Philothea: What's in a name?
Philothea means "love for God" or "she who loves God," while our motto "Pulchritudinem facientes in Caritate" is a word play on St. Paul's "veritatem facientes in caritate" (Eph. 4:15) and can be loosely translated as "creating beauty with/out of love". Thus, you can easily say that love and charity are the driving forces behind Philothea: in the first place a deep love for God that flows out into a love for the timeless beauty hiding in Roman-Catholic liturgy, prayer, art and the role this beauty plays in evangelization, which is also known as the Via Pulchritudinis.
The name Philothea is best known as the epithet of "Introduction to the Devout Life", one of the most important works of St. Francis de Sales (1567-1622), bishop of Geneva and Church doctor. He was and still is famous for his soft, patient and kind approach, which resulted in a typical type of spirituality that still blooms within certain religious congregations and educational institutions, just as we, at Philothea, also hold this Salesian spirituality in high esteem.
A quick look at our activities is more than enough to see the reasoning behind our choice of motto. Philothea wants to make a contribution to the faith experience of Roman- and Anglo-Catholics in surrounding them with beauty, in particular the intellectual beauty hiding in books, the devotional beauty of hand-made rosaries, the liturgical beauty of liturgical linen and vestments, and private guiding tours for Catholic tourists who want to discover the historical and living beauty of Belgium's rich Catholic heritage. In the future and for our Belgian customers, we will also offer the natural beauty of flower arrangements for churches and chapels, and the photographic beauty of religious art and (Traditional) Roman Catholic Liturgy. Follow the links at the bottom to find more information.
Studio Philothea - Photography of (Traditional) Roman Catholic liturgy and religious art
Philothea Flowers - Subscriptions to flower arrangements and floral decorations for churches. (Belgian customers only)
Philothea Tours - Private guiding for Catholic tourists who want to discover Belgium's rich Catholic heritage.