† カトリック玉造教会
大阪高松カテドラル聖マリア大聖堂
St. Mary's Cathedral
Upon entering the vast main hall from the entrance of the cathedral, one's gaze is drawn to a large mural painting on the opposite side of the front of the building. It is a huge Japanese painting named "Our Lady of Glory. In this cathedral without colonnades, the mural can be seen from anywhere in the hall. It is as if this cathedral was built for this great mural painting. The light from the stained-glass windows on the left and right walls has been adjusted for this wall painting, and the elegant color of the marble on the walls, the interior, and the floor creates a unique spiritual space.
◉The Virgin Mary in Glory
As if attracted by this large mural, one moves closer to it. The sheer scale of the painting is overwhelming.
However, the question still lingers in one's mind as to why this is the "Virgin Mary in Glory. There are other statues of the crowned Virgin, aren't there? This is the scene in which the Virgin is crowned by her Son,
Jesus, after being lifted up to heaven. I believe that the artist chose to depict the Virgin holding the Child Jesus, even though he knew about the Virgin's coronation.
The depiction of the Virgin and Child dates back to the end of the 2nd century AD. The earliest fresco of the Virgin and Child is in the Catacombs of Priscilla in Rome. It depicts the Virgin holding a child, a prophet and a star. This is the star that the prophet Balaam saw, foretelling the Messiah, and is trying to say that this
is the "Child" of the Virgin and Child (cf. Num. 24:17). Then there is the Virgin and Child carved on the sarcophagus of a Christian in particular from the fourth century, when the Roman prohibition was lifted,
which depicts the Virgin and Child and the three Wise Men of the East who came to worship after seeing the star. This is the scene known as the "Adoration of the Wise Men" (Adoratio Magi), in which Gentiles who saw the star came to worship Jesus, the Messiah born in Bethlehem (Matthew 2:1-12). This scene represents the invitation of the pagans to worship Jesus present in the church when Rome was still a pagan city. Here is a synthesis of Christology, ecclesiology, and missiology.
The tradition of depicting the Virgin and Child dates back to ancient Christianity, but it was probably the works of the early Renaissance that provided the stimulus for the Madonna and Child in the great mural paintings. It may be the Madonna and Child left by the thirteenth-century Cimabue of Florence, Duccio of Siena, and Giotto of Assisi. It is called the Maestà (Dignity) and is currently on display side by side in the Uffizi Museum in Florence. Cimabue's Maestà is sublime, Duccio's Maestà liturgical, and Giotto's Maestà earthly and familiar. Certainly, the maestas do not depict clouds. This came to be depicted centuries later, when painting the Immaculate Conception. The fact that the cloud is depicted here indicates that it is the same as the stone statue of Mary in the front of this cathedral. Except for the cloud, the Virgin and Child here are depicted in sumptuous Japanese traditional dress, which shows the influence of St. Francis of Assisi's
interpretation of the Bible that the Gospel story is not an event of the distant past, but a salvific event that transcends time and place and occurs within us all. The Virgin in traditional dress signifies the community of believers (the Church) gathered here, in which we encounter Jesus, the only begotten Son of God. In fact, this is the ecclesiology and Marianism of the Second Vatican Council (1962-65).
The face of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the face of a young Japanese woman, is also perfect, exuding elegance. The touch between the hands of the Mother and the Child is very subtle, and its meaning is left to the imagination of the viewer. The right hand of the Son Jesus is pointing at something with his index finger.
It is none other than the man who is under the clouds, that is, on this earth, holding the cross. If so, the infant Jesus must be asking who this man is. In response, Cupid, the Roman god of love, may answer as the infant angel, "It is Takayama Ukon," because here there is a halo. Another infant angel on the lower right, seeing this, might be shouting, "Here is Lady Gratia Hosokawa, too." Thus, there is Lady Gratia Hosokawa
with white lilies. In this way, it seems that here we have the technique of "sacred dialogue" used by Renaissance painters. Thus, this great mural not only "shows," but also "lets us hear" and "smell" the painting.
As if to embellish the large mural, there are two murals on both sides of the ceiling.
On the left side is "Takayama Ukon on his way to Luzon" and on the right side is "The Last Days of Lady Gratia."
The Last Days of Lady Gratia
Lady Gratia Hosokawa's death was considered a suicide, and her canonization was ruled out of the
question. However, now that the idea of suicide is being reconsidered, her death should rather be regarded as
a death with dignity.
All the murals in the cathedral were painted by the painter Insho Domoto. In his memoir of January 25,1963, Insho Domoto wrote about the background and thoughts that led to the creation of the murals as follows.
More than ten years ago, Bishop Taguchi of the Diocese of Osaka asked me to paint a mural of Mary for a cathedral to be built in Osaka in the near future. I agreed to this request and have devoted myself to it ever since. During that time, I went to Europe twice and visited famous shrines in France, Italy, Germany, Spain, and other countries, where I came into contact with many religious masterpieces and gained a great deal from them. There, I discovered that artists from various countries had depicted their own ideal images of Mary and Christ, and I believed that Japan should have its own image of the Japanese Virgin. Fortunately, this was in line with Bishop Taguchi's ideals, so I followed his line of thought. The reason why I chose the Momoyama period for the mural painting of the Osaka Cathedral is that Francis Xavier came to Japan for the first time in the Momoyama period and was officially allowed by Nobunaga to proselytize in this period, and
Ukon Takayama and Lady Gratia, who are depicted with the Virgin Mary and Christ, were also born in this period. In addition, Ukon Takayama and Lady Galacha, who are depicted with the Virgin Mary and Christ, were born in the Azuchi-Momoyama period, and were representative Christian believers of this period.
The Virgin Mary in Glory" is the largest and most representative of Insho Domoto's works.
The following is a brief biography of Insho Domoto, the artist who created the large mural that adorns the cathedral.
Born in Kyoto on December 25, 1891, the third son of brewers Domoto Gobei and Yoshiko.
His real name is Sanosuke.
1911 (age 20)
From this time on, he took the name "Insho".
1919 (age 28)
His "Fukakusa" was selected for the first time at the 1st Teiten Exhibition.
1925 (age 34)
Awarded the Imperial Art Academy Prize for Kegon, which he exhibited at the 6th Teiten.
1952 (age 61)
Travels to Europe.
1963 (age 72)
Painted the mural of St. Mary's Cathedral.
1965 (age 74)
Founded the Domoto Insho Art Museum, an incorporated association, and opened the
Domoto Insho Art Museum in October of the following year
1973( age 82)
Commissioned by Pope Paul VI to paint "Mother and Child" for the Vatican Museum of Modern Art. Received the Grand Knight of the Order of the Holy Cross of Silvestro.
1975 (age 84)
Died on September 5.
The Domoto Insho Museum of Art was donated to Kyoto Prefecture by the Domoto Impression Museum of Art, an incorporated association, and opened as the Kyoto Prefectural Domoto Insho Museum of Art in April 1992, where the artist's works are still exhibited and introduced today.