Today's Gospel in Art - Anyone who is angry with his brother will answer for it

Rising Anger, by Neil Grant 2018 © Neil Grant Art

Source: Christian Art

Gospel of 10th June 2021 - Matthew 5:20-26

Jesus said to his disciples: 'If your virtue goes no deeper than that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never get into the kingdom of heaven.

'You have learnt how it was said to our ancestors: You must not kill; and if anyone does kill he must answer for it before the court. But I say this to you: anyone who is angry with his brother will answer for it before the court; if a man calls his brother "Fool" he will answer for it before the Sanhedrin; and if a man calls him "Renegade" he will answer for it in hell fire. So then, if you are bringing your offering to the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your offering there before the altar, go and be reconciled with your brother first, and then come back and present your offering. Come to terms with your opponent in good time while you are still on the way to the court with him, or he may hand you over to the judge and the judge to the officer, and you will be thrown into prison. I tell you solemnly, you will not get out till you have paid the last penny.'

Reflection on the Sculpture

Our artist, Neil Grant, works with clay. He likes the medium 'because of the subtlety of expression that can be conveyed by a slight volume added to an eye or lip: a small upward curve of the lower eyelid transforms a forced smile into one of genuine joy'. The artwork we are looking at (cast bronze from clay) is called 'Rising Anger'. It is a hard piece to look at. The anger starts from the back part of the five-piece sculpture, and slowly rises. I guess at times we may have all felt like this. But in today's reading Jesus tells us to control our anger.

Remember that Jesus Himself got angry at times, for example when he cleansed the temple. Or was He actually angry then? Maybe he was simply outraged at what was going on. What our reading today shows is that Jesus understands that sometimes we get angry. And He tells us how to deal with it. Stop and think why we are angry; what are we angry about and who is the anger aimed at? He is asking us not to vent our anger and seek revenge or to have the last word, but to be gracious with our anger. Being angry is an opportunity to bring out the best in us, not the worst. If we can control our anger and be kind towards the other person, then we share in the gentleness of Christ.

Buddha said on the topic of anger: "Holding on to anger is like grasping a hot coal with the intent of throwing it at someone else; but you are the one who gets burned."

LINKS

Today's story - https://christian.art/en/daily-gospel-reading/832
Christian Art - www.christian.art