Third Sorrowful Mystery: The Crowing of Thorns
And the soldiers wove a crown out of thorns and placed it on his head, and clothed him in a purple cloak, and they came to him and said, “Hail, King of the Jews!” And they struck him repeatedly.
(John 19:2–3)
Reflection Prayer
Jesus, You were beaten and tortured by the soldiers and then received a crown of thorns; they kneeled before You as their King, laughing at You. You endured such suffering so the most wretched of all of us could enter the kingdom of heaven if only we would turn to You for mercy and acknowledge You as Creator and Redeemer.
How we should learn from Your love, Your sacrifice, Your forgiveness! How we condemn others for the slightest misdeeds! And for those who commit atrocities, we feel justified in saying their souls are lost forever.
Yet You showed us in Your great act of pure love that we are to forgive, to surrender all to You and abandon ourselves and all those who sin into Your just and merciful hands. For what if You had given up on sinners? None of us would have a chance. Yet You were willing to be tortured and die for even the greatest of sinners. You love us all that much. Help us, Jesus, to not condemn others; help us to pray for them, especially those who hurt us. Help us no matter how hard and how difficult it is!
Jesus, give us the grace to love with Your Heart, to receive Your mercy, and in turn, show others the same mercy that comes from Your Most Sacred Heart.
*Reflection Prayer is taken from The Passion Suffered by the Heart of Jesus: Prayerful Reflections on the Stations of the Cross.
*Scripture passages in this meditation are taken from the New American Bible, Revised Edition (NABRE).