Charity (Caritas)
The three most important Christian virtues are faith, hope and charity (love).
Charity is often symbolised by a young woman holding a heart in her hand – in this case a burning heart. According to legend, there were three young sisters called Fides (Faith), Spes (Hope) and Caritas (Charity). Together with their mother Sapientia (Wisdom), they are supposed to have been martyred in Rome around 125 CE. Veneration of these sisters can be traced back to the 7th century.
-
Feast day
1 august
-
Attribute
A burning heart
-
The sculpture
The statue was modelled by Odd Hilt and carved by Johannes Opdahl in 1945.
