At the edge of the Waterlooplein, near the Mozes en Aäronkerk [Moses and Aron Church], a homeless man lies sleeping on a bench. It’s a sculpture, but so lifelike that people sometimes walk up to it to address the person—only to discover that it is, in fact, a statue.

But if they look a little closer, they also see who it is that lies there. The figure (homeless, vagrant?) is completely covered with a blanket; we don’t see his or her face, only the feet sticking out from underneath. And there’s something unusual about those feet: in each one, we see a hole. And that’s how we know who it is—it is Jesus himself, the holes in his feet are the wounds of the crucifixion.

The sculpture is called “Homeless Jesus” and was created by Timothy Schmalz, a Canadian sculptor. The beautiful thing about this work is that there’s still a space left on the bench—for you! In this way, you are invited to pause and reflect on the harsh reality in which the homeless must live.

Schmalz creates this same sculpture for many other places around the world, often in public spaces and frequently near a church. He is inspired by the words of Jesus: “Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.”

Here in Amsterdam, it was the Community of Sant’Egidio that made it possible for this sculpture to be installed in 2022. This community now manages the Mozes en Aäronkerk and the adjoining house. They offer help and friendship here to the poor, the elderly, and the homeless.