What the catacombs tell us about early Christians

Rome Reports ^ | December 1, 2013

[NYer]

December 1, 2013. History, religion and archeology are all nestled in the Roman catacombs of Priscilla. One of the most recent discoveries is a fresco depicting Lazarus rising from the dead. The fresco is centuries old, but now thanks to new technology it has been restored with the use of lasers.   

BARBARA MAZZEI 

Restorative Museum, The Catacombs of Priscilla 

“In one of the areas we restored we found a representation of Lazarus rising from the dead. In addition to that, it's also interesting to see that they drew images of Peter and Paul accompanying the dead. Two martyrs of the catacomb, Felix and Phillip are also depicted.” 

For many years now, the Vatican's Pontifical Commission on Sacred Archeology, has made it a point to restore these artistic treasures. After investing time, money and effort, basically all this artwork which dates back to the 3rd and 4th centuries has been restored. 

BARBARA MAZZEI 

Restorative Museum, The Catacombs of Priscilla 

“In 20 years we have progressively restored all the paintings inside this building, which is incredible. This last year alone, we've focused on restoring surfaces, like that of the Basilica of San Silvestre.” 

So now the final result of these restorations are up for everyone to see at an exhibit housed at the Basilica of San Silvestre. The underground catacombs lead visitors to a historic chapter in early Christianity. 

MSGR. GIOVANNI CARRÙ 

Secretary, Pontifical Commission of Sacred Archeology  

“Visiting the catacombs of Priscilla has now become a journey, one could even describe it as a privileged journey of how the Bible was used to understand the faith. It's interesting to see how early Christians depicted Biblical scenes to decorate dark catacombs, which ironically are now full of light.” 

More than 700 sarcophagi fragments have been restored to shed light on how these early Christians lived, including how they lived their faith inside these hidden catacombs. 

[NYer]

CATACOMBS OF PRISCILLA - Official Site - in Italian

[NYer]

Ping!

[NYer]

Ping!

[miliantnutcase]

I wonder if we’ll be forced back underground in our lifetime?

[GreyFriar]

Ah, the fresco made famous by the MSM headline “Early Christians had women priests.” With NO other proof than the fresco.

[shineon]

from what I have been told - most of the early christians were comprised of women and slaves. Makes sense to me.

[vladimir998]

It’s a man wearing a prayer shawl over his head - like any good Jewish Christian would have done in earliest Christianity.

https://www.google.com/search?q=jews+prayer+shawl+over+head&rlz=1T4ADRA_enUS418US418&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=WYGbUqyINYfloASSqICICg&ved=0CAkQ_AUoAQ&biw=1093&bih=453#facrc=_&imgdii=_&imgrc=hiMPDQTMs8Q_JM%3A%3Bl9Psp-OxEdOIFM%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fupload.wikimedia.org%252Fwikipedia%252Fcommons%252F7%252F76%252FPrayer_Shawl.JPG%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fen.wikipedia.org%252Fwiki%252FTallit%3B1504%3B2592

[onedoug]

Priscilla ping....

[Biggirl]

It is that type of prayer shawl that is the origins of the knited prayer shawls and the prayer shawl ministry.

[shineon]

sorry a little late to the party here. Is someone saying that’s a woman wearing a prayer shawl?

[GreyFriar]

you and I are aware of it, but not the MSM who declared the person in the fresco a “female priest.”

[Biggirl]

Here is the URL and it refers to the person in prayer as a woman:

http://www.catacombepriscilla.com/inglese/index.php?option=com_content&view=category&layout=blog&id=13&Itemid=114

[knarf]

Medieval images with long hair and catholic vestments ?

[shineon]

i wasn’t there but, ha ha ha.... I don’t think so.

[knarf]

The bird with an olive branch is a relatively new image ... I understand the early christians used the fish symbol

[vladimir998]

I’m not saying it.

[HereInTheHeartland]

“I wonder if we’ll be forced back underground in our lifetime?”

Yes. Look at the movement is the past 30 years. Look forward 30 years and it will be much worse.

[vladimir998]

Not hair. It’s a prayer shawl (tallit). It even has tassels. Look closely.

[shineon]

wearing a rich purple garment and a veil on her head. Ha ha the men must have gotten jealous back in the day and turned those rich blue and white garments into prayer shawls for the men.

[shineon]

then forbid the women from wearing them any more.