This drawing is a copy of the very famous painting by Vogel Von Vogelstein, entitled "Suffer the Little Children to come to Me." It is of course a depiction of the scene from the Gospels when the disciples are trying to prevent the children from "bothering" Jesus, and the Lord corrects them, saying "Suffer the little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God. " (Mk 10:14) Incidentally, this scene appears in three of the four Gospels. Prints may be purchased by using this link:
Although it is only part of a larger drawing, the copy (though it is as a pebble next to a mountain if compared with the original) stands on its own as a drawing. I could not wait to show it to you here, and to share with you my thoughts about Vogel's painting:
To me, it seems that each of the children represent in some way souls in different states. The one who is most prominent, the little girl, looking at the Lord with hands clasped and longing in her eyes seems almost to petition Him for help in prayer. The young girl (or boy) behind her and the foremost figure both seem to be looking up in awe at the Savior of the World. The toddler in His lap is the only figure at rest, and seems to simply be resting his head on the Master's chest, as St. John would later do at the Last Supper. Finally, there is my favorite, and perhaps the least noticable of the group: One of them has his head buried in Jesus' lap, and seems as though he is in anguish, perhaps crying. How often do we run back to the Lord, saddened and sorrowful at what we have done to hurt Him, so anxious to tell Him we are sorry, and find ourselves amazed to tears by His Mercy and Compassion? Yes, that figure is my favorite, because he is me. Where are you in this image?
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