10 April, Antonio, Cardinal Bacci: Meditations for Every Day

The Scourging and the Crowning with Thorns

1. Although Pilate had acknowledged Jesus' innocence, he condemned Him to be scourged in order to satisfy the hatred of the Jews. He was stripped of His garments and exposed to the gaze of the soldiery. As unseen angels bowed in adoration before His virginal purity, He offered Himself as an immaculate lamb in expiation of the countless sins of immodesty and of impurity by which men so often dishonour their immortal souls. When He had been tied to a pillar, the executioners approached Him with their whips and in quick succession rained blows upon His innocent body. Blow followed blow until His blood flowed freely and His flesh was laid bare to the bone. The prophet Isaias had vividly described this tragic scene centuries beforehand. “From the sole of the foot unto the top of the head, there is no soundness therein; wounds and bruises and swelling sores.” (Is. 1:6) “Despised and the most abject of men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with infirmity.... Surely he hath borne our infirmities and carried our sorrows: and we have thought him as it were a leper, and as one struck by God and afflicted. But he was wounded for our iniquities: he was bruised for our sins. The chastisement of our peace was upon him; and by his bruises we are healed.” (Is. 53:3-5) During these sufferings as during all that had preceded them, Jesus offered Himself in silence as a victim for our sins. If only His executioners could have read what was in His heart, they would have seen how infinitely He loved them and would have flung themselves in tears at His feet. We who have been taught to understand the Gospel know well how much He loved us and how much He suffered for us. Let us adore Jesus, bruised for our sins, and let us kiss His wounds. Let us tell Him that we shall never offend Him again and that we desire to love Him with all the ardour of which our hearts are capable.

2. No order had been given that Jesus was to be crowned with thorns. It was surely the devil who suggested this idea to the soldiers. They had heard that Jesus had claimed to be a king, so for their own brutal entertainment they clothed Him in a purple rag and placed a rod in His hand as if it were a sceptre. Then they found a bundle of reeds with sharp thorns, of which they made a crown and placed it on His head, driving it into His flesh. One can imagine the pain and humiliation which Jesus suffered. Perhaps He desired by this new kind of torment to make reparation in a special manner for all the sins of thought —sins of hate and anger, of jealousy and impurity.

Let us adore Our Lord as He is mocked and outraged in this fashion. Let us proclaim Him as King of our hearts and Master of our entire lives. Let us assure Him that after all His sufferings on our behalf we cannot allow ourselves to go astray, for He has given us the fullness of His grace so that we may be transformed and made His for all time and for eternity.

3. When we are offended or insulted, let us remember the infinite patience of Jesus when He was scourged and crowned with thorns. If Jesus, Who was so innocent, suffered so much for us, should we not follow His example and endure with patience the hardships of life? We should be ready to forgive and pardon, to subdue our rebellious inclinations, to moderate our speech and remain silent when we are offended, to love our enemies and to do good to those who do evil to us. Let us recall the way in which Jesus was scourged and crowned with thorns and we shall receive from Him the supernatural strength to follow His example.