A New Addition to the Basilica Art Collection
The Heavenly Commissioning of St. Teresa: A New Addition to the Basilica Art Collection
The Basilica of the National Shrine of the Little Flower is pleased to announce a new addition to the Basilica's prized art collection. On March 12 of this year, to mark the occasion of the 400th anniversary of the canonization of St. Teresa
of Jesus, Fr. Gregory Ross, OCD, pastor and rector, blessed and dedicated The Heavenly Commissioning of St. Teresa.
The Commissioning painting came to Little Flower Basilica from philanthropist and devotee of St. Thérèse Sally Drinkhouse. As a lover of antiques and the arts, Ms. Drinkhouse first purchased the Commissioning at auction, originally housing it at Our Lady of Peace Prayer Chapel, a chapel constructed by Ms. Drinkhouse as a gift to her mother. In seeking a new home for the piece after the closing of the chapel,
Ms. Drinkhouse approached Fr. Gregory about donating the Commissioning to Little Flower Basilica. That this should occur during such a significant year in the history of our Holy Mother, St. Teresa, is surely a blessing of the highest order.
The addition of this work to the Basilica Art Collection serves to highlight the importance of St. Teresa of Jesus to the history of the Carmelite Order and the Church as a whole.
Fr. Gregory Ross, OCD, & Sally Drinkhouse at the dedication of The Heavenly Commissioning of St. Teresa
The Commissioning is truly a massive work, easily matching the Apotheosis Celine painting which stands at ten-feet tall. In selecting a place to hang the work, it was naturally suggested that it share a space with the Apotheosis. Preparations were quickly made so that we here at the Basilica could take advantage of such fortuitous timing as St. Teresa's anniversary.
Though initially believing the Carmelite nun depicted was St. Thérèse, further investigation revealed the painting's ties to the works of St. Teresa of Jesus: The Commissioning brings to life one of St. Teresa's visions as described in The Book of her Life in which Teresa is visited by the Virgin Mary and St. Joseph and gifted with a jeweled cross along with their assurance of her success in founding her new monastery.
The dedication ceremony took place Saturday, March 12 after the daily Mass. Visitors and parishioners, along with Ms. Drinkhouse and several of the Discalced Carmelite friars, were in attendance at the event in the undercroft to see the Commissioning in its new niche within the Basilica.
The ceremony began with Fr. Gregory welcoming the crowd and explaining the history of the gift and the image depicted therein. Following the blessing and unveiling, guests were invited to pray together St. Teresa's Nada te Turbe which
was gifted to them on the reverse of a special prayer card created to mark the occasion. A small reception sponsored by the Basilica's Cofradía de Nuestra Señora de la Virgen del Carmen concluded the event, allowing attendees to mingle and admire the painting.
Since placing the Commissioning in the portion of the undercroft which formerly housed the Apotheosis alone, the space has been informally referred to as the "Hall of Doctors," referring to both Thérèse and Teresa's roles as Doctors of the Church. The addition of this work to the Basilica Art Collection serves to highlight the importance of St. Teresa of Jesus to the history of the Carmelite Order and the Church as a whole. The rich history of the Discalced Carmelite order is shared in many aspects of Little Flower Basilica in its function as a center for Carmelite Spirituality.
With public events again being available, we are excited to encourage pilgrims to visit us for a tour or other occasion to catch a glimpse of this wonderful work of art. The Heavenly Commissioning of St. Teresa can be seen every day during the regular operating hours of the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Little Flower.
An excerpt from the scene depicted in The Heavenly Commissioning of St. Teresa:
I saw our Lady on my right hand, and my father St. Joseph on my left... our Lady seemed at once to take me by both hands. She said that I pleased her very much by being devout to the glorious St. Joseph; that I might rely on it my desires about the monastery were accomplished, and that our Lord and they too would be greatly honoured in it; that I was to be afraid of no failure whatever... She then seemed to throw around my neck a most splendid necklace of gold, from which hung a cross of great value. The stones and gold were so different from any in this world, that there is nothing wherewith to compare them. The beauty of them is such as can be conceived by no imagination . . . in comparison with which all the splendours of earth, so to say, are a daubing of soot. This beauty, which I saw in our Lady, was exceedingly grand, though I did not trace it in any particular feature, but rather in the whole form of her face. She was clothed in white and her garments shone with excessive lustre that was not dazzling, but soft. I did not see St. Joseph so distinctly, though I saw clearly that he was there... 1
1 The Life of St. Teresa of Jesus of The Order of Our Lady of Carmel Chapter 33, Paragraph 16, catholicspiritualdirection.org/lifeofteresa.pdf