Gospel in Art: When the young man heard this he went away sorrowful

Portrait of a Young Man Holding a Roundel, by Sandro Botticelli, 1480 © Sotheby's New York / Wikimedia Commons

Source: Christian Art

Gospel of 18 August 2025
Matthew 19:16-22

At that time: Behold, a man came up to Jesus, saying, 'Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life?' And he said to him, 'Why do you ask me about what is good? There is only one who is good. If you would enter life, keep the commandments.' He said to him, 'Which ones?' And Jesus said, 'You shall not murder; You shall not commit adultery; You shall not steal; You shall not bear false witness; Honour your father and mother, and, You shall love your neighbour as yourself.' The young man said to him, 'All these I have kept. What do I still lack?' Jesus said to him, 'If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.' When the young man heard this he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.

Reflection on the painting

The young man in this morning's gospel reading is clearly a very well intentioned person who is leading a good life. He has been faithful to the all commandments that Jesus mentions, yet, something is bothering him. He senses that he is being called to something more. He asks 'What more do I need to do?' For this rich young man, the call to follow Jesus required him to let go of his great wealth. That is what Jesus asked him to do. There and then, he could not answer Jesus' call. Although he clearly heard the voice of Jesus, he could not bring himself to part with his riches and follow Christ. So we read that he went away sad…. We don't know what happened to him afterwards. Maybe he did end up following Jesus in the end, who knows?

Jesus addresses a personal call to each one of us in a way that is unique. There is, however, one thing that unites all of us in our vocations and that is to find our security only in God and not in our own achievements or possessions. Our ultimate treasure is to be found in heaven, not on earth.

There is a vast number of paintings that depict rich, lavishly dressed young men. I chose this Portrait of a Young Man Holding a Roundel, painted by Sandro Botticelli circa 1480. We do not know exactly who it depicts, but it could well be someone from the Medici family, as Lorenzo de' Medici was one of Botticelli's main benefactors. The painting represents ideal young beauty in Renaissance Florentine society. The man has smooth skin, his hair is perfectly groomed, his expensive tunic is of a warm blue colour which would have been very expensive at the time. He is holding a medallion that depicts a saint (probably St Paul). One of the sitter's fingers rests on a bright grey strip at the bottom of the painting. This provides the illusion that the medallion is in another level/dimension than the rest of the painting.

In January 2021, this portrait was sold at auction at Sotheby's New York for $92.2 million. The price for the painting was the highest paid for a Botticelli and the highest for an Old Master work since Leonardo Da Vinci's Salvator Mundi sold in 2017 for $450 million.

LINKS

Gospel in Art: https://christian.art/
Today's Reflection: https://christian.art/daily-gospel-reading/matthew-19-16-22-2025/