Crofton Park, St Hilda

Dear Friends,

In one of my recent sermons, some of you will have heard me allude to a drawing I saw at Christies Saleroom. I happened to be walking past a couple of months ago, and seeing that there was an auction viewing on, I decided to take a look.

In the centre of the exhibition, was a five-inch, fragile, Michelangelo drawing, executed in a luminescent red chalk, depicting the right foot of the Libyan Sibyl, a blonde prophetess wearing a creamlike gown which he later painted onto the Sistine chapel’s eastern end. Her bare feet are bent because she’s stepping down from a throne while carrying a heavy book. Another sketch of her belongs to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. This sketch dates from the early 1500’s.

This previously undiscovered work had a pre-sale estimate of around 1.5 million pounds. The sketch went on to sell in New York for 16.9 million. It is an extremely rare and important discovery, which was submitted for a routine valuation by a private individual alongside some other pictures, lucky them!

Perhaps this story can teach us a valuable lesson as we consider what we are seeking to change in our lives during Lent. Often, we start out with a ‘grand plan’ which is almost doomed to failure even before we have started. It often the small things in life which are so valuable. The parallel I guess, is that like the rediscovery of this tiny, long forgotten, fragment of paper with a chalk sketch on it, we quite often pass over the small things (sometimes for a lifetime).I am referring to those habits or ways of doing things which seem insignificant, but in reality, could bring about radical transformation in our lives, in the lives of those around us, but most importantly in our relationship with God if we paid attention to them.

Please forgive me if you feel that the connection between this spiritual lesson and the Michelangelo drawing is tenuous or doesn’t really work for you. I am a very visual person and seek inspiration from art. The bottom line is that it is often in the small, long forgotten things, that we can bring about a transformation for the better, which is always going to bring about far greater impact than some grand Lenten act with fizzes out after a few days. Carpe Diem!

With my love and prayers,

Father J

Image credit: Copyright Christies International

This Lent we will be raising money for the Manna Society, a Christian charity which provides food and clothing for homeless people in central London. I look forward to sharing more about the charity over the course of Lent.

Crofton Park, St Hilda

Crofton Park, St Hilda

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Crofton Park, St Hilda

Crofton Park, St Hilda

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