St Scholastica




The sister of St Benedict and the first of the Benedictine nuns is celebrated today. The principal source for her vita is St Gregory's Dialogues. The relevant text can be found here.

The Benedictine vespers antiphon: Hodie sacra Virgo Scholastica in specie columbæ ad æthera tota festiva perrexit: hodie cælestis vitæ gaudiis cum fratre suo meretur perfrui in sempiternum.

This day the holy Virgin Scholastica amid all festivity ascended on high under the appearance of a dove; this day she has become worthy to enjoy forever with her brother the bliss of heavenly life.

The little illustration done in the Beuron style shows the funeral of St Scholastica. It is one of the frescoes on the walls of the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception at Conception Abbey. You can see all the frescoes here. A real flowering of ecclesiastical art.