Partial image shown here for copyright purposes.
"Duc in altum" is a Latin phrase from the Vulgate translation of Luke 5:4: "put out into the deep" or "launch into the deep". Jesus speaks these words to Simon Peter, telling him to cast his nets into the deep for a catch, which results in a miraculous abundance of fish. "I will make you a fisher of men". With these words, Jesus calls his first Apostle, and they echo into the Church today. Pope St. John Paul II spoke on this subject of “putting out into the deep” several times, including at the 2005 World Day of Prayer for Vocations. He said, “One needs to open one’s heart to the abundance of grace and to allow the word of the Redeemer to act with all its power: ‘Duc in altum!’ Whoever opens his heart to Christ will not only understand the mystery of his own existence, but also that of his own vocation; he will bear the abundant fruit of grace.”
Commissioned for Marin Catholic High School in Marin, CA, the original artwork is 15 x 18' and is painted in acrylic on canvas. It features Christ in his eternal self-offering to the Father, with angels gathering the Precious Blood. At the foot of the cross are our greatest models of Christian discipleship, Mary Theotokos and Joseph Most Chaste. The grand arch is inset with the 12 stones, representing the 12 Tribes of Israel and is the gateway into the city of the Heavenly Jerusalem.
Duc in Altum, copyright Ruth Stricklin 2025, New Jerusalem Studios LLC.
