The Church's Greatest Art Treasures

The church has many great art treasures, but we don't need to visit the Louvre, the Ufii or the State Hermitage in St. Petersburg, Russia, to see them. They might be much closer to us than we realize!

In every family, at least one child becomes designated the "heir apparent." This child is not necessarily the eldest, or the brightest or the most successful. But there is something about the child that speaks to the parents and others that it is the one most likely to carry on the hopes and dreams of that family's tradition. From the moment the "heir apparent" is apparent, that child is shaped and groomed to step into the shoes that have already been worn by previous generations.

If the "heir apparent" is lost, the family heirlooms and treasures are lost. Without an heir, there is no one to inherit the treasures. Alexander the Great had tremendous vision, untouchable military might and enough creative energy to stamp his image on all civilization in the Near East. But he had no heir apparent. The young empire died with its young ruler. On Pentecost Sunday we celebrate what it means to become God's heirs, joint heirs with Christ, inspirited expressions of God's handiwork. God's...