The second sorrowful mystery deals with the physical torture of our Lord. The crown of thorns, however, was not to meant to torture Jesus. Rather, the point was to mock him (just as he is mocked and belittled in so many circles today). Here is the full account from Mark:
The soldiers led him away inside the palace, that is, the praetorium, and assembled the whole cohort. They clothed him in purple and, weaving a crown of thorns, placed it on him. They began to salute him with, “Hail, King of the Jews!” and kept striking his head with a reed and spitting upon him. They knelt before him in homage. And when they had mocked him, they stripped him of the purple cloak, dressed him in his own clothes, and led him out to be crucified. (Mark 15:16-20)
What is a striking about this passage, besides the cruelty of the several hundred soldiers in the cohort, is the profound humility of Jesus. I’m sure everyone has had the experience of being mocked at some point in their lives. I can remember unkind comments people made to me from grade school, and I can also remember mean, disparaging things that I’ve said to others. But I don’t know anyone who had to endure the kind of sustained and sadistic bullying that Jesus endured from his tormentors. And Jesus had the ability to call down fire from Heaven to consume them at any moment.
But he didn’t. He didn’t deserve any of it. He deserves to be worshipped and praised. But the Son of God endured the mockery and cruelty of the soldiers for the sake of our salvation. We do well to remember this aspect of Jesus’ sacrifice as we meditate upon his Passion. It is also helpful to recall what Jesus endured any time we feel slighted. The Son of God suffered far worse than us, all for the sake of the Kingdom. He forgave those who mocked him, and he gives us the grace to forgive as well.
Image: Christ Crowned with Thorns by Hieronymus Bosch (downloaded from Wikipedia Commons).
I often am amazed by the fact that Jesus could have stopped this whole process anytime and take revenge on his tormentors.
In the Killing of Jesus, o’Reilly describes the thorns as long spikes from a certain plant that they would have secured by pressing them into his head. I do not know if that is accurate, but if it is, then this mystery also involves extreme pain.
I shouldn’t have suggested that the crowning with thorns didn’t hurt Jesus physically as well. Sadly, the mockery and the physical torment of the Lord are woven throughout the Passion narrative.