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contact:
malbon@vt.edu

Terrence E. Dempsey, S.J., teaches at St. Louis University, where he also serves as Director of the Museum of Contemporary Religious Art.

Abstract: Many public and private visual arts institutions have collections that are rich in images of biblical subjects and themes. Too often, these resources have gone unused by the educational and religious institutions in those same areas. The purpose of this paper is to show the power of incorporating the visual dimension into the scriptural education of college students, seminary students, and members of religious congregations. Drawing primarily on the collections of the Philadelphia Museum of Art and the Pennsylvania Academy of Art, this paper will offer a demonstration of how visual dialogues among different cultures and periods may be developed for classroom and research purposes regarding subjects and themes that have biblical roots. Properly organized, courses utilizing nearby art collections can create an appreciation for the role of visual art in deepening the faith experience; can provide students with the experience of encountering an actual work of art; and can help develop more discerning eyes in the students that may provide them with an understanding of what different cultures and periods found of particular interest in the Bible by what was represented visually and how it was represented.

2005, Philadelphia


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