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All Saints,
Painted by Elizabeth wang (1942-2016),
Oil on canvas,
© Radiant light, Elizabeth Wang |
Seeing the crowds, Jesus went up the hill. There he sat down and was joined by his disciples. Then he began to speak. This is what he taught them:
‘How happy are the poor in spirit; theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Happy the gentle: they shall have the earth for their heritage.
Happy those who mourn: they shall be comforted.
Happy those who hunger and thirst for what is right: they shall be satisfied.
Happy the merciful: they shall have mercy shown them.
Happy the pure in heart: they shall see God.
Happy the peacemakers: they shall be called sons of God.
Happy those who are persecuted in the cause of right: theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
‘Happy are you when people abuse you and persecute you and speak all kinds of calumny against you on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward will be great in heaven.’ |
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| | Reflection on the Painting
Last year, for All Saints Day, Pope Francis urged all Christians ‘to seek holiness not by accomplishing extraordinary things but by following the path of the Beatitudes without half measures in everyday life’. He continued saying that ‘we are united not only with the saints of the calendar but also with our "next door" saints - our relatives and acquaintances who are now part of that immense multitude. All Saints Day is a family feast, because the saints, our truest brothers and sisters, love us, know what is our true good, help us, await us and want us to be happy with them in heaven.’
Very poignant and beautiful words spoken by Pope Francis. Today’s Gospel of the Beatitudes reading is so relevant for our times. The Gospel tells us ‘blessed are the poor’, while the world arounds us says that riches will bless us; the Gospel tells us ‘blessed are the meek’, while the world says that the proud-hearted are the most important; the Gospel says ‘blessed are the peacemakers’, whilst the world is on fire with wars and discontent; the gospel tells us ‘blessed are the gentle’, whilst the world tells us to be tough in order to make it in life; etc…
Today’s painting is by Elizabeth Wang, who was born in 1942 and received into the Catholic Church in 1968. She was an artist with wonderful abilities to paint in a very simple and yet effective way the essence of a lot of Christian themes. Today’s painting is called ‘All Saints’ and we can see the saints, almost like upright standing lit candles, standing in communion around the central figure of Christ. We see a kneeling figure in the middle, representing us… in the midst of Christ and His Saints… all one big family.
by Patrick van der Vorst |  | |
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