On one of the walls just inside the entrance to Ely Cathedral there is a large modern sculpture of a cross.

On the North West Transept wall there is a magnificent sculpture called ‘The Way of Life‘ by Jonathan Clarke. One of three sculptures specially commissioned for the millennium, Jonathan Clarke’s The Way of Life is made of cast aluminium and has nine sections, each differently jointed. Like the journey of faith, its path is irregular and unpredictable; and just as the journey is sometimes hard, sometimes joyful, the surface texture and colour also vary. On the top arm you might be able to make out a minute human figure, someone who is perhaps on the journey.

On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you.

John 14:20 (NIV)

The long tradition of coral carving on the Amalfi Coast is put in the spotlight at the Coral Museum in Ravello. Tucked away in an unassuming shop fronted by flower pots, the museum is housed in the Camo workshop, one of the area’s most prestigious names for coral and cameo jewelry. The Ravello area has been a center of marine jewelry craftsmen for centuries, where coral has been plucked from the waters of the Gulf of Salerno and Napoli and carefully carved into jewelry and fashioned into figurines. The museum documents the various manufacturing techniques, showing the ancient tools used in turning the raw materials into pieces of art. Hundreds of pieces are on display, including a stunning coral crucifix and a magnificent Madonna, along with beads, cameos and jewelry, a section of Ebraica, and even a nativity scene – everything handmade from coral, pearls or shells, ranging from Roman times to the 20th century.

Unfortunately we ran out of time and didn’t get the opportunity to see the museum. Maybe next time

On the very eventful Good Friday, Jesus was betrayed by his disciple Judas and arrested, then hauled before several different authorities—first the Jewish religious leaders, then the Roman governor Pontius Pilate. Sentenced to death, Jesus was crucified alongside two criminals. Upon his death, he was buried in a nearby tomb.

Matthew 26:14-27:66 New International Version (NIV)

The Crucifixion of Jesus

32 As they were going out, they met a man from Cyrene, named Simon, and they forced him to carry the cross. 33 They came to a place called Golgotha (which means “the place of the skull”). 34 There they offered Jesus wine to drink, mixed with gall; but after tasting it, he refused to drink it. 35 When they had crucified him, they divided up his clothes by casting lots. 36 And sitting down, they kept watch over him there. 37 Above his head they placed the written charge against him: this is jesus, the king of the jews.

38 Two rebels were crucified with him, one on his right and one on his left. 39 Those who passed by hurled insults at him, shaking their heads 40 and saying, “You who are going to destroy the temple and build it in three days, save yourself! Come down from the cross, if you are the Son of God!” 41 In the same way the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the elders mocked him. 42 “He saved others,” they said, “but he can’t save himself! He’s the king of Israel! Let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in him. 43 He trusts in God. Let God rescue him now if he wants him, for he said, ‘I am the Son of God.’” 44 In the same way the rebels who were crucified with him also heaped insults on him.

The Death of Jesus

45 From noon until three in the afternoon darkness came over all the land. 46 About three in the afternoon Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eli, Eli,[g] lema sabachthani?” (which means “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”).[h]

47 When some of those standing there heard this, they said, “He’s calling Elijah.”

48 Immediately one of them ran and got a sponge. He filled it with wine vinegar, put it on a staff, and offered it to Jesus to drink. 49 The rest said, “Now leave him alone. Let’s see if Elijah comes to save him.”

50 And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit.

51 At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook, the rocks split 52 and the tombs broke open. The bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life. 53 They came out of the tombs after Jesus’ resurrection and[i] went into the holy city and appeared to many people.

54 When the centurion and those with him who were guarding Jesus saw the earthquake and all that had happened, they were terrified, and exclaimed, “Surely he was the Son of God!”

55 Many women were there, watching from a distance. They had followed Jesus from Galilee to care for his needs. 56 Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Joseph,[j] and the mother of Zebedee’s sons.

The Burial of Jesus

57 As evening approached, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who had himself become a disciple of Jesus. 58 Going to Pilate, he asked for Jesus’ body, and Pilate ordered that it be given to him. 59 Joseph took the body, wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, 60 and placed it in his own new tomb that he had cut out of the rock. He rolled a big stone in front of the entrance to the tomb and went away. 61 Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were sitting there opposite the tomb.

The Guard at the Tomb

62 The next day, the one after Preparation Day, the chief priests and the Pharisees went to Pilate. 63 “Sir,” they said, “we remember that while he was still alive that deceiver said, ‘After three days I will rise again.’ 64 So give the order for the tomb to be made secure until the third day. Otherwise, his disciples may come and steal the body and tell the people that he has been raised from the dead. This last deception will be worse than the first.”

65 “Take a guard,” Pilate answered. “Go, make the tomb as secure as you know how.” 66 So they went and made the tomb secure by putting a seal on the stone and posting the guard.

The symbol of our Faith, the gift of Queen Elizabeth II marks a Christian Sanctuary. So ancient that only legend, can  record its origin.

⁴⁶ And when Jesus had cried with a loud voice, he said, Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit: and having said thus, he gave up the ghost.

Luke 23:46 (KJV)

This painting depicting Christ on the cross was painted by Anthony Van Dyck in 1630.  It decorated the main altar of the former Friar Minors’ church before the French revolution.