Gospel in Art: The kingdom of God is like the yeast that leavened three measures of flour

Spot, by Donald Lipski. 2018 © Alamy

Source: Christian Art

Gospel of 25 October 2022
Luke 13:18-21

Jesus said, 'What is the kingdom of God like? What shall I compare it with? It is like a mustard seed which a man took and threw into his garden: it grew and became a tree, and the birds of the air sheltered in its branches.'

Another thing he said, 'What shall I compare the kingdom of God with? It is like the yeast a woman took and mixed in with three measures of flour till it was leavened all through.'

Reflection on the Public Sculpture

I don't know whether you have ever made a loaf of bread, but if you have, then you know about the massive difference that yeast makes. If flour, water, a splash of oil and salt are kneaded together, without yeast, the bread would be like a hard brick coming out of the oven. So the presence of yeast softens the bread, adding air to it and making it eatable and enjoyable and, most obviously… it makes the bread increase in size dramatically. Jesus understood this and thus uses the image of yeast to convey the point that even with a tiny amount of yeast, the whole loaf is transformed into something beautiful and nourishing.

The image of yeast tells us that from insignificant beginnings great things come forth. The small, good deed we do can make a huge difference in someone's life. The small contribution of time we give to a charity may help countless people. A small financial contribution may well buy large amounts of medication for poor countries. The act of the small deed gets celebrated in today's reading. From small contributions come great things.

Our large sculpture started from a small, thoughtful idea in Donald Lipski's mind. The artist created this 38-foot tall sculpture of a Dalmatian dog with a NYC Taxi (a Prius donated by Toyota) balanced on her nose, to be placed in front of the Langone Hospital in New York City. The sculpture was created by Lipski specifically for the brave children about to endure a challenging procedure in the hospital, which commissioned the sculpture. His goal was to create something so striking and fun that it would distract anyone from their illness or treatment, even for just a moment. Donald Lipski says about this sculpture: "It's a privilege to be able to do this for the kids. I wanted to make something so astounding it would distract even those arriving for the most serious procedures, and so lovable that young patients coming back again and again with chronic conditions would see it as an old friend. I like to think that the parents, the doctors and nurses and staff, the neighbours, will all be smitten by this playful, heroic young dog doing the impossible. Art has actual healing power. That's a fact! This is my neighbourhood, and this is my hospital."

This sculpture, though very tall, is a small gesture, born from a small thought in the artist's mind... bringing joy to countless children.

LINKS

Gospel in Art: https://christian.art/

Today's reflection: https://christian.art/daily-gospel-reading/luke-13-18-21-2022/