A feast of gratitude for frontliners

MANILA, Phlippines — As a tribute to the men and women risking their lives to save those afflicted by the new coronavirus disease (COVID-19), a priest known to paint Jesus in contemporary situations has reinterpreted the “Last Supper.” The result? A painting of the Son of God sharing relief goods at a table with these frontliners.

Fr. Armand Tangi of the Society of St. Paul spent “about a week” completing the 24 inch by 36 inch oil-on-canvas—far longer than the usual time he takes for commissioned paintings. But it was necessary, if only to show his appreciation for the health workers and their courage, trust and selflessness in the face of the killer virus.

In Tangi’s latest work, a male doctor is seated beside Jesus and a female nurse is behind the doctor. “I put them closest because they are the ones who are in direct contact with patients who are sick with COVID-19,” the priest explained.

Also gathered around Jesus are a priest, a food delivery man, a policeman, a journalist, a jeepney driver, a garbage collector, a security guard, a soldier and a village watchman (barangay “tanod”).

All are turned to Jesus, His right hand holding a chalice as He gives thanks to the Father. The table, on which are relief goods including eggs, bananas, canned sardines, bottled water, a soft drink, assorted fruits, bread and a whole chicken, is covered with a cloth with wide horizontal red, blue and yellow stripes representing the Philippine flag.

On the floor in front are sacks of National Food Authority rice, sliced bread in plastic bags in a box, and a big basket of fruits and vegetables.

CALLED TO SUPPER Fr. Armand Tangi and his latest work expressing appreciation for the country’s health professionals and other essential employees in various industries or government sectors who have to continue reporting for work, risking their health and that of their families, amid the coronavirus pandemic. —CONTRIBUTED PHOTO

Rice at the table

Tangi said he consulted with seminarians and fellow priests while in the process of completing his work. “Initially,” he recalled, “there was no rice at the table and many objected. ‘Pilipino tayo, bakit walang kanin?’ they asked.”

There was also a debate about the lineup of the front-liners: “The nurse was supposed to be where the driver is now, at the right side of Jesus. Because there used to be a pharmacist where the nurse is now, behind the doctor.”

The priest had a change of heart about the pharmacist, believing that the doctor and the nurse would suffice to represent the medical community. The jeepney driver was put in and the journalist was painted standing behind the driver.

It was he who had insisted on including a reporter. “How would we know everything that is happening unless there is a reporter who would inform us?” he said.

Tangi, now 66, received a certificate of fine arts from the University of the Philippines before entering the seminary in the 1970s. He has been painting Jesus in current situations since 1992 in an attempt to convey to the faithful His presence in everyday life.

Among Tangi’s more popular works are “The Laughing Christ” (which, he said, a liquor company used in a giveaway calendar without his permission) and the “Groufie Jesus” (showing Him with a smartphone and poised to take a photo of Himself with youngsters) that the Inquirer featured last October.

No masks

In 1992 he also made a painting of Jesus sharing bread and wine with the apostles, a nod to the famous original painted by Leonardo Da Vinci. The 1992 painting served as a template for the work featuring the front-liners.

In his newest painting, all the front-liners had shed their face masks, “to indicate their trust that the Lord will take care of them,” Tangi said.

A curious detail is the man wearing a barong and standing at the rightmost point of the canvas—bejeweled, clutching a dark attache case, with a wad of cash in his front pocket. The man’s back is turned to the assembly and part of his body is no longer in the frame, in his apparent haste to leave the scene.

“He is the only one who wears a mask because there is a lack of trust. And he would rather choose greed and selfishness, instead of joining the rest,” Tangi explained, adding:

“Also, this man is supposed to sit on the wooden box in front of the table, if he were to join the others. But he kicked the box under the table, so to speak. Note that the priest on the other side is preparing to sit on the box behind him when they eat.”

Tangi said this last character did not necessarily represent Judas who, in the biblical account, left while the other apostles were sharing bread and wine with Jesus, before the betrayal that preceded His arrest on Maundy Thursday.

“I only refer to the greedy, the selfish and the insensitive people who can help out but opt not to. Their security is material wealth, not the Lord,” he stressed.

The posters of the new painting would soon be available at St. Paul Bookstores around the country.

Tangi said he did not intend to sell his painting although someone had already expressed interest in acquiring it—someone who, ironically, is involved in politics and shall not be named.