In Anthony Falbo's "Gethsemane," Jesus is Covered by Angels

THE JESUS QUESTION
By Victoria Emily Jones

Anthony Falbo (b. Michigan), Gethsemane (The Hour is Near), 2006. Oil on canvas.

Luke is the only one of the Gospel writers to mention that in response to Jesus’s pained pleas in Gethsemane, an angel came down to strengthen him. American artist Anthony Falbo renders this moment of heavenly condescension in his painting Gethsemane (The Hour is Near).  Falbo chose to depict three angels instead of just the one that Luke mentions. This multiplicity creates a stronger sense of protective presence: the more angels around him, the tighter the seal. I’ve never seen an angel portrayed as having such sensitivity toward, such commitment to, his charge. In response to Jesus’s prayers in Gethsemane, the Father does not remove the cup of suffering from him, as he asks, but he does give him the strength to drink it. [link]