Gospel in Art: I am the vine, you are the branches

Three Cupids Playing with Vine Branches, by Louis Félix de la Rue, after François Boucher © Metropolitan Museum, NY

Source: Christian Art

Gospel of 21 May 2025
John 15:1-8

At that time: Jesus said to his disciples, 'I am the true vine, and my Father is the vine dresser. Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch, and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples.'

Reflection on the engraving

Our Gospel today is drawn from John's account of Jesus' words to His disciples on the night before He died. In his final moments, Jesus seeks to reassure them that, even beyond His death and resurrection, He will remain deeply united with them. The image He offers of the vine and the branches beautifully expresses the closeness of this communion, not only with His apostles but with each one of us. Just as branches cannot survive apart from the vine, so too we cannot truly live without remaining connected to Christ, the source of our life.

Yet, so often it is we who sever that connection. We convince ourselves that we can manage alone, relying on our own strength, drifting away from the very One who sustains us. But Jesus' invitation is constant and merciful: to return, to be grafted back onto the vine, where life flows freely. When we reattach ourselves to Him, through prayer, the sacraments, and daily trust, we begin to bear fruit again and grow into the people God has lovingly called us to be.

This theme of reconnection is echoed, perhaps unexpectedly, in our mid-18th-century engraving after François Boucher, where three playful putti hold branches of a vine. While originally intended as a light-hearted allegory of Autumn, we can read it with the eyes of faith, as a quiet illustration of our own spiritual journey. Like those putti holding the detached branches, we too can find ourselves holding parts of a life disconnected from its true source. But Christ, the true vine, never tires of calling us back. The image becomes more than decoration; it becomes a reminder that apart from Him, we can do nothing and we can pray for the angles to bring us back to the vine and reattach us.

In a world, much like Boucher's France, often distracted by surface beauty and fleeting pleasures, we are invited to seek something deeper. As we reflect on this Gospel, let it be a call to examine where we may have drifted, where pride or self-reliance has cut us off from His grace and His vine.

LINKS

Gospel in Art: https://christian.art/
Today's Reflection: https://christian.art/daily-gospel-reading/john-15-1-8-2025/ (with audio)