| COUNTRY: | VATICAN CITY STATE |
| ISSUE DATE: | 1 February 2016 |
| CIRCULATION: | 500 000 each |
| STAMP/SHEET SIZE: | 30 x 40 mm / 120 x 100 mm |
| STAMP THEME: | Easter |
Easter 2016 will be celebrated with the issue of a postage stamp miniature sheet featuring two details of stained glass windows found in the parish church of St. Angela Merici in Milan, Italy. Italo-Hungarian artist Janos Hajnal (1913-2010) produced the works, in addition to some of the stained glass windows in the Duomo of the Lombard capital. The two values of the miniature sheet each depict a detail of the life of Christ, one of his dying on the Cross and the other as He exits the tomb where in triumph He has his right hand and three fingers raised and holds in his left hand a flag symbolizing victory over death.
The origin of the works of stained glass at St. Angela Merici is interesting and in some ways unique to Hajnal’s work. The two windows were paid for by a private donor who wished to offer a work of art in memory of his son who died at the age of 18. This tragic story had a powerful effect on the artist, who was given complete freedom in choosing the subject for the memorial artwork. He chose to depict the death and resurrection of Christ as a way to express absolute suffering, but also the possibility of defeating death, as in the extreme sacrifice of the Son of God. Easter must reach the hearts of everyone, since it is here that God wants us to understand: Jesus is risen, hope is alive, we are no longer under the dominion of sin and evil. Love and mercy have won. The mercy of God always wins.