A former Brainerd resident who grew up attending St. Paul's Episcopal Church has donated a collection of artwork to the church.
As a memorial to his wife, Robert Campbell donated "The Way of the Cross," a 15-print series by Ted De Grazia, depicting the Stations of the Cross. The prints are framed and will hang on an office wall at the church, except during Lent - Feb. 21, Ash Wednesday, through April 7, Holy Saturday - when they'll be displayed in the church's sanctuary.
"They're a wonderful adjunct to private worship and spirituality," the Rev. Stephen Haptonstahl said.
The Stations of the Cross depict the final hours of Jesus, from the time he was condemned to death until he was laid in the tomb. The 14 Stations of the Cross are:
Brainerd Dispatch/Heidi Lake
Jesus being condemned to death.
Jesus receiving the cross.
The first fall.
Jesus meeting His Mother.
Simon of Cyrene carrying the cross.
Veronica wiping Jesus' face with her veil.
The second fall.
Jesus meeting the women of Jerusalem.
The third fall.
Jesus being stripped of His garments.
The crucifixion; Jesus being nailed to the cross.
Jesus dying on the cross.
Jesus' body being removed from the cross.
Jesus laying in the tomb.
Brainerd Dispatch/Heidi Lake
De Grazia included Jesus' resurrection in his series, bringing the total number of paintings to 15. In the three paintings showing Jesus falling from the weight of the cross, De Grazia painted Jesus black, yellow, then red, signifying he died for everyone.
"Jesus is depicted in all races, white, brown, red and yellow, encompassing the whole of humanity," Haptonstahl said.
De Grazia's original artworks are oil paintings, created in 1964 for the Newman Catholic Student Center at the University of Arizona in Tucson.
De Grazia was a world-renown artist from Arizona whose work has been reproduced on greeting cards, prints and collector plates. He's considered one of the world's most reproduced artists.
"The Way of the Cross" will be dedicated during church services Feb. 25.
"We'll ask God's blessing that they be psycho-spiritual tools to help people pray," Haptonstahl said of the prints that serve as reminders of how Jesus suffered. "It was an ordeal ..."
Haptonstahl has served as St. Paul's interim pastor since May 2006. He currently lives in Duluth and drives to Brainerd several times a week.
HEIDI LAKE can be reached at
heidi.lake@brainerddispatch.com
or 855-5879.
