The Holy Women at the Tomb,
Painted by William-Adolphe Bouguereau (1825-1905),
Painted in 1890,
Oil on canvas
© Royal Museum of Fine Arts, Antwerp, Belgium
The Holy Women at the Tomb,
Painted by William-Adolphe Bouguereau (1825-1905),
Painted in 1890,
Oil on canvas
© Royal Museum of Fine Arts, Antwerp, Belgium
The women who accompanied Jesus
Luke 8:1-3
Jesus made his way through towns and villages preaching, and proclaiming the Good News of the kingdom of God. With him went the Twelve, as well as certain women who had been cured of evil spirits and ailments: Mary surnamed the Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out, Joanna the wife of Herod’s steward Chuza, Susanna, and several others who provided for them out of their own resources.
Reflection on the painting
In our Gospel reading today Luke names three Galilean women as followers of Jesus alongside the twelve apostles: Mary Magdalene, Joanna and Susanna. The first two appear in the passion/resurrection narrative, as depicted in our painting. They symbolise the thousands who have served Christ's Church from the very beginning alongside the apostles. The infant Church was a Church constantly on the move to spread the Good News. It was made up of ordinary women and men, rich and poor, sick and healthy, who all wanted their lives to be centered around the person of Jesus.
Our painting depicts three woman (Mary the Mother of James, Mary Magdalene and Mary of Cleophas), at the tomb after the resurrection. As a viewer we are meant to look up to the painting, seeing the perspective in which the scene is drawn. The painting was to be admired from a kneeling position looking upwards. We see bewilderment on the central figure of Mary Magdalene, who is looking caringly straight into the tomb, with the angel's light shining upon her. We feel as if we have just stumbled on the event and are witnessing live what is going on. This painting was first exhibited at the Paris Salon of 1890 and was admired for its tour de force in terms of perspective and foreshortening, which can be clearly seen in the severe angle of the tomb entranceway.
Jesus was an itinerant preacher who was dependent on his followers for food, shelter, company… In our gospel reading, we hear of a group women who weren’t poor and provided for Jesus and his disciples. They had material resources. One of them was the wife of the chief steward of Herod, the tetrarch of Galilee. Even though they seem to be better off than many of their contemporaries, they were not attached to their wealth and generously shared what they had. The gospel reading says that they provided for Jesus and his disciples out of their resources.
All of these woman had experienced the healing power of Jesus in their lives, and this was their way of expressing their gratitude to him. Today’s reading prompts us to realise that it is not what we possess that matters so much, but what we do with what we possess.
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What an astounding painting. So true, i got a shock at first sight as if i was also there.
There is a tradition that it was St. Joanna who took charge of the head of St. John the Baptist after Herodias relinquished it, and gave it a respectful burial.
Angels: how do they do it? Popping up unexpectedly, often full of radiant light, with strange and unexpected messages, and yet not frightening the people they speak to, who believe and accept their words without question.
(Never mind the wings, which I think are just an ancient artistic metaphor indicating that they are not earth-bound, as well as how fast they travel, like birds appearing and disappearing.)
I do so hope this is also true. I always pray that Our Lord Jesus was with him at the execution, in Spirit. I love John the Baptist the great ascetic.
She would have been well-placed to do so, as the wife of Herod’s steward.
I wonder if it was that event which caused her to follow Jesus? And how did her husband react?
I think many were afraid of angels- which is why their first words are often, ‘Do not be afraid.’ Thre are many examples of this throughout scripture.
Yes, true, but it’s not recorded that people fled from them, or collapsed in a trembling heap (I think). They mostly, when recovered from their first shock, listened to the angels and did as advised.
It may be that for some people they were just “uncanny” until they spoke. (“The uncanny is the psychological experience of an event or individual as not simply mysterious, but frightening in a way that feels oddly familiar. This phenomenon is used to describe incidents where a familiar thing or event is encountered in an unsettling, eerie, or taboo context.” Thanks to Wikipedia for this quotation.)
I was once lectured by a student who claimed to be a satanist on what angels looked like. That was a very interesting conversation!
Viewed from below, the picture has a much more mysterious atmosphere, more conducive to worship, as Father Patrick suggests – when I tried holding my phone up, the angel seemed more dominant in relation to its actual size, I felt more like joining the women than just looking at them.
Strange to think that the painting dates from the year van Gogh died, and is also contemporary with the Impressionists….. Bouguereau has a more pre-Raphaelite feel. What a cauldron that time was, industrially, culturally, politically….
We all long to feel useful, needed. Jesus’ women followers must have felt gloriously fulfilled by the opportunity to follow their Lord – and to get out of the house? They surely would have been mainly widows, without husbands or dependent children. Only a very rich single woman, or an outcast, could have been permitted to do something so – at that time – socially unacceptable as travelling with a group of men! I was part of an overland expedition to India in the 60’s (not hippies!) and we weren’t always kindly treated, travelling as a mixed group, in the Islamic countries east of Turkey.
There’s much more to think about in regard to sharing what we have….particularly thinking of one friend who says the more she gives, financially, the less her bank balance shrinks, which doesn’t make much sense in worldly terms, but…..
Going to a book festival this afternoon, have a good day all.
Bougeureau was a Paris Salon painter and the Impressionists more or less swept this style of art aside. Beautifully composed and realistically painted, the new wave of Impressionism had no time for the Salon. Hence the Salon des Refusés who were mostly artists of the new wave who had been turned down by the official Salon.
✔✔
Noelle – How do you do those emojis?
On my Samsung phone: when typing there is a little face top left, in line with the words you’re typing. Tap on that and it brings up a line of symbols. There is still a little face extreme left. Tap on that and it brings up a large library of emojis, the different categories appearing at the bottom of the screen. You learn what you like by trial and impatience! 🆗️? 🌻
Hi Chazbo..a bit late in the day for a reply but re emojis – it always depends on the device you use to comment. On my phone, there is a little smiley face on the bottom of the keyboard which will access them. The same on my android tablet. However, if I use my proper laptop, if I right click the mouse, emojis are the first option (above cut, copy, past etc etc)
This painting is not un-familiar to me. There is a lot of structure here, in the doorway and the massive walls of the tomb. The stone rolled away should not be overlooked. Yet it is the women that provide the softness, in their clothing and in their grouping close together. The face of Mary Magdalene in particularly skillful, showing a genuinely grief stricken face. She looks as if she has spent the whole night in tears, and has rallied herself enough to go and do the ‘work’ of caring for the body. For these women it is the last act of love they can do for their deceased friend. The woman on the left carries the bowl and at her side is a pitcher of water or oil. They have summoned that inner strength to do what is necessary for a man they loved and they think has gone. For me this is what the painting conveys more than anything- their utter dedication to Jesus despite their shattering grief. How many women do this kind of work every day? I salute them.
Yet, of course they begin to realise something else when they arrive, and that is conveyed by the stone and the open tomb. There is someone else in there, and the looks of disbelief and confusion are captured here.
How can we contemplate this victory over death? It is at the core of our faith in no small part due to the witness of these women.
I thank Father Patrick for sharing this image today and for his words.
‘Lord, draw us all closer to Your empty tomb, that we may see the light and not the darkness within. You are the Resurrection and the Life and all things lead to You. ‘
Imagine being there and discovering the empty tomb!!
A really helpful account, thank you, SFG.
You are welcome Noelle
Yes, the women – ever generous, resourceful, and getting their sleeves rolled up!
I really like this painting – not usually my kind of thing but there is something about it – the women seem real enough but the angel seems ethereal, otherworldly (well, of course) and I think that’s what I like.
I have stumbled upon a site called Catholic Classics; you listen to Catholic spiritual writings from the Saints. Augustine is coming up next…
I am re-reading Augustine’s Confessions just now. My go-to book when I am waiting for my next one! I love him.
He didn’t treat women well, including his own mother- but at least he realised later in life how disrespectful he had been.
Yes, the women came here to do something for Jesus even though they felt they had lost him and he could no longer help them. What true faith these women had!
I’ll check that out Patricia.
Thank you for the recommendation, Patricia.
Have signed up….
I have tried but for some reason I can’t get the first series? Is it the one with Chris Pine? There seems to be a few.
Sorry, I’ve only signed up for St. Augustine, as it seemed the most straightforward… but haven’t sent for the book. 🌻
Dank u wel voor de tip. Geluisterd.
Quick postscript from yesterday – Bashia commented ” How about, “Lord what can I do today to bring you glory?”” – that prayer was a real Blessing to me yesterday. To today, if we are looking into the Tomb what I love is the quality of the light in the tomb radiating out from the angel. Normally the tomb would be pitch black.
Graham I find that no matter how well I had spent my day it is the evenings that cause me to drift. I am going to try to be more consistent from now on!
Tricky – I always want to relax in the evenings, and relaxing is OK up to a point 😄
The devil finds work for idle minds I think!
☺️👍
Adolphe, there’s a Christian name that’s gone out of fashion big time owing to a certain twentieth century figure. When I was young I knew a very nice elderly Spaniard called Adolfo but I don’t think you will hear that name too much nowadays. Jose Antonio was a popular combination but now the old Christian names are slipping out of use.
Why is the Magdalene so popular in France?
There was an Anglican bishop of Durham some years ago who was accused of denying the truth of the Resurrection although I don’t know that he did. Our faith is nothing without the Resurrection?
Random ramblings first thing before taking the dogs out 🙂
A legend has it that Mary Magdalene landed in the south of France by boat….these things take hold!
Yes there is a little port there named after her and the story was bigged up by Dan Brown in one of those silly books he wrote.
Yes there are many stories told about her, especially about her going to France- some are just fairy tales for me. I feel the church is at last re-claiming her in her role as a disciple, but so little is known about her historically speaking. People who don’t know jst make stuff up, it is very annoying to me!
Yes that Polish art expert made a very interesting art programme about her and how she is represented artistically. He said that Mary Magdalene is composite figure of a few different women mentioned in the Gospels.
What does he know? Is any other figure in the Gospels considered a ‘composite?’ This kind of comment about this woman tires me.
Right there’s Mary Magdalene and then there’s Mary Salome and Mary Cleophas, the last two being sisters of the Virgin Mary (same name strangely). There is sometimes some confusion with some artists about the three Marys although not with Jesus’s mother Mary.
But Mary Magdalene was a distinct person SFG. You’re right.
Waldemar Januszczak? He’s good, different. Had a very sad youth, his father was killed working on the railways.
Yes, and he was educated by some fierce Polish priests who put him off the Church for good. I would have mentioned his name but couldn’t spell it! Lol !
I had to check the surname…
Yes, that’s as maybe but I notice in his programmes he still crosses himself with holy water and genuflects when he enters a church….
Good ol’ Waldy… the esteemed Waldemar Januszczak 😊
🙂🌻