemma by a Passionist nun at St Gemma's Monastery

Those who appreciate artwork/drawings will certainly appreciate the photos below. This artwork comes from and old book entitled "A Lover of the Cross -St. Gemma Galgani" published in 1940 by the Monastero-Santuario di Santa Gemma Galgani, Lucca Italy. The drawings are by an unnamed Passionist nun, and they beautifully depict the holy life of Saint Gemma.

Here is an brief explanation of each drawing:
Drawing #1 -The birth of Gemma
Drawing #2 -One day for fun, Gemma's teacher had the students draw lots to see which one "would become a Saint". And Gemma herself drew the desired lot of the one who would become a Saint.
Drawing #3 -The miraculous cure of St Gemma
Drawing #4 -St Gemma is rejected entry into several convents
Drawing #5 -Gemma is given the Stigmata
Drawing #6 -Father Germano C.P. becomes Gemma's spiritual director
Drawing #7 -Gemma becomes a victim soul
Drawing #8 -The Pope blesses Fr. Germano when he asks for a new Passionist Monastery in Lucca (as requested by Jesus to St Gemma--Gemma sought and prayed fervently for this new monastery, but it was only to come after her death and was built in her honor and named after her, and is where her her relics are kept beneath the main altar of the monastery Church.
Drawing #9 -"The humble shall be exaulted" -This depicts the time when a Monsignor came to visit Gemma because he had heard of her holiness, and when she was called to meet him in her great humility she suddenly grabbed the housecat and began acting foolishly with it, to the dismay of the Monsignor, for Gemma of course wanted no one to think that she was holy, devout or special in any way.
Drawing #10 - Alone with Jesus alone -in her final illness, for fear that her disease in contagious, Gemma is moved out of the Giannini family home and into an apartment by herself, to suffer her last illness alone.
Drawing #11 -The heavenly lily -Jesus prepares Gemma for heaven
Drawing #12 -As a dead body- Gemma is taught to forget herself and to suffer for others.
Drawing #13 -Gemma is childlike in her love for Jesus
Drawing #14 -Gemma's guardian Angel guides and directs her
Drawing #15 -"The Mother of orphans" -The Blessed Virgin Mary appears to St Gemma and becomes her heavenly Mother
Drawing #16 -"Crucified love" -Gemma bears the stigmata and the crown of thorns
Drawing #17 -"I will call all sinners" -Gemma telling Jesus that she will suffer for the conversion of sinners.
Drawing #18 -"With Jesus in heaven" -the holy death of St Gemma.
Drawing #19 -"And the humble shall be exaulted" -St Gemma's entrance into heaven.

For those interested, the photos themselves are actually very high resolution, but this is apparent only if they are downloaded (right click on photo and choose "save as").








































-St Gemma, pray for us!
___________________________
"Why did you suffer for me dear Jesus? For love!...The nails, the crown, the cross--all for the love of me!
For You I will sacrifice everything willingly. I offer to You my body with all its weakness and my soul with all its love".
-St Gemma Galgani

1 comment:

Moggie said...

Thank you for posting these. They are so beautiful! God bless you.

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