Confirmation Cross

The experience of the first sacraments are occasions worthy of celebration, and Creator Mundi in Denver, CO has unique baptism, confirmation, and first communion gifts for you to choose from to commemorate these occasions. Our memorable gifts strike an ideal balance of holy reverence and joy.

Important Milestones In Faith

Baptism is the first sacrament of the faith and a momentous occasion for the family. Personalized baptism gifts for boys and girls are a treasured way to acknowledge this step of faith being taken. Confirmation affirms the faith and is another sacrament in becoming part of the church, closely tied to the first communion. The importance and beauty of these rites cannot be understated. Celebrating the acceptance of Jesus Christ is monumental and an experience to remember. We have confirmation gifts and personalized first communion gifts that will capture the significance of this commitment to God, faith, and the church.

One-Of-A-Kind Religious Gifts

Children’s Peace Cross

We have many options to choose from when it comes to first communion gifts and religious gifts in general. We feel confident that our selection of beautiful and symbolic products are one-of-a-kind, just like your loved one. Our unique products are based on scripture and steeped in tradition. You will find unique cross pendants, figurines of angels and saints, and a variety of prayer cubes created to strengthen faith. If you are looking for personalized gifts for boys and girls, we can offer you a variety of meaningful options.

Gifts To Remind & Remember

Only you know what gift will be right for your loved ones for these special occasions. You want something that reminds them both of your love and support and their faith-based commitments. If you need some ideas to get you started, here are a few of our favorites:

• Hand-Burnt Wood Cross Pendants
• Children’s Peace Cross
• Confirmation Cross
• Prayer Cubes
• Rejoice Cross

Shop Our Selection Today

Prayer Cubes

Our religious gifts are unlike anything you will find at other stores. Let us help you find the perfect gift for dear ones from among our beautiful and unique choices. These sacred rites are experiences to treasure, and we at Creator Mundi want you to find unique baptism, confirmation, and first communion gifts that you love giving. Shop our online selection today and contact us with any questions you may have. We look forward to hearing from you.

It is a startling truth that how you see and what you see

determines how and who you will be.

Explore your particular style of seeing.

Ask yourself: what way do I behold the world?

To the fearful eye, all is threatening.

To the judgmental eye, everything is closed in definitive frames.

To the resentful eye, everything is begrudged.

To the indifferent eye, nothing calls or awakens.

To the inferior eye, everyone else is greater, more beautiful, brilliant and gifted than you.

To the loving eye, everything is real.

Love is the light in which we see light.

If we could look at the world in a loving way,

then the world would rise up before us

full of invitation, possibility and depth.

To recognize how you see things

can bring you self-knowledge and enable you

to glimpse the treasures your life secretly holds.

                      — John O’Donohue, Anam Cara, excerpt

“Saint Michael is always portrayed as slightly intimidating, but I wanted him to be portrayed as friendly and peaceful,” says Tom Sarmo, who created this unusual painting of Archangel St. Michael, the patron saint of police and law enforcement.

The medium is acrylic on wood. Done in Grisaille technique (gray underpainting with colored glazes on top).

Come see the original painting at our gallery!

One more fabulous new piece by Tom Sarmo! A joyful St. Francis!

Come see the original and celebrate our 30th Anniversary with us:

Open House on
Saturday, April 7, Noon – 4:00 PM
901 Englewood Pkwy, Suite 112, Englewood, CO 80110

Open House guests receive a 30% in-gallery discount on April 7 on every purchase over $30 which enters them in a drawing on Thanksgiving Day for an exquisite bronze wall plaque, “Angel of Contemplation,” a $350 value.
Until Thanksgiving 2018, customers placing online orders over $30 with the code 30YEARS also enter the drawing and receive free shipping for orders over $50.The more orders you place, the better your chances of winning!
Contact: sales@creatormundi.com

Thursday Night by Ronald Rolheiser

IT WAS A COLD, DARK THURSDAY NIGHT.

A man was discouraged,

discouraged as only one could be,

who looks on much hard work,

on much sincerity,

and sees only failure,

and a sinking sun.

ON THAT DARK THURSDAY NIGHT,

A man feels alone,

and lonely,

and frightened.

He sweats blood, in darkness,

the blood of loneliness,

the loneliness of all people.

ON THAT DARK THURSDAY NIGHT,

A man looked on loneliness, and

He yearned to heal.

He yearned to lead all into unity,

into Community, and

out of the damned aloneness

which keeps people from warmth and life.

ON THAT DARK THURSDAY NIGHT,

A man sweats blood,

in body and spirit.

He sweats in darkness,

He sweats in loneliness,

And

It is then …

ON THAT DARK THURSDAY NIGHT,

A man takes bread and wine, and says:

“This is my body, this is my blood.

Meet often,

eat this bread, drink this wine.

And when you do,

I’ll be there, and …

AS ON THIS DARK THURSDAY NIGHT,

I’ll be leading you out of fear and loneliness,

out of isolation and darkness,

into Communion,

into a community of warmth and life,

with God, and

with each other.”

ON THAT DARK THURSDAY NIGHT,

When the sun had long gone down,

and hope and warmth had said good-bye,

when the darkness of loneliness had seemed to win the earth,

we were given,

as a gift from God,

the possibility of Community.

If you want to surprise someone special with a religious gift this Easter, choose a unique cross or crucifix from Creator Mundi in Denver. Crafted by European artisans and only available from Creator Mundi, these pendants and wall art will be cherished for years. Here are a few Easter gifts that showcase the variety of artists and artwork in our collection:

• Cross of Hope Pendant
• New Life and Hope Crucifix
• Vita Christi Wall Cross
• Jesus Christ, Tree of Life Crucifix

Italian Glass

These cross necklaces are some of our most popular pieces and make great Easter gifts. Handcrafted in Italy, each glass pendant contains unique shades and patterns. No two are alike, making it a real one-of-a-kind gift. The Cross of Hope is especially fitting for Easter since the color green symbolizes new life in Christ. This pendant also comes in multicolored, blue-green, dark blue, and red versions.

Wood and Metal

Catholics will enjoy this classic, German-made crucifix. It combines the strength of oak with the modern elegance of bronze. The wood grain runs vertically and horizontally as well, symbolizing how Christ’s death reconciled humanity with God and how He freely offers this gift of salvation to the world. With its small size (only 8 inches high) and slender design, this New Life and Hope Crucifix will fit in any room.

German Bronze

You could ponder the intricate details of the Vita Christi Wall Cross for years. This solid bronze piece seamlessly blends six scenes from Christ’s life — the Annunciation to the Virgin Mary, the Epiphany of the Magi, raising Lazarus from the dead, washing the feet of the disciples at the Last Supper, the Crucifixion, and Pentecost. While Easter and the cross take center stage in this piece, the other scenes make it a profound symbol year-round. This wall cross comes in small and large sizes to fit any space — as the centerpiece of a gallery wall in your home or to complement your office decor.

French Enamel

If you’re looking for a statement piece, our Jesus Christ, Tree of Life Crucifix fits the bill. With its bright finish and beautiful colors, this heirloom-quality bronze and enamel crucifix will be treasured now and for generations to come. The Tree of Life is a poignant symbol in the Bible, present in the Garden of Eden and reappearing in Revelation. This crucifix demonstrates how the Easter cross is our Tree of Life and our hope of eternity in Heaven — a resonant symbol during Lent.

And There’s Plenty More

Creator Mundi in Denver is your place for unique crosses or crucifixes. Did none of these interest you? Don’t worry. We have over 200 different crosses and crucifixes in our collection and over 70 pieces of Christian jewelry. You’re sure to find something you love. Browse our store and place your order today.

Creator Mundi celebrates its 30th Anniversary!

Here is a whimsical, joyful and playful St. Francis, painted by Denver artist Tom Sarmo for our 30th Anniversary! Does this Francis make you smile, too? Come see the original (and others by Tom Sarmo) at our gallery!

May this delightful image of St. Francis remind you and us in the years to come of all that St. Francis stood for! In the words of John Dear: “St. Francis embodies the Gospel journey from violence to non-violence, wealth to poverty, power to powerlessness, selfishness to selfless service, pride to humility, indifference to love, cruelty to compassion, vengeance to forgiveness, revenge to reconciliation, war to peace, killing enemies to loving enemies. More than any other Christian, he epitomizes discipleship to Jesus.  . . .

Francis’ logic points the way toward personal, social, and global justice, and peace. If each one of us practiced Gospel simplicity, voluntary poverty, and downward mobility, like Francis, we would share the world’s resources with one another, have nothing to fear from others, and live in peace with everyone.”[1]

[1] John Dear, You Will Be My Witnesses: Saints, Prophets and Martyrs (Orbis Books, 2006).

All our valued customers, friends and artists are invited to an

Open House on

Saturday, April 7, Noon – 4:00 PM

901 Englewood Pkwy, Suite 112, Englewood, CO  80110

Open House guests receive a 30% in-gallery discount on April 7 on every purchase over $30 which enters them in a drawing on Thanksgiving Day for an exquisite bronze wall plaque, “Angel of Contemplation,” a $350 value.

Until Thanksgiving 2018, customers placing online orders over $30 with the code 30YEARS also enter the drawing and receive free shipping for orders over $50.The more orders you place, the better your chances of winning!

Contact: sales@creatormundi.com

When we think of mercy, we should be thinking first and foremost of a bond, an infallible link of love that holds the created and uncreated realms together. The mercy of God does not come and go, granted to some and refused to others. Why? Because it is unconditional—always there, underlying everything. It is literally the force that holds everything in existence, the gravitational field in which “we live and move and have our being” (Acts 17:28). Just like that little fish swimming desperately in search of water, we, too “swim in mercy as in an endless sea.” Mercy is God’s innermost being turned outward to sustain the visible and created world in unbreakable love.

~~ Cynthia Bourgeault, Mystical God: Trusting in the Mercy of God

Can you see Lent as an “interim time?” See how John O’Donohue speaks to you …

Interim Time

When near the end of day, life has drained

Out of light, and it is too soon

For the mind of night to have darkened things,

No place looks like itself, loss of outline

Makes everything look strangely in-between,

Unsure of what has been, or what might come.

In this wan light, even trees seem groundless.

In a while it will be night, but nothing

Here seems to believe the relief of dark.

You are in this time of the interim

Where everything seems withheld.

The path you took to get here has washed out;

The way forward is still concealed from you.

“The old is not old enough to have died away;

The new is still too young to be born.”

You cannot lay claim to anything;

In this place of dusk,

Your eyes are blurred;

And there is no mirror.

Everyone else has lost sight of your heart

And you can see nowhere to put your trust;

You know you have to make your own way through.

As far as you can, hold your confidence.

Do not allow confusion to squander

This call which is loosening

Your roots in false ground,

That you might come free

From all you have outgrown.

What is being transfigured here is your mind,

And it is difficult and slow to become new.

The more faithfully you can endure here,

The more refined your heart will become

For your arrival in the new dawn.

                                                 by John O’Donohue, To Bless The Space Between Us

Always in the big woods when you leave familiar ground and step off alone into a new place there will be, along with the feelings of curiosity and excitement, a little nagging of dread. It is the ancient fear of the Unknown, and it is your first bond with the wilderness you are going into.

Wendell Berry

The RCIA Cross

RCIA, or Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults, is an exciting occasion for the new initiate and the Catholic congregation. Creator Mundi has the perfect gifts to mark this event. As we await Christ’s resurrection on Easter Sunday, we also celebrate how the body of Christ has grown. For adults entering the Catholic Church, the Easter season takes on a deeper meaning as they are welcomed into a new faith and a new family.

What is RCIA?

Participating in this ritual is how adults become full members of the Catholic Church. Typically, these are people who come to faith later in life, officially called catechumens. They could also be adult believers, those who previously made a profession of faith in Jesus within another Christian community who wish to convert to the Catholic Faith — officially known as candidates. Though their journeys to faith and the Catholic Church differ, both groups undergo the same initiation process.

The rite takes place on Holy Saturday during the Easter Vigil. During the ceremony, RCIA catechumens and candidates receive the sacraments of Baptism, Confirmation, and Holy Eucharist. After a long period (sometimes years) of prayer, study, and spiritual preparation, the initiate is now recognized as a fully-fledged member of the Catholic Church.

Thoughtful Gifts To Honor RCIA Initiates

Like all rites of passage, RCIA symbolizes transformation, a spiritual one in this case. Gift-giving is a way to celebrate this transformation and the beginning of a new chapter. It’s also a golden opportunity to equip the new initiate for their spiritual journey, perhaps literally in the form of a rosary or in less tangible ways like a message of encouragement.

What’s available at Creator Mundi?

Papal Crucifix

We offer a wide selection of artwork, jewelry, and religious accessories that will suit a variety of tastes and budgets. Here are some items that are appropriate for RCIA:

• Wall art to proudly display at home.
• Religious pendants and jewelry to express their new faith.
• Greeting cards to deliver messages of encouragement.
• Prayer Devotionals the recipient can carry with them wherever they go.

Find The Perfect Gift

If you know someone who will be participating in RCIA this Easter season, celebrate with a unique gift from Creator Mundi. Browse our store and place your order today.

The great challenge is
living your wounds through
instead of thinking them through.
It is better to cry
than to worry,

better to feel your wounds deeply
than to understand them,
better to let them enter into your silence
than talk about them.
The choice you face constantly

is whether you are taking your wounds to your head

or to your heart.

In your head you can analyze them,
find their causes and consequences,
and coin words to speak and write about them.
But no final healing is likely to come from that source.
You need to let your wounds go down to your heart.

Then you can live through them
and discover that
they will not destroy you.
Your heart is greater than your wounds.

Henri J.M. Nouwen, The Inner Voice of Love

I Am the Resurrection Crucifix

Let Creator Mundi help you prepare for the Lent and Easter season. You may ask, how should we as Christians prepare our hearts for this holy season when there may not be strong family or church traditions to guide us? Here we present a few Easter ideas you can use this year and in the future.

Little Ways You To Prepare

There are many little things you can do to prepare yourself for the religious gatherings of the Easter season.

• Lenten Meditation & Texts
• Practice Centering Prayer
• Have Family Discussions About Easter
• Remember Holy Week Events & Services

You could read works of theology that might be on a Reading List or even practice listening to silence as a way to center oneself. Practicing centering prayer or mediation is a wonderful way to get in touch with your faith and the spirit of Easter.

Mark Your Calendar For Holy Week

A good way to prepare for Easter is to plan for attending your church’s Holy Week services. This isn’t just Palm Sunday and Resurrection Sunday, it also includes Maundy Thursday and Good Friday. It’s a good idea to mark those days on your calendar so you can schedule around them. Marking these days with worship alongside your church family will help make your Easter celebration all the more joyful.

Larger Commitments

Many Christians give up something for Lent and may fast in the days before Easter. Others add volunteering activities or service-oriented tasks that help others during Lent. Either way, Lent is an opportunity to focus on prayer, mindfulness, reflection, and service to others.

Last Supper Cross

Families can spend devotional time together to help each other prepare for Easter. If you have young children, consider reading one part of the Holy Week story together each day. If you have older children, you can read through the Gospels during Lent. It’d be a fun challenge to see how much each person read by Easter.

How Creator Mundi Can Help

At Creator Mundi, we offer a wide selection of distinctive religious art and gifts. Incorporating our unique pieces into your Easter decorations and activities will inspire and encourage you. Browse our collection online or stop by our store in Denver today and see how Creator Mundi can help make Easter memorable. While you’re here, sign up for email updates and stay up to date on sales and new arrivals.

Joyce Rupp’s Reflection – February 2018 “Come to the root of the root of your Self.” ~ Jalaluddin Rumi (Divani Shamsi Tabriz, #120) Come Every moment of every day the Holy One extends an open invitation to come closer, to enter further into an lasting relationship. Now is the time to shake off the interior and exterior clutter that prevents this communication and clear seeing, to release what causes us to stumble on the path of loving and blocks our ability to be our truest self. Now is the moment to accept the invitation to be more completely transformed into Christ-like virtues, to heed the summons by ceasing worthless endeavors and distracting trivialities that keep us from an in-depth way of living. to the root Sink into a quiet space for a restorative time each day. Anchor yourself there. Let your roots of faith be strengthened by a graced encounter with Enduring Love. Assimilate the wise insights and inspiring aspirations found in the soil of prayer. Receive this spiritual nourishment so your ability to be a conduit of genuine goodness does not topple over from weakness, like a tree with a failing root system. of the root Go even deeper in relationship with the Beloved. Accept the storehouse of spiritual nutrients found in connection with this Primary Root. Allow the relationship to energize your life. Like a vigorous root feeding and keeping the tree flourishing, absorb the spiritually enlivening qualities found in the life and teachings of Jesus. Read a Gospel slowly. Let the life-giving messages you find there flow with dynamic energy into each part of your day. of your Self There, at the core of your being—the true Self where the divine and the human meet in undivided union—rest in the rootedness of a Love too large and unconditional to fully comprehend with the human mind. Set aside egoic demands, nursed grudges, endless discouragement, leftover regrets, and stale excuses. Receive this love with the intuitive heart. Become one with the Divine Root, a source of what best serves to restore the neglected and famished parts of the soul. Then go forth and exhale this Love like a healthily-rooted tree breathing oxygen into the lungs of creation. My hope for each of us in the coming liturgical season of Lent is that we will “return to the root of the root of the Self.” Abundant peace, Joyce Rupp

Ash Wednesday and Valentine’s Day fall on the same day this year. But it’s not a matter of celebrating one or the other. How about focusing on giving an extra portion of love to all those around you this Lent?

To say that I am made in the image of God

is to say that Love is the reason for my existence…

Love is my true identity…

Love is my true character.

Love is my name.

Thomas Merton

The Jesuit Post, by Colten Biro, SJ on Jan 23, 2018

With two simple questions, Google’s Arts and Culture App sparked a fascinating trend:

“Is your portrait in a museum?”
“Take a selfie and search thousands of artworks to see if any look like you.”

The 2-year-old App began as an attempt to offer tours and artwork from over 1,000 museums, but the recent feature immediately made it one of the most popular Apps in both iOS App Store and Google Play. But, why?

The Face Match feature invites users to take a selfie of themselves, then it compiles a list of artworks similar to your face—offering percentages of how similar the artwork is to the selfie. These side-by-side comparisons have gone viral often because they capture so striking a resemblance or because App’s limitations make the comparison at times so comically wrong.

Yet, this doesn’t quite explain the popularity of the trend—unless it’s about something more than just a selfie game. Perhaps, this is about appreciating our own beauty. Maybe we are fascinated by this side-by-side image of a selfie and a work of art, because we all want to believe deep down in our very bones: each of us is a work of art.

This isn’t just something similar to the #nofilter movement offering a raw glimpse into a moment, but the side-by-side comparison of selfie-vs-artwork makes a value statement: we stand beside art, or stated differently—we are more than the selfie; we are works of art.

In the same way, the artwork in the Google Arts and Culture App seeks to inspire a deeper appreciation of the power that art and beauty have to move us. It reminds us that “art” does not contain some sort of simple quantifiable value; it is a matter of appreciation, wonder, and awe. And perhaps, that is the most amazing thing about this trend: it invites the us to look at ourselves and others as more than objects or portraits, but to see ourselves and others in comparison to artwork.

Despite our minor flaws, smudges, and even our shortcomings, we are more than just the images we post to Instagram. The very act of creating a pairing or comparison between ourselves and works of art, reminds us of something that we don’t often think or hear enough: we are beautiful and we are loved.

In some way, this trend might even invite us into a small understanding of the way in which God views us. As Anthony de Mello, SJ once encouraged: “Behold God beholding you… and smiling.” Imagine if we loved ourselves and others as much as God loves us, as wonderful works of art.

So, we can laugh at the comparisons. We can pause at the resemblances. We can giggle at the percentages. But hopefully, the trend invites us into a deeper understanding of the art of creation encapsulated not just in a museum but within ourselves.

Will you engage this moment

with kindness or with cruelty,

with love or with fear,

with generosity or scarcity,

with a joyous heart or an embittered one?

This is your choice

and no one can make it for you.

If you choose kindness, love, generosity, and joy,

then you will discover in that choice

the Kingdom of God,

heaven,

nirvana,

this-worldly salvation.

It is your choice

that determines

just where you will reside.

Rabbi Rami Shapiro, The Sacred Art of Lovingkindness: Preparing to Practice 

Without realizing it, we fill
important places in each others’ lives.
It’s that way with the guy at the corner grocery, the mechanic at the local garage,
the family doctor, teachers, neighbors, coworkers. Good people who are always “there,”
who can be relied upon in small,
important ways. People who teach us,
bless us, encourage us, support us,
uplift us in the dailiness of life.

We never tell them.
I don’t know why, but we don’t.

And, of course, we fill that role ourselves. There are those who depend on us,
watch us, learn from us, take from us. And we never know.

You may never have proof of your importance,
but you are more important than you think.
There are always those who couldn’t do without you.
The rub is that you don’t always know who.

~Robert Fulghum