Gospel in Art: For you are like whitewashed tombs

Marilyn Diptych, Painting by Andy Warhol, 1962 Silkscreen and paint on canvas © Alamy

Source: Christian Art

Gospel of 26 August 2026
Matthew 23:27-32

At that time: Jesus said, 'Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs, which outwardly appear beautiful, but within are full of dead people's bones and all uncleanness. So you also outwardly appear righteous to others, but within you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.

'Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you build the tombs of the prophets and decorate the monuments of the righteous, saying, "If we had lived in the days of our fathers, we would not have taken part with them in shedding the blood of the prophets." Thus you witness against yourselves that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets. Fill up, then, the measure of your fathers.'

Reflection on the diptych

In yesterday's Gospel, Jesus spoke about cleaning the inside of the cup rather than simply polishing the outside. Today He returns to the same theme, but with even stronger words. He compares the religious leaders to "whitewashed tombs": beautiful and spotless on the outside, yet filled with death within. Harsh words. His concern is not with outward beauty itself, but with the danger of concentrating so much on appearances that we neglect our hearts. Throughout Scripture, the heart is the place where God meets us, and thus that is where we have to concentrate.

These words speak powerfully to our own age. Never before has image been so important. Social media has created a culture in which people are often measured by the number of followers they have rather than by the depth of their character. The global influencer industry is now huge, showing just how much value our society places on visibility, popularity and image. Admittedly, we are all easily impressed and seduced by polished photographs, carefully crafted lifestyles and public success of celebrities. Yet God sees beyond all of that. He looks beyond our achievements and He looks directly into our hearts. The invitation of today's Gospel is simple but challenging: spend at least as much time caring for your soul as you do caring for your image.

Our artwork today is by Andy Warhol, one of the artists who understood celebrity culture better than almost anyone else. In the 1960s he became fascinated by the way modern society creates, celebrates and consumes famous people. He famously remarked, "In the future, everyone will be world-famous for fifteen minutes." Those words, spoken decades before the internet and social media, seem remarkably prophetic. Today, millions of people strive for those "fifteen minutes" of recognition through television, YouTube, Instagram or TikTok. Warhol saw that fame had become something to be manufactured, much like the products that rolled off factory production lines.

His 1962 portraits of Marilyn Monroe are perhaps the clearest example of this. Warhol repeated the same photograph of Marilyn over and over again, using bright, almost artificial colours. At first the repeated images celebrate her glamour and beauty. Yet the more we look, the more the repetition begins to empty the portrait of its individuality. Marilyn becomes less a person and more an icon, a product, an image. Warhol created these works shortly after Marilyn's tragic death in 1962, reminding us how the world can admire a public image while failing to see the real person behind it.

Jesus asks us to do exactly the opposite. He never judged people by their public image or reputation. He always looked beyond appearances and saw the human heart. Today's Gospel invites us to do the same. Behind every famous face, every polished photograph and every carefully crafted image is a person loved by God, with hopes, fears, joys and wounds.

LINKS

Christian Art: www.christian.art
Today's image: https://christian.art/daily-gospel-reading/matthew-23-27-32-2026/