By mocking and striking Jesus, they are causing the destiny of the Suffering Servant to be literally fulfilled in him. Abasement and exaltation are mysteriously intertwined. As the one enduring the blows, he is the Son of Man, coming in the cloud of concealment from God and establishing the kingdom of the Son of Man, the kingdom of humanity that proceeds from God. Something new is beginning. All through history, people look upon the disfigured face of Jesus, and there they recognize the glory of God.
Pope Benedict XVI
Detail of the crucifix that hangs above the altar in the Abbey church with corpus
by Lambert Rucki (French, 1888-1967)
