Gospel in Art: They left everything and followed him

Balloons, Paintd by Jinho Kee in 2020, Oil on canvas © Jinho Kee / Saatchi Art

Source: Christian Art

Gospel of 9 February 2025
Luke 5:1-11

At that time: The crowd was pressing in on Jesus to hear the word of God. He was standing by the lake of Gennesaret, and he saw two boats by the lake, but the fishermen had gone out of them and were washing their nets. Getting into one of the boats, which was Simon's, he asked him to put out a little from the land. And he sat down and taught the people from the boat. And when he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, 'Put out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch.' And Simon answered, 'Master, we toiled all night and took nothing! But at your word I will let down the nets.' And when they had done this, they enclosed a large number of fish, and their nets were breaking. They signalled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both the boats, so that they began to sink. But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus' knees, saying, 'Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.' For he and all who were with him were astonished at the catch of fish that they had taken, and so also were James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. And Jesus said to Simon, 'Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching men.' And when they had brought their boats to land, they left everything and followed him.

Reflection on the painting

Today's reading reveals the power and generosity of God and identifies the uniqueness of the disciples. It reminded me of this story:

A professor gave a balloon to every student, who had to inflate it, write their name on it and throw it in the hallway. The professor then mixed all the hundreds of balloons. The students were given five minutes to find their own balloon. Despite a hectic search, no one found their balloon. At that point the professor told the students to take the first balloon that they found and hand it to the person whose name was written on it. Within five minutes everyone had their own balloon.

The professor said to the students: "These balloons are like happiness. We will never find it if everyone is looking for their own. But if we care about other people's happiness....we'll find ours too.

That is why Jesus called the Twelve Disciples: to work together as groups and in teams to be able to achieve so much more than each of us can individually.

Our painting is by South Korean artist Jinho Kee. For years he has painted balloons. He views balloons as a metaphor for life: at first loose and formless, then stretched and tense when inflated, displaying magnificent colours; before eventually relaxing again. wrinkling and, one day, inevitably popping. Yet, it is the vibrancy of their colours that lifts our spirits, reminding us to embrace each day as a new adventure. They symbolise our shared journey, each of us a single unique balloon among many, but when we come together, we can soar to far greater heights.

LINKS

Gospel in Art: https://christian.art/
Today's Reflection: https://christian.art/daily-gospel-reading/luke-5-1-11-2025/