Fr. Paul D. Williams, Jr., Pastor
There’s a story that St. Francis of Assisi was praying one day before the famous San Damiano Cross, when one of the younger members of his order came to him and asked, “Francis, I am looking for a good book of meditation, can you recommend one?” Well, St. Francis kept praying silently for a few moments, then turned to the young man, pointed to the Cross, and said, “There is your book of meditation!”
Many saints, of course, came from the Franciscan order, following Francis’ rule of poverty and penance. One of them was St. Bonaventure, who was noted for his deep and insightful writings on the doctrine of the Church. Well, the story goes that St. Thomas Aquinas, also one of the most brilliant men in the history of the Church, was visiting him and asked where he had acquired such profound insights into the Gospel. St. Bonaventure simply showed him a crucifix, which was blackened from all the kisses he had given it, and explained, “This is the book that tells me what I should write; the little I know I have learned from it.” (CG 2.37.1) And St. Thomas himself would say, “The Passion of Christ is enough to serve as a guide and model throughout our lives.”
And throughout the history of the Church, Good Friday has been a time for Christians to meditate on the Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. Many different liturgical traditions have developed in the East and West to help this meditation. In the West, we have the tradition of the Reproaches of Good Friday, which will be sung during the Veneration of the Cross. Some places, like Oberammergau, Germany, are famous for their Passion Plays. In the East, some Churches have a tradition where, in the middle of a silent, cavernous Cathedral, they hammer several very large nails into a cross with a large metal hammer. It echoes throughout the church, clang, clang, clang. It’s so moving that by the end of the service, half the church is weeping and wailing in lament. And in some Latin American countries, they will sometimes have very vivid recreations of the Crucifixion.
So, let’s meditate on this book of the Cross, the Passion of our Lord Jesus Christ. I don’t think I will be as dramatic as some traditions, but I will be realistic, so I just want to caution those of you who may be a little sensitive.
To do this, I thought I would share with you something I found a while back on the Internet. I came across a copy of the famous report from the Journal of the American Medical Association, published during Lent of 1986 (March 21), titled, “ON THE PHYSICAL DEATH OF JESUS CHRIST.” It was written by several medical doctors associated with the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, along with a couple of Christian ministers.
The doctors did not intend, they said, “to present a theological treatise”, but rather, they wanted to present “a medically and historically accurate account of the physical death of Jesus Christ”, based on what they could deduce from the testimony of scripture, early tradition, historical customs of the time, and even the famous Shroud of Turin (which, despite the skepticism of critics in the past, has recently been shown to date from the time of Jesus). I don’t intend to read the whole thing – it’s about 14 pages – but I do want to give you some highlights as a way of meditating on the reality of the Passion of our Lord.
The Passion, of course, actually began the night before Good Friday, after the Last Supper, when Jesus took his Apostles to the Garden of Gethsemane to pray. While there, as St. Luke would recount, (Luke 22:44), “He was in such agony and he prayed so fervently that his sweat became like drops of blood falling on the ground.”
The reports says, “Although this is a very rare phenomenon, bloody sweat may occur in highly emotional states … As a result of hemorrhage into the sweat glands, the skin becomes fragile and tender… Jesus' actual blood loss probably was minimal… but, in the cold night air, it may have produced chills.”
Remember what he was praying? (Luke 22:42-48) “Father, if you are willing, take this cup away from me; still, not my will but yours be done.” And then Judas would come to betray him, “Judas, are you betraying the Son of Man with a kiss?”
The report then recounts the arrest of Jesus, the trial before the temple authorities, first Annas and then Caiaphas, as we read tonight, and it notes that his physical condition was worsened as “the guards then blindfolded him, spat on him, and struck him in the face with their fists.” They condemned him to death for blasphemy and then took him to the Romans. After being passed from Pilate to Herod and back, “Pilate finally granted their demand and handed over Jesus to be flogged and crucified.”
The report then speaks about the general health of Jesus: “The rigors of Jesus' ministry (that is, traveling by foot throughout Palestine) [makes it] reasonable to assume that Jesus was in good physical condition before his walk to Gethsemane. However, during the 12 hours between 9 PM Thursday and 9 AM Friday, he had suffered great emotional stress (as evidenced by bloody sweat), abandonment by his closest friends (the disciples), and a physical beating (after the first Jewish trial). Also, in the setting of a traumatic and sleepless night, had been forced to walk more than 2.5 miles to and from the sites of the various trials. These physical and emotional factors may have rendered Jesus particularly vulnerable to the adverse effects of the scourging.”
And then it goes into detail on what we call the Scourging at the Pillar: “Flogging was a legal preliminary to every Roman execution… The usual instrument was a short whip with several single or braided leather thongs of variable lengths, in which small iron balls or sharp pieces of sheep bones were tied at intervals… For scourging, the man was stripped of his clothing, and his hands were tied to an upright post. The back, buttocks, and legs were flogged, [usually by two soldiers alternating]. The severity of the scourging was intended to weaken the victim to a state just short of collapse or death.”
“As the Roman soldiers repeatedly struck the victim's back with full force, the iron balls would cause deep contusions, and the leather thongs and sheep bones would cut into the skin [and subcutaneous tissues]. Then, as the flogging continued, the lacerations would tear into the underlying skeletal muscles [and produce quivering ribbons of bleeding flesh]. Pain and blood loss generally set the stage for circulatory shock. The extent of blood loss may well have determined how long the victim would survive on the cross.”
According to Jewish law, Jesus would have been flogged 39 times – 39 times – after which the Roman soldiers mocked him, “placing a robe on his shoulders, a crown of thorns on his head, and a wooden staff as a scepter in his right hand… Then they spat on him and struck him on the head with the wooden staff. And when they tore the robe from Jesus' back, they probably reopened the scourging wounds.”
“The severe scourging, with its intense pain and appreciable blood loss, most probably left Jesus in a pre-shock state. Moreover, bloody sweat had rendered his skin particularly tender. The physical and mental abuse meted out by the Jews and the Romans, as well as the lack of food, water, and sleep, also contributed to his generally weakened state.”
The report says that at this point, “Jesus' physical condition was at least serious and possibly critical.”
And he still had before him the journey up the hill of Calvary.
The report continues, “It was customary for the condemned man to carry his own cross from the flogging post to the site of crucifixion outside the city walls. He was usually naked. Since the weight of the entire cross was probably well over 300 pounds, only the crossbar was carried. The crossbar, weighing 75 to 125 pounds, was placed across the nape of the victim's neck and balanced along both shoulders… Jesus apparently was so weakened by the severe flogging that he could not carry the crossbar from the Praetorium to the site of the crucifixion one third of a mile away, so Simon of Cyrene was summoned to carry Christ's cross, and the processional then made its way to Golgotha, an established crucifixion site.”
And when he reached the top of Calvary, his ordeal was not over.
“Here, Jesus' clothes, except for a linen loincloth, again were removed, thereby probably reopening the scourging wounds. He then was offered a drink of wine mixed with gall. By law, the victim was given this as a mild analgesic, which Jesus tasted but refused to drink. Finally, Jesus and the two thieves were crucified.”
About crucifixion in general, the report says, “Each wound was intended to produce intense agony, and the contributing causes of death were numerous… When the victim was thrown to the ground on his back, in preparation for transfixion of his hands, his scourging wounds most likely would become torn open again and contaminated with dirt. Furthermore, with each respiration, the painful scourging wounds would be scraped against the rough wood of the cross. As a result, blood loss from the back probably would continue throughout the ordeal.”
How was he transfixed to the Cross? “Iron spikes, 5 to 7 inches long and ¾’s of an inch in diameter, probably were driven [into the wrists] crushing the rather large median nerve, resulting in excruciating bolts of fiery pain in both arms.” Because of the impalement of various ligaments by the iron spike, the hand of the victim would contract into “a clawlike grasp.” Likewise, “The feet were fixed to the front of the cross by means of an iron spike”, causing more injuries, pain, and blood loss.
The report continues, “The major pathophysiologic effect of crucifixion, beyond the excruciating pain, was a marked interference with normal respiration, particularly exhalation. Adequate exhalation required lifting the body by pushing up on the feet and by flexing the elbows and adducting the shoulders. However, this maneuver would place the entire weight of the body on the feet and would produce searing pain. This would also painfully scrape the scourged back against the rough wood. As a result, each respiratory effort would become agonizing and tiring and lead eventually to asphyxia.”
According to tradition, Jesus was on the Cross for at least three hours. Each breath was an agony.
It goes on, “The soldiers and the civilian crowd taunted Jesus throughout the crucifixion ordeal, and the soldiers cast lots for his clothing. Christ spoke seven times from the cross. Since speech occurs during exhalation, these short, terse utterances must have been particularly difficult and painful. At about 3 PM that Friday, Jesus cried out in a loud voice, bowed his head, and died.”
They pierced his side with a lance to make sure that he was dead, a fatal wound that was taught to most Roman soldiers, and immediately blood and water flowed out.
The report concludes, “The actual cause of Jesus' death, like that of other crucified victims, may have been related primarily to hypovolemic shock, exhaustion asphyxia, and perhaps acute heart failure. Death by crucifixion was, in every sense of the word, excruciating (from the Latin, excruciatus, or "out of the cross").”
Why did this happen? The Reproaches of Good Friday ask that question. “My people, what have I done to you? How have I offended you? Answer me! I led you out of Egypt, from slavery to freedom, but you led your Savior to the Cross. For forty years I led you safely through the desert. I fed you with manna from heaven and brought you to a land of plenty; but you led your Savior to the Cross. What more could I have done for you? I planted you as my fairest vine, but you yielded only bitterness: when I was thirsty you gave me vinegar to drink, and you pierced your Savior with a lance… I opened the sea before you, but you opened my side with a spear. I gave you a royal scepter, but you gave me a crown of thorns. I raised you to the height of majesty, but you have raised me high on a cross. My people, what have I done to you? How have I offended you? Answer me!”
It was sin that caused the crucifixion of Jesus. But not just sin in general, or just the sin of the people of the time, the leaders, the people, the Roman authorities and soldiers. It was our sin that brought about the Passion and Death of our Lord. The new catechism says, 598, “We must regard as guilty all those who continue to relapse into their sins. Since our sins made the Lord Jesus Christ suffer the torment of the Cross, those who plunge themselves into disorders and crimes crucify the Son of God anew in their hearts (for he is in them) and hold him up to contempt.”
St. Francis of Assisi would say, CCC 598, “Demons did not crucify him. It is you who have crucified him and crucify him still when you delight in your vices and sins.”
Why? Why would Jesus endure this? St. Paul said (Philip. 2:8), “he humbled himself, becoming obedient to death, even death on a cross.” Jesus freely accepted his Cross, freely gave his life, in obedience to the will of the Father. Why? St. Paul would say in wonder (Romans 5:6-7), “Only with difficulty does one die for a just person, though perhaps for a good person one might even find courage to die. But God proves his love for us in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us.”
You see, Jesus accepted the Cross because of his great love for us, because of his desire to show us his mercy and forgiveness, and, through what he suffered, he “became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him.” That is why the Cross is the greatest book of meditation: How could you ever be attracted by sin when you see what sin caused? How could you ever despair in your own sufferings and hardships when you see how much Jesus suffered? How could you ever doubt God’s love for you when you gaze into your Savior’s eyes on the Cross?
That’s why tonight is a celebration, a cause for immense joy, when we should be singing Hallelujah! Yes, we must be sorrowful for our sins, but we should also rejoice in the love of our Savior and pray as St. Francis of Assisi did, “We adore you, Lord Jesus Christ, and we praise you, for by your Holy Cross you have redeemed the world.”
