E M I S S A R Y
When one receives divine knowledge it is a gift to be shared with others with no strings attached, no monetary exchange, for truth cannot be sold or purchased, it is free to all who ask. So great is the gift.
This book is intended to be a conceptual art piece that was created to encourage collaboration with those who have a desire to express themselves individually or with others in a shared creative environment. The following is a compilation of art, poetry, video/film that reveals the sacred. It is an expression of the artist Jerome Gastaldi's spiritual experience. There is an obvious interconnectedness of related patterns that flow through this work. It is for those who desire to use the information as they wish. Hopefully it will inspire people to be open to the reality of the divine. “Those who were seen dancing were thought to be insane by those who could not hear the music.”
24 hour time-lapse film inside Gastaldi’s Chapel
I entered the room where time does not exist. Only solitude. One chair in the center facing East. No sound. No movement except for light Casting shadows upon the wall. It was yesterday centuries ago. I recognize this light and the patterns to and in everything The rotation of the Earth, and the flow of traffic, the leaf falling to the ground The way a mother loves her child, this is not a coincidence There are patterns to the dysfunction that consumes the world This is not by chance, birds singing, there's a pattern to this song This is not by chance, the answer to your question, your existence Is the observation of self which separates the boundary for which you stand This very moment
Path to Gastaldi’s Chapel, with dirt and gravel from the Garden of Gethsemane
Path to the Labyrinth
Gastaldi Chapel
5
Along the path I found the bridge that allowed my mind to see It was always there, I could sense it in my soul, I could feel it in my being My family's from all races religions and ideals Together we shared life's ups and downs In the masses we would travel although I often felt alone We arrive and part together, it's just a moment in time We are each the bridge to freedom and the hope of all mankind
Labyrinth
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St. Paul’s, New York
Emissary, the messenger. Recently while in New York I went to the 911 memorial where stands Saint Paul's chapel, the only building at ground zero untouched by the devastation of that terrible event. There are no coincidences. The arrival of Jesus into the world was the beginning of a new approach to worshiping the world had never conceived. It was a separation from the old laws of Moses, a division that was a revelation still debated and fought over by individuals, religions and nations today. This was about a new kind of freedom. You may or may not know this. America was founded and based on the principals of Saint Paul the Apostle. In fact George Washington as well as many of the founding fathers worshiped at this Saint Paul's Chapel at Washington's inauguration April, 30th 1789. Washington also worshiped there for two years prior to the nations Capitol moving from New York to Washington DC. Who was Saint Paul really? Saint Paul was the author of much of the New Testament, and he was blessed by God in a very unun usual way, in that after his transformation which was a revelation, nothing could stand between the knowledge given him and his mission which was a revolution in the idea of religion and it did not set well with those who were in trenched in the pre existing doctrine of the Old Testament. George Washington was inspired by Saint Paul in that he brought on a new idea founded on the principals of freedom, change and a separation from the old that offered a new life for those who believed in this idea, which became the birth of a new nation. The difference it seems, now two hundred plus years later, was Paul was coming from a spiritual point of view while George was not, think again George was worshiping in Saint Paul's chapel asking for spiritual guidance for what he was about to do. His journey, was not solely political. Let us not forget, One Nation Under God that was a much different time than today. Try to imagine what Washington was thinking and where did this revolutionary idea come from? Paul understood that within each of us resides the seed of life and everyone has it and when it’s discovered is what born again means. It’s the direct connection to the divine, that brings Truth to life's journey. In the flesh man is here for such a short period of time and that's the mystery we each have to figure it out. God said "let us create man in our image" what he is saying is we like Him are Spirit. Saint Paul had an encounter with Christ while on his way to Damascus that changed his life forever in an instant, in fact he gave the rest of his life to Christ which dumbfounded people who knew him as the persecutor of believers in Jesus. After his experience, Paul proclaimed that Jesus was the Messiah the Jews had been waiting for and in the end in Rome it cost him his life by beheading, but not before he shared this with the world which has continued to today. Paul was and is the emissary.
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A Saint
The Conversion of Saint Paul, Carravaggio
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The photograph on top was taken in Saint Paul's Basilica in Rome 2008 The painting on the bottom was created in 2013 for the inaugural exhibition of The art ministry at Saddleback Church Irvine Calif. The two photos were laying side by side when I noticed the black shape in the the painting and the pinkish grey shape in the photo were very similar. Upon closer examination I recognized the image in the photo to be the apparition of Saint Paul, I assume, as his body is buried In the Basilica his head is thought to be in the Holy Lands. Hanging along the right side of the confessional appears to be the headless body.
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While Fishing along the shore there appeared another also fishing We had become known to one another at birth Yet it was not until the depths were reached truth revealed itself It was a revelation A realization where latitudes meets wisdom It was a glimpse into eternity Oh! It's real More real than talking to you this very moment It was an observation of self No. Actually both, from a distance It was a bright sunny day It was very Calm Very still Very quiet Few were home The door opened I was expecting the Father but he sent the Son The path was long The journey short It was like a voyage into the unknown, Where knowing is the destination That's a bright, bright sunny day
Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me. Revelation 3:20
15
Listen to the sound In the forest in your head all the thoughts and memories from your fathers father father fathers long dead your blood line your gene line your who you are line in this time line the incarnations a cocktail of memory flowing through your veins your mind your being, inherited from your past that you will forward to the future That you don't know but your intuition does look at the family resemblance behavior, mother father brother sister aunts uncles and so on these patterns of who you really are, or were, or who you may be Sip these thoughts of this truth seek to understand these threads of the now as well as the distant pasts these are the answers that separate good from evil positive and negative truth from deception fact from fiction life and death within your body flows the blood of not one but all your ancestors what you eat, drink, think Believe, conceive, achieve, retrieved take a good look in the reflection we are all in the waiting room of life believe it only you and love can prevent this forest fire
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Portions of this film were shot in Mexico at the border crossing of the United States and Mexico, Tijuana September 12th 2001 the day after 911 event New York, note the older women had just picked up a stack of newspapers she was selling car to car when she saw the headlines, then made the sign of the cross and resumed her day. The younger beggar women holding her child, also continued her pattern of survival. Each on their path to their unknown destiny. Jesus said to them, I am the way the Truth and the Life; No one comes to the Father but through me. John 14:6 This poem was written the Saturday morning after the 911 event New York. As I passed migrant workers trying flag me down looking for a job. flash backs from my youth while working on my grandparent’s farm permeated my mind as I drove to a local swap meet to divert my thoughts from the devastation of the event that was haunting me. Life still goes on.
As buildings fell on eastern shores Wiper blades etched semicircles into dusty windows And slippery roads and twisted minds glide The deconstruction of self worth in parking lots Full of migrant workers dreaming At swap meets white chicks rummage for costume jewelry In morning drizzle Umpires after nuclear blasts scream out! Egos search for forgotten lovers while filipino fruit pickers Relax in back seats with lost souls Black white red yellow brown boys play marbles for keeps Wake up and smell the smoke
Gastaldi’s Concept: Bridging The complete visual expression of a stationary work of art captured on film or video revealing the soul or essence of the work. The blending of a painting or other non-sequential works of art with film or video. Gastaldi calls this form of art (Bridging or HSA, Hyper Sequential Art).Bridging is not a style of art but an idea, in the concept of communication. It is a collaboration between a work of art, layered on film or video connecting on a visual multi-textural level which becomes an expanded, extension of a work of art.
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I'm an artist, Do you find it strange there is not one person on the internet or any where else that has come forth with a visual that has claimed to have seen, touched or had any contact with one of the Most Holy of sacred objects people have been talking about and looking for, throughout history. Some believe it's the vessel that held Christ's blood, some think it's a myth, others think it has to do with King Arthur, or a legend handed down throughout history. In any case I assure you it is Truth. And there is only one way to find it, because it is a puzzle that is understood only by those who seek to comprehend what God is telling us when He says "My Ways Are not Like your Ways" "Ask and You Shall receive" "be in the world, not of the world" as well as other deep meaning messages. I was alone in a private chapel, I was drawn to the object, then while embracing it with both hands I was baptized, chills of heat permeated my body, I wept uncontrollably. I was forever changed. It was brought to me by a Trapest monk who was also a Catholic priest September 20, 2010. 1 John 1:1 “That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched--this we proclaim concerning the Word of life.” This is exactly what I experienced so help me God. Then December 11, 2013 at 4:32 pm it manifested Itself as pure light in Canada, while I was in California on the phone with a friend who was in Canada holding her cell phone in her left hand while talking to me on her land line with her right, by accident she took this photo with her cell phone the very moment I was sending her a photo of a painting that I had painted for a Canadian foundation who requested I paint my idea of compassion. John 8:12 Jesus said, “I am the Light of the world. Who ever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the Light of Life.” I was chosen to paint the painting because I had written a book that is a conceptual, collaborative art work book, my idea was to share ideas with other artists and creative people to see if we could come up with ways of resolving personal as well as global conflicts.
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This is my drawing of the object It was made of silver or white gold, the pedals of the flower were as fine as the hair on your head.
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You may not understand this light although your soul recognizes this Truth, for His presence has created all there is, all there was and all there ever will be. In the world it has been hidden within the shadows of temptation. Receive this pure light from the infinite and may His Grace shine upon you eternally.
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Detail of the center of the manifestation on page 23 Which is the same as the painting I painted for the Canadian Foundation on the next page. I did not recognize this until a month or so after I painted the painting.
The Painting of Compassion
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Light reflected through my window onto a drawing of the object. The center appears to be a face, while the other light appears to be an upside down heart shaped light falling out of the center.
John 8:12
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Outside Chapel garden with dirt and gravel from the Garden of Gethsemane
Inside Gastali’s Chapel
Path to Gallery
Mary Garden
Ampitheater
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I'm not asking anyone to believe this I'm asking you to consider what this could mean. Recently a group of young artists came to my studio for an annual retreat that's been going on for ten plus years. One young man told me he had been raised in a Buddhist monastery by nuns. He had been studying to be doctor and wanted to dedicate his life to helping people. He then had a change of plans and decided to become an artist where he could express his ideas, ideas that he felt could help people based on his life experiences. I too have had a similar experience, and it's been going on most of my life. It’s a feeling like there is something I'm suppose to do or complete in my life. As I have become older I see clearly, that life is like a game of choices within a matrix and how well we play the game determines how well we live. Within the game there’s a path that we are all on. Throughout my life unknowingly at times I've been leading myself along the path and at other times I have been lead, sometimes to the positive other times to the negative. If we step off the path and observe our existence backwards which sounds simple but it's not easy, it becomes obvious. It's not easy because it involves the separation from the ego and that's very hard to do. Observe the patterns of your behavior, there lies your truth, a truth most of us have created through defense mechanisms, life experiences and so on to help us navigate our way through the obstacles of the world and life. It's about seeing past the surface of things and the methods of deception that surrounds us. We are a divine creation, and in order to receive all that is offered to us we have to separate from the world, it’s about stepping off the path and observing ones self. This is what "be in the world not of the world" means. (Romans 12:2) Do not conform to the patterns of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is--His good, pleasing and perfect will. I didn't know what contemplative prayer was, although I had been praying in this manner for the last few years unknowingly. This opened a connection to an understanding that can't be earned, learned or acquired from a book, although it is mentioned throughout the Bible but not called contemplative prayer. It is a gift and everyone can receive it because it is within us awaiting our arrival. The soul is like another person dwelling inside each of us, it is the spirit of the conscience, we are to protect it, for it is the essence of who we really are, it is our direct connection to the divine. This is about allowing God to show us Truth about oneself. The difference between most prayer and contemplative prayer is, imagine you are taking an action by carrying a water bucket to a running water faucet and holding it as the water fills the bucket, versus taking an action by going to a quiet place, setting the bucket on the ground in a stable position while the bucket fills with water. At this point in my life I feel it's as if I have climbed to the mountains edge where stands before me is pure truth that has existed before I entered the world. It’s as if I'm living a dream and believe it everyone is, we are all a part of it. It has to do completely with Love, it is the Sacred Heart that is the pathway to everything in existence, a connection to all there is, all there was and all their will ever be. I was once a tent maker and next to me. in the shadows of my footsteps standing at my side was our Lord awaiting patiently for the gathering Of His Bride to open the door allowing me to see what was always there in my heart
We've stood together like ancient forest tall Where the winds of time move Gently over hallowed ground to greet His truth Like the thief's arrival day or night The sound of life fades as summer falls For the ax man’s blade severs these ancient roots Unbound now free to fly Through this open door I see his eternal light