Letters

The Passion - No ordinary man (letter)

Jony Joordens

Contents - Jun 2004 - Buy a copy now Editorial: Pentecost: As it was in the beginning ... - Michael Gilchrist Abortion: 'Pro-choice' issue emerges in US presidential campaign - Michael Gilchrist News: The Church Around the World Marriage: Statistics highlight the precarious state of marriage and family - AD2000 REPORT Theology of the Body: Why the silence on the Church's moral teachings? - Audrey Dillon Society: Why Chesterton is needed now more than ever - Dale Ahlquist Education: Chavagnes en Paillers: a Catholic college with a Catholic culture - Paul Russell The importance of beauty in the Liturgy - Christopher Pearson Poetry: The power and beauty of religious poetry - Star-Life, Identikit, Ministers - Bruce Dawe Poetry: The power and beauty of religious poetry - Cast fear behind thee, I am come! - Marion and Delia Craig Letters: New Liturgy document (letter) - John Schmid Letters: Disrespect (letter) - John Casamento Letters: Behaviour at Mass (letter) - Michael Ryan Letters: Options (letter) - Maryse Usher Letter: Signs of hope (letter) - Daniel Attard Letters: Priestly vocations (letter) - Monsignor Robert Egar Letters: The Passion - Suffering (letter) - Dr Arnold Jago Letters: The Passion - Not overdone (letter) - Monique Onezime Letters: The Passion - No ordinary man (letter) - Jony Joordens Letters: Faith and reason (letter) - John Kelly Letters: Gospel Dating - The Jesus Papyrus (letter) - Paul R. Smith Letters: Media Standards Australia (letter) - Denise Den-Bakker Letters: Name changes? (letter) - Frank Mobbs Letters: US Survey (letter) - Errol P. Duke Letters: Catholic books (letter) - Frank Carleton Events: Window Shopping for Non-Catholics - Fr Paul Newton Books: The Free Press, by Hilaire Belloc - John Ballantyne (reviewer) Books: The Outline Of Sanity, by G.K. Chesterton - Peter Westmore (reviewer) Books: Catharine With An 'A', by Edna Keir - Joan Graham (reviewer) Books: Looking Again at the Question of the Liturgy, Reform of the Reform? - Paul Russell (reviewer) Books: More new titles for 2004 from AD Books Reflection: The Holy Spirit: like a bed for the weary traveller - Fr Leo Duck

In his article on Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ, David Schutz suggests that the scourging scene was overdone. However, according to a vision of Saint Bridget of Sweden, Jesus told her that he had received one thousand blows to his body, adding that the wound on his shoulder was the hardest to bear.

No ordinary man could have lived through such torture; but Jesus was no ordinary man, being the incarnate Second Person of the Blessed Trinity.

In fact, Our Lord's suffering in the Garden of Gethsemane could be considered more excruciating than his crucifixion because in a sense he had to alienate himself from his Father in Heaven as he took on all the sins of mankind - prompting him to cry out: "My soul is sorrowful, even unto death. Stay here and watch" (St Mark 14:34).

With David Schutz I found it very satisfying that the truth about Mary's suffering and her intercessory position with Jesus was so beautifully adhered to, and congratulate Mel Gibson for a job well done.

JONY JOORDENS (MRS)
Creswick, Vic

Reprinted from AD2000 Vol 17 No 5 (June 2004), p. 14