I begin with sincere appreciation to Fr. Mark Uhlenkott and the parishioners at Our Lady of the Valley in Caldwell, ID, for asking me to do these paintings!

Our starting point for this image was a portion of the c1750 fresco, Religion Protected by Spain by Corrado Giaquinto. We chose it for the composition, colors and subject matter, and then made several adjustments. In our depiction of Heaven, we see:

• Jesus, the high priest, wears a seamless white tunic and gold mantle (the colors of Easter). His stance is one of power and openness. He holds the cross in one hand while the other touches the altar, and he steps on a shield under a sword. This reminds us of His victory over sin and death by His holy sacrifice. The figures on the altar are a reference to the martyrs under the altar in Revelation 6:9 who united their sacrifices to His.
• The other members of the Trinity are represented with symbols of the dove (at Jesus’ Baptism, the Holy Spirit descends upon Him like a dove (Lk. 3:22)), and the fire (God the Father speaks to Moses at the burning bush (Ex.3:4-12) and leads Moses and the people through the desert as a pillar of fire by night and cloud by day (Ex. 13:22)).
• The Blessed Virgin Mary, as always, teaches us by example—she draws near to Jesus without fear, but with humility, kneeling. She points to Him with one hand, while the other is raised in prayerful petition. She shows us that we can trust Him and ask for His help in our every need. Mary is the representative for humanity in this image of heaven and presents to Christ all of the petitions we have entrusted to her. Mary is sometimes called the “morning star”, and so this symbol appears on her necklace. As the “Queen Mother” and “Queen of Heaven” she wears a crown. Her gown is white, the color of purity/holiness, and blue for heaven and peace.
• A cherub holds up a book which is open to the Lord’s Prayer in Greek as it was originally recorded in the New Testament.
• The angel to the left presents a chalice. The angel on the right calls our attention or perhaps plays music on a horn while extending her left arm in welcome.

About the scenery:

•  Since Mary is the patroness of this church, Our Lady of the Valley, there are mountains.
• The trees are symbolic of life, and are unlike common trees of the earth. They may be the Tree of Life and the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil (Gen. 2:9).
• Clouds, a common symbol of Heaven, appear colorfully in the foreground as well as in the sky.
• There is not one specific light source like our sun; instead the whole scene is filled with light.

This artwork is a visual reminder that when we celebrate the Mass, Heaven and Earth come together; we celebrate in union with the angels and the saints. How many objects and actions in these paintings do you recognize from the Mass?