Gospel in Art: Second Sunday of Advent

John the Baptist, by Alexandre Cabanel (1823-1889). Painted in 1849. Oil on canvas © Musée Fabre, Montpellier, France

Source: Christian Art

Gospel of 7 December 2025
Matthew 3:1-12

In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, 'Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.' For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah when he said, 'The voice of one crying in the wilderness: "Prepare the way of the Lord; make his paths straight." '

Now John wore a garment of camel's hair and a leather belt round his waist, and his food was locusts and wild honey. Then Jerusalem and all Judea and all the region about the Jordan were going out to him, and they were baptised by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins. But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, 'You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bear fruit in keeping with repentance. And do not presume to say to yourselves, "We have Abraham as our father", for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children for Abraham. Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees. Every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.

'I baptise you with water for repentance, but he who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptise you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor and gather his wheat into the barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.'

Reflection on the painting

Our striking painting of Saint John the Baptist comes from the hand of Alexandre Cabanel, one of the most celebrated French painters of the nineteenth century. Cabanel created this canvas after a trip to Rome, and we can sense the classical influence across the whole work with the idealised figures and the almost sculptural clarity of form. John the Baptist appears as a vigorous, fiery preacher, caught mid-proclamation. John's expression is fierce, almost unsettling. It is very unusual, as he is more often shown as a gentle, serene figure quietly directing us toward Christ. On either side, young and old listeners lean in attentively, as though the very air is alive with his message.

To the left stands his cross-shaped staff with the banner "Agnus Dei" (the Lamb of God) the heart of John's mission. He is the forerunner, the one who points beyond himself to Christ, the Lamb who takes away the sins of the world. Cabanel's John has his mouth slightly open, as though we can almost hear his cry echoing across the desert. Clothed in camel-hair with a leather belt around his waist, he matches perfectly the Gospel's description. His gestures are bold, even dramatic: one arm lifted towards heaven from where the Messiah descends, the other pointing towards the earth He now entered. When Cabanel unveiled this painting in 1849, it was warmly received in Paris, though many viewers were struck by how unusually intense his portrayal of John the Baptist was.

Advent is a season of waiting, longing, and preparing our hearts, and no figure embodies that mission more powerfully than John. Matthew presents him standing in the wilderness, calling Israel to repentance, to conversion, and to a renewed openness to God. His message is urgent: "Prepare the way of the Lord." By placing John before us now on this Second Sunday of Advent, the Church invites us to do what he urged his listeners to do: to clear away whatever blocks Christ's path into our hearts.

LINKS

Gospel in Art: https://christian.art/
Today's Reflection: https://christian.art/daily-gospel-reading/matthew-3-1-12-2025/