page_title: Ecclesia and Synagoga
section_title: Ecclesia alone
hierarchical_section_title: Ecclesia and Synagoga / Ecclesia alone
caption_attribution_description: Deutsch: "Ecclesia" - Deckenmedaillon im Hauptchor von St. Georg - Kloster Prüfening
context_page_description: Ecclesia and Synagoga, or Ecclesia et Synagoga in Latin, meaning "Church and Synagogue", are a pair of figures personifying the Church and the Jewish synagogue, that is to say Judaism, found in medieval Christian art. They often appear sculpted as large figures on either side of a church portal, as in the most famous examples, those at Strasbourg Cathedral. They may also be found standing on either side of the cross in scenes of the Crucifixion, especially in Romanesque art, and less frequently in a variety of other contexts.
  The two female figures are usually young and attractive; Ecclesia is generally adorned with a crown, chalice and cross-topped staff, looking confidently forward. In contrast, Synagoga is blindfolded and drooping, carrying a broken lance and the Tablets of the Law or Torah scrolls that may even be slipping from her hand. The staff and spear may have pennants flying from them. In images of the Crucifixion, Ecclesia may hold a chalice that catches the blood spurting from the side of Christ; she often holds the chalice as an attribute in other contexts.
context_section_description: The personification of Ecclesia preceded her coupling with Synagoga by several centuries. A number of biblical passages, including those describing Christ as a "bridegroom" led early in the history of the church to the concept of the church as the Bride of Christ, which was shown in art using a queenly personification. The church was in this context sometimes conflated with the Virgin Mary, leading to the concept of Maria Ecclesia, or Mary as the church, which is an element, now usually unrecognised, in the theology behind much of the art showing the Virgin as a queen.
  An earlier appearance of two female figures is in the now heavily restored apse mosaic of Santa Pudenziana in Rome (402-417), where two female figures behind a row of apostles hold wreaths over Saints Paul and Peter respectively, and towards an enthroned Christ.  These are usually taken to represent the "Church of the Gentiles" and "Church of the Jews" - i.e. groups within the Early Christian Church which still reflected their pre-conversion backgrounds. The figures are hardly differentiated.  A mosaic at Santa Sabina in Rome appears to have similar figures, though the Peter and Paul are now missing and only known from an old drawing.
caption: Ecclesia enthroned, 12th century, Prüfening Abbey, Bavaria
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