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The body of St. Mark the Evangelist was smuggled out of Alexandria by Venetian merchants in search of an impressive patron saint.
The Venice Biennale is in full swing and is about to get even more crowded with the summer holidays now on. It’s not a tempting prospect for everyone. A century ago the Catholic convert Oscar Wilde described his Venetian gondola experience as “a coffin moving through a sewer.”
Wilde’s review is not part of the Biennale promotion, and neither is the body of St. Mark the Evangelist, even though his feast day on April 25 would fall right in line with the promotional push. The world of religion doesn’t impinge much on the Biennale, although the Vatican pioneered its own pavilion there in 2013.
Nine hundred years ago, it was different. When Venice really got going as a trading superpower, St. Mark was an irresistible magnet for visitors. Pilgrims would travel enormous distances to be near his mortal remains.
But how the Evangelist got to be there was not discussed much then, or now. Venetians instead revel in the Piazza San Marco, the Basilica of San Marco, and the winged lion of the saint, which has become the city’s symbol.
Continued below.
aleteia.org
The Venice Biennale is in full swing and is about to get even more crowded with the summer holidays now on. It’s not a tempting prospect for everyone. A century ago the Catholic convert Oscar Wilde described his Venetian gondola experience as “a coffin moving through a sewer.”
Wilde’s review is not part of the Biennale promotion, and neither is the body of St. Mark the Evangelist, even though his feast day on April 25 would fall right in line with the promotional push. The world of religion doesn’t impinge much on the Biennale, although the Vatican pioneered its own pavilion there in 2013.
Nine hundred years ago, it was different. When Venice really got going as a trading superpower, St. Mark was an irresistible magnet for visitors. Pilgrims would travel enormous distances to be near his mortal remains.
But how the Evangelist got to be there was not discussed much then, or now. Venetians instead revel in the Piazza San Marco, the Basilica of San Marco, and the winged lion of the saint, which has become the city’s symbol.
What happened?
Continued below.
How the remains of St. Mark came to be in Venice
The body of St. Mark the Evangelist was smuggled out of Alexandria by Venetian merchants in search of an impressive patron saint. He remains in Venice today.
aleteia.org
