Cephas
"Cephas" by Ted Schuyler. Oil. Not dated. This is a portrait of St. Peter as seen in a series of dreams about the Apostle which began when Ted was an art student and continued for many years thereafter. When Ted painted the portrait, the dreams stopped, except for one final dream in which he only heard Peter's voice and saw the key logo with the CEPHAS (Aramaic for "rock") superimposed. Peter told him, "My name is the Key. C is for Christ, the crown of the key; E is for the Eucharist and P is for the Paraclete. These three come from God. The rest is humanity's response: H for Humility, A for Adoration and S for Sanctity" Ted added the logo to the painting and from that time forward he had no more St. Peter dreams. Two other interesting items to note: 1) no matter where you are in the room, the eyes of St. Peter appear to be looking at you and 2) Ted had a photographic memory (see Corn Dance) so this can be seen as a accurate representation of the man he saw in his dreams. From the collection of Tish and Curt Gorman.
Washing of the Feet
Painted by Ted Schuyler. From the Collection of 2nd Presbyterian Church, Albuquerque, NM Public viewings allowed. This painting and the two following are a group is called " A Triptych from the Gospel of St. John." Ted often used the paintings as his personal witness to Christ and he would take them with him when he went to talk about his experiences. This was no easy feat as he had no car and each panel of this series was 4 x 8 feet.
The Crucifixion
Painted by Ted Schuyler. Painting #2 from the group called "A Triptych from the Gospel of St. John" From the Collection of 2nd Presbyterian Church, Albuquerque, NM Public viewings allowed.
The Empty Tomb
Painted by Ted Schuyler. Painting #3 from the group called "A Triptych from the Gospel of St. John" From the Collection of 2nd Presbyterian Church, Albuquerque, NM Public viewings allowed.
Whither Thou Goest
Acrylic, 16 x 20, by Trudie Schuyler Barreras. This depiction of the famous momemt described in the Book of Ruth when Orpah returns home, while Ruth accompanies Naomi back to Israel, was commissioned by First Metropolitan Community Church of Atlanta. It was painted in 2004 for a Lenten sermon series the pastor was offering at that time, and remains in the permanent collection of that church. The church has recently changed its name to "City of Light MCC", but is still in Atlanta, and this painting remains in its possession.
Jonathan Made a Covenant with David
Annunciation
Oil, 11 x 14, by Trudie Schuyler Barreras represents her visualization of the moment when the Holy Spirit overshadows the Virgin Mary to conceive Emmanuel, God With Us. This painting is in the collection of Rev. Emily Bel.
Mary Magdalene Ministering to Jesus' Wounds
This painting was inspired by the wonderful scene In Kittredge Cherry's book Jesus in Love: At the Cross in which Mary Magdalene, after the resurrected Jesus has spoken her name and she has recognized him as her "Rabboni", offers to use the materials she had brought thinking to prepare His body after the hasty Sabbath-eve burial to cleanse and help heal his wounds. This speaks so powerfully of the special relationship between Mary and Jesus, as well as the healing ministry to which she was called, that Trudie felt strongly motivated to illustrate it.
The Two Marys from Matthew 27:61
This painting was inspired by reading Cynthia Bourgeault's recent book, The Meaning of Mary Magdalene, in which she described a moment of supreme spiritual enlightenment concerning the role of Mary Magdalene when reading Matthew 27:61:
"Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were there, sitting opposite the tomb."
Careful reading indicates that "the other Mary" must in fact have been Jesus' own mother. That at least is how Trudie interprets it in this painting. This painting is in the collection of Bill Murphy.
