Visualizing or empathizing with Jesus’ Scourging at the Pillar is difficult, so far is it beyond our experience. Other mysteries of the rosary also lie beyond our imagination, so joyful, so sorrowful, so glorious or full of light. This is one reason why I have been suggesting that we  meditate on the Blessed Virgin’s response to the events in the lives of Jesus and Mary.

Scourging was an integral part of the crucifixion penalty. After the trial, which was illegal because it occurred during the night, “Pilale’s next move was to take Jesus and have him scourged” (John 19:1). Mary may not have been present at the trial and scourging, but she was aware of the legal punishing practices of the time. Willing to undergo whatever her Son was suffering, Mary would remain nearby. Perhaps she was close enough to hear “All hail, king of the Jews!” Had she managed a place in the crowd, she noted the mockery in the purple cloak signifying royalty, when Jesus was brought before the crowd. “Behold the man.” Yes, the Synoptic Gospels portray Jesus as fully human—someone enduring the full force of emotional and physical pain. His mother underwent the same emotions—the rejection, the mockery, the hypocrisy. Did she flinch at the crack of the whip? Did she count the stripes her Son silently tolerated? “O God, I trust you to strengthen me.”