All God’s children

Caroline Farey discusses a painting that shows Catholic culture at its fullest

In this painting, we see Catholic culture at its fullest, manifesting the Church’s all-embracing worldview in the great, annual procession to the fields for the blessing of the harvest. Here, the wheat newly grown in the fields is visited by the wheat that has reached its highest destiny in the sacred host of the Blessed Sacrament.

Such an event was typical and widespread in Christian Europe, such as here in 19th century France in the fields of the village of Courrières, in the region of Artois, where the artist, Jules Breton, lived. Traditionally, the processions took place on the three Rogation days, which fall on the Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday before Ascension Thursday. In this painting the wheat is high and golden suggesting a blessing on the harvest just before its reaping.

Such processions supremely unite the visible world of God’s creation with God the Father’s otherwise invisible, loving care for his children, from his provision of the natural world, to man’s capacities for transforming creation by their graced labours, through to the sending of the Son of God to save, to nourish and to recapitulate the world and all its peoples to himself.

Significantly placed in the foreground, the poorer farm folk who have laboured for the wheat’s planting and growth, kneel as the priest passes by, who, by the power of the Holy Spirit, has transformed their wheat into the body of Christ, ‘panem sanctum vitæ æternæ’. All here are aware that without the work both of the farmers for the wheat and the priests for the Eucharist, we would not have the ‘daily bread’ we need for the body and soul in this life for the next.

The faith of those kneeling in worship is, therefore, placed foremost in the painting, with a range of humble and genuine gestures for us to respect and imitate: there are hands clasped, backs bent, heads bowed and a little girl stretching out her arms towards the Beloved Eucharist.

The long, early morning shadows across the path show us that the sun is still low, having only recently risen in the East. This gives the painting a tone of early morning freshness before a full summer day ahead; just as we receive a joyful foretaste of eternity in the Eucharist before the full and everlasting day of heaven.

So, the huge procession moves through the fields before the day’s work begins for each of the different classes of society - and all classes are present.

This liturgical event, as for all Catholic liturgy, is relevant to every level of society; the processing crowds have a single purpose which gives a sense and sign of the unity and equal dignity of all God’s children, men and women, rich and poor, young and old.

Notice the many different roles of those in the procession. The Eucharist is in the centre of the painting and of the procession. Many follow behind, but many more lead in front, preparing the way for so great a participant in their midst. The people here may well be characters from the artist’s own neighbourhood, so particular are their features and his village church is seen in the background beyond the fields of Courrières where he lived.

The priest and deacons wear vestments suitable for a solemnity such as that of Corpus Christi. The deacons chant the litany of the saints and pray in remembrance of God’s promises:

“If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.” (2 Chron 7:14).

“Keep his decrees and commands, which I am giving you today, so that it may go well with you and your children after you and that you may live long in the land the Lord your God gives you...” (Deut 4:40).

Immediately in front of the deacons, little girls have baskets of petals ready to strew the way at the appropriate moment. They are preceded by lay cantors for the psalms and canticles. The young woman carrying the paschal candle, representing Christ, is in turn preceded by maidens who carry a crowned and garlanded statue of Our Lady, she who gave birth to Christ, the light of the world. Further ahead in the procession another statue is carried by nuns, also in a decorated bower. This may well be a local patron saint such as the abbess, St Bertha of Artois.

Further ahead the banners of several guilds can be seen and, right at the front, the liturgical event is headed by a processional cross visibly glinting in the sun for the whole procession to see. The processional cross is always to remind its viewers that Jesus had said,

“and I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself’ (Jn 12:32).

Following the cross ‘high and lifted up’, Christ does draw all ‘those whose hearts are willing’ (Ex 25:2) towards himself and they in turn ‘lift him up’; exalting him in singing their praises with the psalms still used for Rogation days. First and foremost, however, ‘rogation’ is from ‘rogare’ to ‘ask’ or ‘appeal’.

‘We appeal to Thy graciousness, O Almighty God, that Thou wouldst shower Thy blessings upon these first fruits of creation, which Thou has nurtured with favourable weather, and mayest bring them to a fine harvest. Grant also to Thy people a sense of constant gratitude for Thy gifts, so that the hungry may find rich nourishment in the fruits of the earth, and the needy and the poor may praise Thy wondrous name. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.’