Religion: ‘Fishing for Souls’—a 1614 oil painting by Dutch artist Adriaen Pietersz van de Venne.

In the New Testament of the Christian Bible, Jesus walked past a lake and saw some fishermen at work. He called on them to follow him and be his disciples: “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.”—Matthew 4:19.

This passage is generally taken to mean that Christ was calling on the fishermen to become missionaries, convert unbelievers, and spread his word. In 1614, Adriaen Van de Venne used the idea to illustrate the fierce battle for people’s souls that was taking place at the time between Protestants and Roman Catholics. In the lake we see Protestants dressed in black on the left fighting for souls against Catholics on the right led by a bishop.

This allegorical masterpiece was also a political statement: Spain and the Netherlands had signed an armistice in 1609 that would last until 1621 (the 12-year Truce), but not end the 80 Years War (1568-1648). The painter depicts the Protestants as members of the Dutch House of Orange bathed in light, while the Catholics are in cloudy darkness. The tree on the left is in full bloom while the Catholics’ tree is withered. In fact, Van de Venne did not paint any nude swimmers going to the Catholics’ boats in his original canvas. Those converts were painted in later.

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Supplier: CPA Media Co. Ltd.

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Pictures From History