O znaczeniu pewnego wizerunku w życiu religijnym i sztuce: Chrystus Frasobliwy – jego funkcja i miejsce
The function of one image in the religious life and art: the purpose of christ in distress

Summary/Abstract: The image of Christ in Distress belongs to the group of Andachtsbilder (German for devotional images) which took shape in the Late Middle Ages (i.e. the 14th–15th c.) and depicted the sufferings of Christ. The purpose of this type of image is to encourage meditative prayer and meditative conversation with the Saviour, as well as emotional empathy for suffering. As a result, the image of Christ in Distress was usually displayed in such a place in a church where people could observe it at a close range, for example, in side chapels, next to isolated columns, or in the gallery or porch. In some churches, the function of the Crucifi x was attributed to the image of Christ in Distress, placed in the porch. Sometimes, the sculpture of Christ in Distress was placed next to a holy water container near the entrance to the church. Also, on some occasions, the image was painted on the façade of a church or chapel. In some cases, a carved statue of Christ in Distress was put at the front of a church or chapel. Sculptures on this theme were also kept in cemetery chapels where the bodies of the dead were laid out. Just like in other countries, the image (i.e. a sculpture or painting) of Christ in Distress in Lithuania was mostly dissociated from the main ecclesiastical interior equipment, i.e. the altar. The statues of Christ in Distress (Lith. Rūpintojėlis, Susimąstęs Kristus) were often put in specially constructed brick niches suggesting the prison of Christ.

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