Page 26 - EMCAPP-Journal No. 13
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2. Victims of child abuse and ex-
ploitation
3. Victims of natural calamities
(flood, tsunami, earthquake)
4. Victims of war and conflict
5. Victims of famine and sickness
6. Modern-day saints and heroes
(John Paul II, Mother Teresa, et al.)
The installation finds its origin in
the devotional practice of faith-
ful Catholics to remember their
departed loved ones, which takes
place on November 2 on the feast
of All Souls Day. As Catholic belie-
vers we believe in the communion
of the living and the dead, which
means that we pray for each other.
For me as a Jesuit priest it indicates
that I offer the mass to God as an
act of devotion and prayer for both
the living and the dead. For me as
an artist the installation provided a venue to
Jason Dy (Philippines) investigate how this form of art interacts with
In Loving Memory a Christian devotional practice. It also probed
into the potential of employing art in ministry,
whereby art does not only display a beautiful
form but also becomes an image that opens a
A key part of this installation are empty bott- window for spiritual encounter and enrich-
les that could be filled by the visitors of the ment. I hope the bottled memories will provide
Arte+Faith exhibition at the Catholic World people with an opportunity for catharsis, a ve-
Youth Days in Madrid (15-21 August, 2011) nue for reliving memories and for keeping the
with memories of their beloved dead using any legacy of the dead alive.
mementos they have brought with them. Paper
and pen are provided to fill in: In loving memo- May we all be comforted by the words of the
ry of _____________. Irish funeral prayer ‘Longing for One More
Day’: ‘When we lose someone we love it seems
Next to these bottles stand cast polyresin statues that time stands still. What moves through us
of angels molded from an old and worn-out sta- is a silence... a quiet sadness... a longing for one
tue of an angel with broken wings I salvaged more day... one more word... one more touch.
from a demolished cemetery in the Philippines. We may not understand why you left this earth
Afterwards it was turned into a housing com- so soon or why you left before we were ready
plex for the poor near our parish. Each statue to say good-bye, but little by little, we begin to
will be covered with envelopes with intentions remember not just that you died, but that you
for the dead. lived. And that your life gave us memories too
beautiful to forget. We will see you again some
On a shelf on the wall I have put several bottles day, in a heavenly place where there is no par-
in loving memory of these following groups: ting. A place where there are no words that
1. Those unknown to human beings but known mean good-bye.’
to God
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