This month’s classroom topic is the Corporal Works of Mercy and I’d like to suggest this piece by Dutch artist David Teniers (1610-1690) for your prayer table.  It’s a scene that was beloved by either the artist and/or his patrons, as evidenced by the many times he painted a similar theme in his lifetime.

The list was a little different in the 17th century, but you’ll still be able to pick out the basics:  dress the naked, quench the thirsty and feed the hungry in the foreground (left to right), and in the background you’ll see visit the sick and the prisoners, bury the dead (far background), and welcome the pilgrims (we’d now say shelter the homeless).

Saturday, November 5 is also the feast of Saint Elizabeth, mother of John the Baptist, so if your class happens to meet that day, it would be a good time to use a picture of the Second Joyful Mystery and ask her intercession in your prayer time.