My dear parishioners,
Peace! The Catechism of the Catholic Church highlights the “prayer of the rosary” as a popular substitute for the Liturgy of the Hours in the Western Church (§ 2678). In praying the rosary we “meditate on the mysteries of Christ” engaging our “thought, imagination, emotion, and desire” leading not only to “knowledge of the love of the Lord Jesus” but “union with Him” (§ 2708). In fact the rosary of the Blessed Virgin Mary is an “epitome of the whole Gospel” and is also an expression of “devotion to the Virgin Mary” (§ 971). Here we consider the third Sorrowful Mystery, the Crowning with Thorns.
Various Fathers of the Church have written about the Crowning of the Lord Jesus with thorns, including St. Clement of Alexandria (+215; The Instructor II:8) and Origen (+254; Contra Celsus II:34), St. Paulinus of Nola (+431; Epistle Macarius). The crusader king Saint Louis XI (+1270) famously brought the Crown of Thorns to Paris where he built Sainte Chapelle to house the relic where it is still venerated each first Friday as well as each Friday during Lent. Saint Alphonsus deLigori (+1775; The Passion and the Death of Jesus Christ) following Saint Bridget of Sweeden (+1373) relates that the Crown of thorns was as low as the middle of Christ‘s forehead, “driven in with such violence that the blood gushed out in streams over all His countenance” and remained upon His head even through His saving death on the Cross. It is as if each sinful thought and deed adds another thorn. Saint John Paul II (+2005) includes the crowning with thorns as part of his considerations in Dives in Misericordia, 7 as meriting the greatest mercy and an appeal for mercy, neither of which the Lord received. The Lord Jesus chose the crown of thorns instead of a royal crown, and the cross instead of a throne” (“Good Friday Stations” 13 April, 1979).
In Sacred Scripture we read about the Crowning of the Lord Jesus with thorns in Matthew 27:29-30; Mark 15:17-18; John 19:2-3. In Sacred Scripture, as throughout history, a crown is often a mark of honor or glory (e.g. James 1:12; Hebrews 2:9; Revelation 6:2; 12:1; 14:14). When the Lord was crowned with thorns it was a mockery of His Kingship. There are five different Hebrew words for crown (kodhkodh, zer, nezer, atarah, and kathar) and two Greek words (stephanos and diadema).
The fruit of the mystery of the Crowning of the Lord Jesus with thorns is moral courage. We are called to stand up for Christ our King. We are to be citizens of His reign. We are to defend His holy Law. While the Lord Jesus was mocked when He was crowned with thorns, He is mocked still whenever sins are still committed. When we live graced lives, according to His holy will we honor Him and His Kingship, His reign. May Christ the King always reign in our hearts and our homes.
God bless you!
Father John Arthur Orr