FINDING GOD IN ALL THINGS
As a major part of the Church’s Jubilee Year in 2025, with the theme Pilgrims of Hope, artists have been invited by the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference to create works of art to help us break open the Word.
Lynne Head-Weir and Kerry Holland, two artists from the JISA Giving community, have shared their beautiful creations and reflections. The wider JISA community hopes that these artworks provoke conversation and provide a space for meditation, a place to stop and ponder, to ask a question or just to sit and soak in the peace.
Image courtesy of the artist and JRS Australia.
Letting Go to Grow
Lynne Head-Weir
The process of creating the acrylic painting on canvas went through three different stages over a year. Each time, the shapes, space and composition changed. The process represented letting go of my old ideas and opening up to new ones. My life changed for the better by growing through the creative Spirit.
Recently, while gazing at my painting in God’s loving presence, I read the scripture. In Philippians 1:9-10, Paul prays, “And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ.”
I allow the image to speak to my heart.
I reflect on the entire image.
The green circular seed floats in the blue, discerning whether to stay or to sink deeper into the unknown in a way that may be led by the insightful spirit. The seed is opening up and letting go with a yellow glow. It is moving into busyness with the joyful spirit of love, growing and forming all sorts of consolations within the pink of Christ.
I pray that the interior life of the seed of faith and creativity within us will be open to insights, joy and love of the life-giving spirit.
Image courtesy of the artist and JRS Australia.
See Others in a Hopeful Way
Kerry Holland
Jesus told the Good Samaritan story about a man who helped the victim of a mugging. His hero in the narrative was from the Samaritan community. It was a shocking choice of hero in Jesus’ cultural context. He said that the community leaders did not stop to help, but someone who was from a despised group of people did.
While contemplating this story in order to do a painting about it, I realised that Jesus is inviting us to see others in a hopeful way. Jesus invites me to see those whom I might have decided are ‘unclean’, that is, with a cultural background or way of life that I don’t understand or perhaps even despise. He asks me to recognise that kindness and generosity are not necessarily the responses of those I think are worthy, but all people have the possibility of great goodness and loving action.
To do this painting I had to go to a spray can paint shop called Molotov. The assistant there was, to my surprise, incredibly quietly spoken, kind, generous and very helpful. We had a really good conversation, and it was the beginning of a new layer of conversion within me. When I look at another person with Jesus’ eyes, I see someone who is loved by God and who is likely capable of kindness. And the important thing is, I have discovered that it is true. Seeing with Jesus’ eyes is to see with eyes full of hope and compassion.
In this painting I used painted crochet lace texture to suggest Jesus’ voice. My black spray can graffiti line across the painting represents the path of the Good Samaritan. I used the spray can black line for the hero because I am aware that we get so annoyed by the spray can marks on fences, walls and posts and we think very bad thoughts about the graffiti artists; they are despised, demonised and diminished by many in society.
I discovered a new world through this painting experience where God’s love and hope are very much evident. If I were to recreate the painting today, the hero would be a transgender woman. I have experienced the great kindness, generosity and faithfulness of several who are my dear friends, and they are being caused a great deal of suffering at the moment.
Lynne Head-Weir and Kerry Holland are artists and Givers of the Ignatian Spiritual Exercises with JISA Faber in Brisbane.