Angel or Homeless!

From one side, it looks like a homeless man. Walk around it… and suddenly you’re sitting beside an angel. That’s the powerful message behind Be Welcoming, the life-size bronze sculpture by Canadian artist Timothy Schmalz installed near St. Peter's Square. At first glance, the figure appears to be a rough-looking person wearing a hoodie with a backpack, someone many people might pass without a second thought. But as you move around the sculpture, everything changes. The backpack becomes wings The hoodie transforms into flowing hair The figure reveals itself as an angel. And the bench is intentionally left open, inviting people to sit right beside the figure. That invitation is the whole point. The sculpture draws from Hebrews 13:2: “Be welcoming to strangers, many have entertained angels unawares.” It is a reminder that dignity and humanity often exist in the people society overlooks first. Sometimes compassion begins with something as simple as sitting down next to someone. What do you think this sculpture says about the way we treat the vulnerable?