The Stella Maris, Our Lady, Star of the Sea, has been the devotion of weary travelers for many a century. It is a classic depiction of Mary, the Mother of Jesus, as the North Star, standing upon the expansive waters of the ocean as a guiding light for sailors to find their way home. This particular painting of the Stella Maris sought to go beyond a mere image of Our Lady standing upon rocky waters, and express the Story of why She is our Guide through the Storms, and Who is the Source of Light within Her. Though it is still appropriate to simply call this piece Stella Maris, this particular depiction has been given an extended title. The Stella Tempesta Maris, Our Lady, Star of the Journey.

 

    The Stella Tempesta Maris is a portrayal of God's most devoted Handmaid from Immaculate Conception to Coronation and everything in between. It tells the Journey of Her life and that of the Church. ​A journey is never smooth, and one does not become a hero, or a Saint, without facing challenges. Life is full of seas to travel, and they are not always smooth and tranquil. They are often treacherous Storms, and so, the word Tempesta became the perfect addition for the title. And though the name of Stella Maris is in latin, the classical French form of Tempesta was chosen. This French form of a girl's name was selected purposefully because it not only expresses the kind of Seas that Mary faced (and so subsequently She can guide us through in our own journey), but also it is a tribute to Our Lady’s many apparitions and connections to France. (There was just as much exploratory enjoyment in discovering this addition to the Title as there was in painting Her Story.)

 

    Mary's Journey was the greatest Storm ever faced by a mere mortal. She received God into her womb, participated in all the aspects of His life on earth (the joyful, sorrowful, miraculous, and glorious), and followed Him most faithfully even to partake in His Sacred Death. But she did not overcome any of the mountains and valleys on her own. She relied devotionally and obediently to the Light who had been conceived in her and who had remained within her heart. Mary is not the Source of Light. Jesus is the True Light and Life of the world within her and in the Night Sky. It is Jesus whom we follow when we seek the intercession of Mary's guiding Light.

 

    Through the completion of her Journey by God's Grace, Mary has become Our Holy Queen Mother. And like a Heavenly Lighthouse, She displays the Holy Flame from her womb for those who have eyes and ought to see. This Heavenly Queen Mother is only human like us, and walked the path of faith we are all called to take. Jesus is the Way to live the True Life. But who among us can be as Perfect as the One who is God and Man, and who accomplished what we cannot? And so Mary, the Stella Tempesta Maris, stands in imitation of Christ Crucified with open arms to help and guide God's Children to the Source of Life and Love, Her Son, Jesus.

 

    Above Mary, the Father is present by means of the Shekhinah Glory Cloud, and the Holy Spirit descends upon her in the form of a Dove. Jesus, the Son, completes this Trinity through His Life in the Womb, Death on the Cross, and Resurrection and Ascension into Heaven. Mary is Full of Grace from top to bottom and side to side by the Cloak that covers her. This is Mary’s Mantle, the Cloak of God's Grace. She did not make this Cloak herself. It was bestowed upon her by the Father for His Purpose. And from under this Cloak of Grace, God's Handmaid reaches out beyond the safety of the Cloak and opens her Mantle to present Jesus to the world, while also inviting us into the Cloak's Protection with welcoming arms. (Note: Nine months after the painting's completion, I noticed one day in prayer that the Cloak is shaped like a Baptismal shell pouring out God's Grace on the World. This is one of several occurrences in the painting that I did not add intentionally, but later discovered. Glory Be to God.)

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    The Cloak is the symbol of a Traveler, a Pilgrim on a Journey, and it expresses much of Mary's story.  Like every person, Mary’s journey began at her conception. As a child, she was sent by her parents to be raised in the Temple. She traveled with Joseph to help Elizabeth, to Nazareth, to Bethlehem, to Egypt before returning home, and for numerous Jewish observations to Jerusalem. Her journey continued with Jesus to Cana, remaining with Him during His ministry and through His Crucifixion.  She was with the disciples as they spent three days of darkness together while Jesus was in the tomb. She was present at Pentecost, and then journeyed with Jesus after His Resurrection until His Ascension into Heaven. The final leg of her journey was her Assumption into Heaven where She continues to help Jesus reach other disciples whom He loves, and bring us closer to Him. The Forty gold stars on the Cloak are a sign of this Transcendence and the New Life of the Church Cloaked in His Grace. 

 

    While on earth, Mary was also under the protection of Joseph. He is the clasp that completes the Cloak. Just as God could have chosen to enter this world in a flash of Beatific Lighting, but instead chose to enter it as a defenseless babe who needed to be raised by two human parents over the course of time, so too is this Cloak of Grace made. It could have been a Singular Piece of Fabric Divinely Made with no need for a clasp, a devise that has the potential to break, but God’s idea of Perfection is different than Man’s. Perfection is not an exclusively Seamless Cloak. It is an inclusive one that the Creator allows His creation to partake in, giving His creation the opportunity to work in union with Him continuously. The Lily Clasp is the embodiment of St. Joseph working in union with the Father’s Grace to guard and protect Mary on her journey. An unnecessary instrument made necessary by God’s Choosing. Perfection is Trinitarian, and so the Cloak, the Clasp, and their Union are all three necessary for the One Thing to Be Perfectly made.

 

    Beneath the Cloak, the Handmaiden is veiled with a white wimple and clothed in a long clean garment. Though the waves of the Storm attack our Lady and the Cloak of Grace pushes them back with a mighty Wind, the Handmaiden’s Garment remains unmoved and undisturbed. It is a sign of her constant unwavering Purity and Virginity.​

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    Her Crown has a small Star at the center base as a sign of Mary's Immaculate Conception and reaches out with Seven points to represent Her Coronation and the Seven Gifts of the Holy Spirit. This is the Crown of the Woman born to be the Queen of Heaven, the title of the Mother of the King established by God through the Hebrews. Nine Roses cover the Crown band to represent Divine Completion and the Fruits of the Spirit (Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Generosity, Faithfulness, Gentleness, and Self-Control). The Light of Her Halo illuminates the sky, while the Holy Spirit descends upon her as He did at the Annunciation, and the Nine Choirs of Angles rejoice for all of God’s Glory and encircle His Chosen Queen to defend Her from the Dragon lurking ominously in the darkness of the Night. 

 

    Mary’s Heart is pierced by Seven Swords of which The Sorrows of Our Lady painting dives deeper into the details of this image. Mary’s blood pours out from these Seven Sorrow for God’s Children and runs to the Crown of the King that encircles the Christ Child in her womb to unite with the Holy Wounds of His Sacrifice. Jesus is the Sacrificial Offering to God, the Father, for the world. Her womb is the New Tabernacle, the New Ark that carried the New Covenant, Jesus Christ. The Blood, Petals, and Roses that come from the Crown within Mary's Mantle represent the Body of Christ. Twelve Roses represent the Saints in Heaven. Twenty-Four petals for the Church here on Earth. Thirty-Six portions of Blood, by means of streams and droplets, are for the Sacrificial Blood of Christ from which the Church was and is formed. Three of these streams of Blood run from Mary’s Heart, and Three from the Crown of Thorns. Together, these Six represent the Fall of Man and our Original Sin against God. The Thirty droplets of Blood are Jesus' Ministry and Sacrifice. They are the age Jesus was when His Mother gave Him to the world to begin His Ministry, and a sign of Man’s betrayal of God through His Death in the amount of silver pieces that Judas received for handing Jesus over to be Crucified. Through all of these symbolic meanings, Sin is represented from the Beginning and through the Crucifixion. The total of all these numbers 12+24+36 equals 72. These numbers were purposefully used to represent the building of the Church because there were Seventy-Two disciples whom Jesus sent out two by two to heal and preform miracles in the Gospels. They were the first appearance of the Church as a movement in the world.

 

    Many days after the painting was completed, I recognized that when you add all the significant numbers that were intentionally included, they equal One Hundred Forty-Four. 72 for the Church + 40 Cloak Stars + 7 Crown Points + 9 Crown Roses + 9 Choirs of Angels + 7 Swords = 144. So very unintentionally by this artist, the Sacramental number in Revelation of those marked by the seal of God (144,000) made its appearance by another Artist's Hand. Glory Be To God.

 

    There is no greater depiction of Mary's Story than that of John's in Revelation. A great sign appeared in the sky, a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars. So thusly, Our Queen Mother has been presented this way with the Stars surrounding Her Crown and the Sun as Her Garment as She stands above the Moon and upon the Cross, Her Foundation. The Crucifixion in front of the Moon, a sign of the Beginning and End of Day, is meant to appear as the Eucharist, the Body and Blood of Christ. Jesus’ Blood flows down to the Earth to cover the Sin that comes from the venom of the Dragon. The serpent spewed a torrent of water out of his mouth after the woman to sweep her away with the current, but the earth helped the woman and opened its mouth and swallowed the flood that the dragon spewed out of its mouth. 

 

    The colors of the Dragon, whose head lies severed beneath her feet by the Power of the Crucifixion, represent the Seven Deadly Sins. The Skin is stained with Green Envy and Orange Gluttony. The Eyes are inflamed with Yellow Greed and the Horns protrude with Red Wrath. The jaws of the Beast have venomous Fangs discolored with Purple Pride, and from its slackened mouth a contaminated Tongue is saturated in Blue Lust. Spewing from this vile trap is something that appears to be clean water, but this temptingly appealing substance is truly the most destructive Venom of a deceitfully Light Blue Sloth color.

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    This Stella Tempesta Maris painting is dedicated to Our Mother Mary. I would not have the deep relationship with Jesus that I have today if I hadn't begun my relationship with Her. She is my example for how to love God. Mary's model of saying 'Yes' to God and inviting the Light in is what we are all called to do. But this invitation is not a one time 'Yes' to God. For Mary, it was and is and will remain a continual 'Yes' to Him in every perpetual moment. This is Mary's Fiat, and it is a Perfect Model made by God for us to imitate and become imitators of Christ ourselves. And though what Mary was called to do, we will never have to do, for no one will ever have to sacrifice or suffer or endure as much as the Mother of God did, we can say 'Yes' to God in our own stories, and receive Grace from God as often as She did to overcome our own struggles. If only we humbly ask the Father for His Grace.