In the 20th century, an engineer from Philadelphia encouraged others to create their own Mary gardens and established a company that sold seeds with Marian plant names.
Christian Palestinian tattoo artist Walid Ayash draws a tattoo on the arm of a Coptic Egyptian pilgrim on April 28, 2016, at his studio in Bethlehem.
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Over the past decades, many Chicana artists have used Guadalupe to emphasize issues of justice around immigration.
The shrine at Lourdes, France, where the Virgin Mary is venerated as ‘Our Lady of Lourdes,’ following several apparitions reported in 1858.
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The Vatican plans to set up an ‘observatory’ to investigate apparitions of the Virgin Mary. A scholar of global Christianity explains why this is a major shift in how apparitions are authenticated.
Mary is often depicted weeping, a reminder of the ‘Seven Sorrows’ the Bible recounts her suffering.
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Investigating supernatural claims is a delicate task for the church, and Catholic leaders rarely label them as authentic.
A handmade Nativity from Kyrgyzstan by an unknown artisan. Instead of a stable, it features a yurt, the traditional home of nomadic Kyrgyz people.
The Marian Library, University of Dayton
The Christmas story is about Jesus coming to mankind. As holiday decorations show, Christians around the world often picture him in their own cultures.
‘The Nativity,’ circa 1406-10, by Lorenzo Monaco.
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Rosaries are meant to be used wherever, whenever – and each one tells a story.
A mural in Kyiv depicts the Virgin Mary cradling a U.S.-made anti-tank weapon, a Javelin, which is considered a symbol of Ukraine’s defense against Russia.
AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky
Tok Thompson, USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences
A folklorist explains the prehistoric origins of the mythical Easter Bunny and why this longstanding cultural symbol keeps returning each spring.
The flag of Ukraine has been tied around a statue of the Virgin Mary and Jesus Christ outside a church in Pennsylvania amid the Russian invasion.
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To many Ukrainians, Jesus’ mother has a special relationship with their country.
Apparitions of the Virgin Mary have inspired pilgrimages – and souvenirs – in Lourdes, France, for more than a century.
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In the New Testament, there is nothing about Mary’s birth, death, appearance, or age. What we do know about the mother of Jesus is, in fact, quite surprising.
Several celebrities have been seen wearing coats designed by Brenda Equihua, with an image of Mary displayed at the back.
Screen grab from Shelley FKA DRAM - Exposure (Official Music Video)
Mary has acquired popularity among celebrities of late. A religion scholar writes about how for nearly 2,000 years, the mother of Jesus has been viewed as an exemplar by different Christian groups.
People pray inside the Byzantine-era Hagia Sophia, with sail-like drapes covering mosaic figures of the Virgin Mary and Jesus.
AP Photo/Yasin Akgul
In reconverting Hagia Sophia to a mosque, Turkish officials have emphasized veiling of Christian icons to create a Muslim prayer space. Experts explain why the veiling is in fact a Byzantine practice.
People wearing masks and social distancing at the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes on May 30, 2020.
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Coronavirus is causing religious communities to rethink ways of expressing their faith. In the spirit of finding innovative ways to continue rituals, the pilgrimage to Lourdes was conducted online.
The idealisation of Mary as a virgin has created a misguided and deeply damaging relationship between sex and sin within the Christian church.
Madonna with child and angels by Giovanni Battista Salvi da Sassoferrato, 1674. The cult of the Virgin is emblematic of the way the church silences women and marginalises their experience.
Wikimedia Commons
Belief in the eternal virginity of Mary has inflicted damage to women, who can never attain her sexless motherhood or unsullied ‘purity’. Yet in the Gospels, Mary is strong-minded and courageous.
Haiti’s black saint known as Grann Sainte Anne Charitable in her European Catholic form and Ti Saint Anne, in Vodoo form.
Guilberly Louissaint
Director of the Wesley Centre for Theology, Ethics, and Public Policy & Associate Professor, New Testament, Pilgrim Theological College, University of Divinity