Meditation for Wednesday

This day thou shalt think upon thy Lord being brought before the High Priest Caiaphas; upon the sorrows of that night, the denial of S. Peter, and the scourging at the pillar.

Consider, first, how they take thy Lord from the house of Annas to the house of Caiaphas. It is right indeed that thou shouldst bear Him company, for then thou shalt see the Sun of Righteousness eclipsed, and that Divine Face, which angels desire to look upon, spat upon! For when the Saviour was adjured, in the Name of God, to say Who He was, and answered the request aright, these men, unworthy of any such answer, being blinded with the brilliancy of this light, turned upon Him like mad dogs, and discharged upon Him all their malice and fury. Then they buffeted Him and to their buffetings added insults and derision, covering His eyes with a cloth, and saying, ‘ Prophesy, who ‘is it that smote Thee.”

O! wondrous humility and patience of the Son of God! O! Face adored by angels, and spat upon by man! O, thou that art dust and ashes, how shouldest thou not humble thyself in thought of these things !

Consider after this, the pains and sorrow which the Saviour endured throughout that lamentable night when the soldiers who were in charge of Him, mocked Him, and, -` as though to hinder sleep, throughout that night kept up their scoffings of the King of kings! See, then, O my soul, thy Lord and Saviour set for a mark at whiclinien may shoot their mockings and buffetings ! Oh! cruel night, distressful night, in which, good Jesus, Thou didst not sleep, nor did they who for their recreation assail Thee with their torments! Night was given that, in it, all creatures should find repose for their limbs and senses wearied with the troubles of the day. These evil ones did use the night for tormenting Thy limbs, wounding Thy sacred Body, afflicting Thy Soul, binding Thy Hands, for buffetings and insults, that, when others were taking rest, Thou shouldst be in the midst of troubles and vexations! How different were Thy Mattins from the Mattins which the choirs of angels were then singing in heaven ! There they were saying, “Holy, holy,” here they said, “Crucify Him, Crucify Him.” O ye angels of Paradise, who hear both these cries, what could ye think, when seeing Him so evil entreated on earth, Whom in heaven ye serve with so great reverence and fear! What could ye think when seeing God suffer these things for the very sake of those who were committing them! Who ever heard of charity such as this, that One should suffer even Death, in order to deliver from death those who were inflicting it upon Him ?

The troubles of that sad night increased yet far beyond this with the denial of S. Peter, that so familiar friend chosen to see the glory of the Transfiguration, ‘that one honoured amongst all to be prince of the Church, that he, of all men, should, not once but thrice, in the very presence of his Lord, swear and forswear himself, that he knew Him not, knew not Who He was!

O Peter, is this Man so evil an acquaintance, that thou shouldst count it for so great shame to have ever known Him ? Seest thou that this is, on thy part, to con- -demn Him before the High Priests did ? for so thou declarest that He is One Whom it would be a dishonour to thyself toknow! What greater injury than this could there be? Then “the Lord turned and looked upon Peter,” that lost sheep, who had lost himself. Oh! Look of wondrous power ! Oh! Look with purpose secret, and yet so full of meaning! Well did Peter understand the language and-the words which that Look spake, or the crowing of the cock had never moved him as it did! For not only did this speak to him, but the Eyes of his Lord did their work with him ; and Peter's tears declare it—tears which flowed no less from the Eyes of Christ than from his own !

After all these evil deeds, think of the scourging which the Saviour suffered at the ‘pillar; for the Judge, seeing that he could not pacify “the fury of those wild beasts of hell, determined to inflict upon -Him such a chastising as might satisfy the savage cruelty of their hearts, that,- being content with this, they might cease to require His Death. Enter now, my soul, in spirit into the Praetorium of Pilate, and bring with thee thy tears in readiness, for they will be surely needed for what thou wilt there see and hear. For see how savagely the cruel executioners strip off the Saviour’s raiment from Him; and how He endures it with all humility, and opens not His mouth, nor answers a word to the insults they pour down upon Him. See how they presently bind the sacred Body to a pillar, that they may be able to strike Him at their pleasure whensoever and howsoever they choose. See how the Lord of angels then stood alone in the midst of His executioners with neither advocate nor friend by His side, nor even eyes which could show sympathy with Him! See how they begin then, with greatest cruelty, to-let fly their whip-thongs upon the sensitive limbs, adding scourge to scourge, blow upon blow, wound to wound !

en soon wouldst thou see that most sacred Body.seamed over by the whipthongs, and the Blood flowing in streams on every side !

Consider, then, how the Lord, when the scourging was finished, would go to seek His garments, without the help of any in that whole Praetorium, without water or any such refreshing as would be given to a wounded prisoner. These surely are things to be pondered over, with deepest feeling, and with acknowledgment that for our sins the Saviour bore this great suffering.