Gospel in Art: You also are to testify

Saint Francis preaching to the Birds, by Albert Chevallier Tayler, 1898 © Wikimedia Commons

Source: Christian Art

Gospel of 6 May 2024
John 15:26-16:4

Jesus said to the disciples, "When the Advocate comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who comes from the Father, he will testify on my behalf. You also are to testify because you have been with me from the beginning. I have said these things to you to keep you from stumbling. They will put you out of the synagogues. Indeed, an hour is coming when those who kill you will think that by doing so they are offering worship to God. And they will do this because they have not known the Father or me. But I have said these things to you so that when their hour comes you may remember that I told you about them. I did not say these things to you from the beginning, because I was with you."

Reflection on the painting

In today's Gospel reading Jesus is asking us to be his witnesses, to testify to him. It reminded me of Saint Francis of Assisi's line where he tells us: 'It is no use walking anywhere to preach unless our walking is our preaching'. This is the core of what Christian witnessing is about.

Jesus tells his disciples that after he takes his leave of them they are to become his witnesses. Although Jesus will no longer be in the world in as he was during his lifetime in an embodied form, in another sense he will be there in an embodied form, in and through his disciples who will be his witnesses. That is also our calling today as the Lord's disciples, to witness to him so that he can be present in the world in an embodied form through us.

In our late 19th-century painting, we see a bare-footed Saint Francis, hands folded, preaching to the birds. Saint Francis is flanked by poppies. Poppies in art are symbolic of death because of the blood-red colour of the flower. Within a Christian context it alludes to the blood of Christ. Saint Francis is preaching whilst being flanked by the mystery of Christ's sacrifice, through the symbolic use of poppies in the right lower corner.

To bear witness and testify is not easy in our time. But Christ reassures us in our reading that the Holy Spirit will support us in giving witness. The overall feeling that permeates this reading is that Jesus wants to be with us; he enjoys being with us; he encourages us and deeply cares about us. Therefore we have to consider our witnessing as merely reciprocating his love for us, and wanting to tell the whole world about it! That is exactly what Saint Francis did.

LINKS

Gospel in Art: https://christian.art/
Today's Reflection: https://christian.art/daily-gospel-reading/john-15-26-16-4-2024/