Wednesday, July 16, 2014

2nd sorrowful mystery: the scourging at the pillar


The most shocking and realistic account that I know of the scourging at the pillar is the scene in Mel Gibson’s Passion of the Christ. The brutal treatment of Christ by the Romans as they scourge him is probably the most accurate and moving depiction of events that a film could capture. The implements of torture, even the brutish behaviour of the guards and their superior, is made so realistic that it is impossible not to be horrified at how this could be done to anyone. This ritualised mutilation of another human being was probably a regular occurrence in the Roman empire. The blood of Christ was on the faces of the men scourging him, and so much blood spilled on the courtyard it was cleaned by the women with cloths afterwards. As written in Luke 6:22, Blessed are you when men hate you, and exclude you and revile you on account of the son of man. Rejoice on that day and be glad, for great is your reward in heaven. 


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