DEVELOPMENT NEWS
THE
SAINT JOHN'S
BIBLE AT
JESUIT
At a special Convocation
on January
28, Jesuit High
School received a phenomenal
gift: A Heritage
Edition of The Saint
John's Bible. The school
will host this wondrous
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as just the second high
school ever to have The
Saint John's Bible.
The Saint John's Bible
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illuminated Bible of
monumental size – all
seven volumes and
1,165 pages of each
edition are 2x3 feet –
to be commissioned
since the invention
of the printing press
more than 500
years ago. It features
exquisite calligraphy,
vibrant imagery, and
stunning gold and silver
illuminations created
by world-renowned
calligraphers and
artists.
This extraordinary
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Susan Turner, the
parents of Jesuit student
John Turner '22. Of the
299 Saint John's Bible
Heritage Editions
produced during
more than 15 years
from 1995-2011,
Jesuit's is the second
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was a gift to Pope
Benedict XVI at the
Vatican in 2008.
The Saint John's
Bible is displayed on
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lobby in Gonzmart
Hall, in a custommade
wood and
glass display case
(also loaned to
Jesuit by the Turner
family) specially
designed to hold
all seven volumes.
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also are displayed
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Chapel of the Holy
Cross.
"The vision and
values behind this
beautiful book
celebrate things that
are really important
to Christians at the
beginning of the 21st
century," said Jim
Triggs, the Executive
Director of the Saint
John's Bible Heritage
Program. “Care for
the poor, care for the
34 JESUIT PERSPECTIVES • SPRING 2019
Susan Turner, P ’22, Jim Triggs, and Jesuit president
Fr. Richard C. Hermes, S.J. with The Saint John’s Bible
sick, the dignity of all
people no matter how
young or how old or
where they are from,
and the embracing
of science and
discovery. The art of
The Saint John's Bible
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as you look at the
illuminations,
cultures from around
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Asian art, and African
art, and Native
American art ... The
idea that if it's true
and if it's beautiful,
it comes from God,
and we celebrate that
in The Saint John's
Bible."
Susan Turner's
parents, Gerald and
Henrietta Rauenhorst,
established the
Minnesota-based
GHR Foundation in
the 1960s, and three
decades later the
foundation partnered
with the Saint John's
Abbey and University
in Collegeville, Minn.
in commissioning
this unique and
exceptional
undertaking. The
Saint John's Bible
was created over the
next decade-plus in a
scriptorium in Wales
by master calligrapher
Donald Jackson, the
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Elizabeth II.
Jackson and a team of
calligraphers and artists
employed techniques
used in the creation
of ancient illuminated
manuscripts such as
quills on calf-skin
vellum, gold and
platinum leaf, and
hand-ground pigments,
along with modern
computer technology
to plan the layout and
line-breaks for the
text, illuminating the
Word of God for a
new millennium. The
seven volumes, from
the Book of Genesis to
the Book of Revelation,
include 160 major
illuminations and
countless additional
artistic features.
The original work
resides at Saint John's
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art Heritage Editions (no
more will be produced),
made with cotton paper
and Italian leather, are
placed in religious,
arts, academic,
healing, and literary
institutions in North
America and beyond,
including London,
Hong Kong, and
Australia, and two at
the Vatican.
Other locations
in the U.S. to host
a Saint John's Bible
include the Library
of Congress, Yale
University, Marquette
University, and
several Mayo
Clinics. The Saint
John's Bible will be
utilized by faculty
and students across
many disciplines
at Jesuit, including
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theology, and science.
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is one of the docents,
and he spoke at
Convocation.
"The Saint John's
Bible is truly
an incredible
sight to behold,”
Bencivenga said.
“The possibilities
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campus are endless."