CHICAGO—The Catholic Art Guild has set out to restore the sacred role of art in Roman Catholic churches, hosting its first conference, “Beauty and the Restoration of the Sacred.” It’s yet another step in the recent resurgence of beauty in art.
As Father Joshua Caswell said at the well-attended conference on Oct. 29, the mission of the Catholic Art Guild can be demonstrated with a story about St. John Cantius, for whom the church sponsoring the guild is named. One day, a servant girl dropped and broke a jug of water. She wept at the thought of being punished by her mistress. St. John, in compassion, picked up the pieces of the jug and, through prayer, not only restored the broken vessel to a seamless condition, but also turned the water to milk.