“Sacred art is true and beautiful when its form corresponds to its particular vocation: evoking and glorifying, in faith and adoration, the transcendent mystery of God – the surpassing invisible beauty of truth and love visible in Christ” (CCC 2052). As the Church in the United States seeks to foster a Eucharistic revival, might the beauty of sacred art be a privileged avenue for teaching all the faithful––along with those estranged from the Church––to discover anew the resplendent beauty of our Eucharistic Lord? In a new book organized around 12 works of sacred art with Eucharistic themes, my guest today has laid out a path for us to journey together to the beauty of God.

 Jem Sullivan is the author of Way of Beauty: Rekindling Eucharistic Amazement through Visio Divina, which is out now from Our Sunday Visitor. Dr. Sullivan is Associate Professor of Catechetics in the School of Theology and Religious Studies at the Catholic University of America. In addition to Way of Beauty, she is also the author of several other books, including The Beauty of Faith: Using Sacred Art to Spread the Good News and Believe, Celebrate, Live, Pray: A Weekly Walk with the Catechism. She joins me today to talk about Eucharistic Amazement, sacred art, the practice of visio divina, and our transformation as Christians through the presence and the calling of Jesus Christ.

Follow up Resources:

• Way of Beauty: Rekindling Eucharistic Amazement through Visio Divina, by Jem Sullivan (OSV 2023)
• “Our Eucharistic God, with Jonathan Ciraulo” via Church Life Today
• “The Past, Present, and Future of the Eucharist, with Michael Hahn” via Church Life Today
• “Redeeming Vision from Pornography, with Steve Pokorny” via Church Life Today

This episode is sponsored by Religious Freedom Week 2023, http://www.usccb.org/ReligiousFreedomWeek

Church Life Today is a partnership between the McGrath Institute for Church Life at the University of Notre Dame and OSV Podcasts from Our Sunday Visitor. Discover more ways to live, learn, and love your Catholic faith at osvpodcasts.com. Sharing stories, starting conversations.