March 16, 2010 9:28 AM
The Angelus
Raymond Arroyo was discussing this painting on the Laura Ingraham Show the other day. Laura is a conservative talk show host who was brought up Baptist but is now Catholic. While she's passionate about politics, she devotes a fair amount of her show to analyzing the culture from a specifically Christian/Catholic point of view and devoting much time to subjects like prayer. You can check to see if her show is broadcast in your area at LauraIngraham.com.
The Angelus is by Millet, circa 1857:
The Angelus: an artistic renderingThe Angelus is a prayer practice rich in doctrine and devotion. This practice commemorates the mystery of the Incarnation by reciting certain versicles and responses with three Hail Marys and a special concluding prayer. It used to be recited morning, noon and evening. The church bells rang--three tolls for each of the invocations and nine for the concluding prayer.
The Angelus traces its beginnings to the thirteenth century. . .
Although the origin of the Angelus is obscure, it is certain that the morning, midday and evening Angelus did not develop simultaneously. By the sixteenth century the various customs were unified. The morning prayer was recited to commemorate Christ's resurrection; at noon, Christ's passion; and in the evening to recall the Incarnation, since St. Bonaventure taught that the angel's visit to Mary came at evening. . .
There is a renowned painting by Jean-Francois Millet entitled the Angelus. It depicts a man and a woman standing in a field. They are farmers. He holds his cap reverently as he stands with bowed head, and she in a white cap and long blue apron over her dress clasps her hands as a prayerful look sets her face. They pause in prayer near the end of the work day. At the woman's feet is a basket of potatoes, and at her far side rests a wheelbarrow full of empty sacks. At the side of the man is a pitchfork spiked upright in the ground. The breaking clouds are blushed with light as birds flit in the twilight. The viewer can almost hear the bells ringing in the spire of the church in the distant right of the painting.
The artist, Jean-Francois Millet, was born in 1814 in Gruchy, a hamlet ten miles west of Cherbourg in northwest France. This inland area off the rugged coast was a countryside of undulating downs beyond the moors.
Jean-Louis, the painter's father, possessed real artistic talent, though all his life was spent tilling the fields. He loved music and directed the village choir, he studied the forms of trees and plants and he modeled in clay when time permitted.
Jean-Francois absorbed his father's appreciation of beauty and art. In his father he found an exemplar to emulate. Jean-Francois also was impressed by his parent's piety and devotion.
As a boy, Jean-Francois traced prints from the family Bible and then tried freehand. From the beginning his parents and the parish priests recognized that he was extraordinary. The priests were careful to educate him the best they could in mythology, Greek, Latin and in translation, Shakespeare, Milton and Burns. All this time Jean-Francois was at home working on the family farm. He became a man of culture with the heart of a peasant. Later he declared of himself, "A peasant I was born and a peasant I will die."
His parents and the villagers commented favorably on his work. His father realized that he must go to Cherbourg to study art. At this point began Jean-Francois' lifelong work as an artist. Later in Paris he fine-tuned his painting skills for twelve years. Because he disliked Paris and city life, he was delighted to return to the country. Barbizon became his home until the time of his death in 1875. It was in 1859 that Jean-Francois Millet painted The Angelus. Vivid were his memories of the Angelus bell ringing while peasants were still working at twilight. Often he had seen his father standing, bare-headed, cap in hand, and his mother with bowed head and folded hands at the sound of the evening Angelus bell.
Millet recorded that impression to show the quiet peace of twilight, the rosy glow of sunset engulfing the fields, the church bells filling the evening air, and the devout attitude of the peasants. Surely he succeeded. When his agent, Sensier, first saw the picture on Millet's easel, the painter turned to him and asked, "Well, what do you think of it?"
"It is the Angelus," replied Sensier. "Yes," Millet said with satisfaction. "Can you hear the bells?"
Millet believed he had painted a great picture, but his genius was not recognized and acknowledged until after his death. In 1889, fourteen years after his death, Millet's painting of The Angelus was put up for auction. The person who had bought the painting from Millet had died. Eventually, The Angelus found its way into the Louvre Museum in Paris.
This text was adapted by Fr Johann G. Roten, SM from an article written by Brother John M. Samaha, SM.
How to pray the Angelus (nonCatholics, please keep in mind that the first half of the Hail Mary is straight from Scripture. They are the words the Angel Gabriel - God's messenger - used to address the Virgin Mary. Can it really be wrong to acknowledge Mary's obedience and her role in bringing forth the Savior - which was prophesied in Genesis - by echoing that God-given greeting? Just wondering aloud.)
This painting can be a great reminder to us during our own busy days to stop for a moment of prayer. Available at art.com
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Posted in Art, Catholicism, Homeschooling, Inspiration | Permalink
Comments
Wow, that is pretty. I think I will print off the info you provided and use this in lessons today. Thanks Mrs. C.
Posted by: Ouida Gabriel | March 16, 2010 10:01 AM
I am a big fan of Laura Ingraham and Raymond Arroya for that matter. I love her unabashed support for the sancticity of life. She is a principled woman who does not claim to be perfect but walks the walk as best she can and encourages all to stand up for our God given rights. AMEN!
Posted by: Jane | March 16, 2010 11:23 AM
I really enjoyed reading this with my kids. We have that print on our wall. I bought it at a Millet exhibition that the kids and I went to see in a small art museum not far from our house. Thanks for sharing!
Posted by: Sue | March 16, 2010 6:55 PM
The small Catholic college that I attended in the early 80s rang out the Angelus 3 times per day. I loved hearing it - so comforting and beautiful. I have to confess that I didn't say the prayer (I didn't even know it), but I definitely felt drawn to the glorious God through that angelic sound.
Posted by: Anne | March 17, 2010 12:42 AM
In grade and high school we said the Angelus every day at noon before lunch. I have always loved the prayer and the sound of the bells ringing. The church bells of my church, St Xavier's in Junction City Kansas, were rung every day at noon and six in the evening. My dad died at noon on a Friday just as the church bells were ringing the Angelus. I would like to find a clock for my home that would ring the Angelus at six noon and six.
Posted by: Bob Moritz | April 25, 2010 9:45 PM
