Picture in Focus: The Last Judgment by John Kohan

February 9, 2025

Picture in Focus: The Last Judgment by John Kohan

My reading of Christ's account of the Last Judgment in the Gospel of Matthew suggested visual motifs for a collage story box depicting Christ the Judge separating the sheep from the goats (who embod human types) based on whether those under judgment practiced six acts of mercy to "the least of these brothers and sisters of mine" Looking over the shoulder of Christ, enthroned with a retinue of angels, we see a sheep and goat from two herds at his right and his left hand awaiting the divine verdict. A central vertical strip shows those to whom we should have been merciful, if we, ourselves, expect to be shown mercy: the hungry, the thirsty, the stranger, the naked, the sick and the imprisoned.  On the "sheep" side of this great divide are images of communal kitchens and clothing recycling centers, people offering water bottles and welcoming immigrants, and visitors to the sick and imprisoned. The "goat" side shows people heartlessly ignoring others in need and even actively working against them. At the very center of the display, we see Christ standing unrecognized in a breadline, reminding us what we do to others we do to him. This wood engraving is the work of German-American Illustrator Fritz Eichenberg, a longtime contributor to the Catholic Worker newspaper of Social Activist Dorothy Day, who also provided the image of Christ at his Second Coming as a compassionate savior rather than a stern, conquering king. (John Kohan)