Christ on
Golgotha! Our Saviour on the cross! The Righteous One suffering! He Who
loves the whole of the human race, is being put to death by us humans!
If people have a conscience, they should be ashamed! If they have a
heart, they should lament! If they have a brain, they should understand!
The good Samaritan, Who saved mankind
from the wounds inflicted by the robbers, has Himself fallen into their
hands. Around the Lord there were seven types of evil-doers. The first
is represented by Satan, the second by the elders and leaders of the
Jewish people, the third Judas, the fourth Pilate, the fifth Barabbas,
the sixth the unrepentant robber who was crucified with Him and finally,
the seventh, the robber who repented. Let us reflect for a moment on
this band of evil-doers, among whom hangs the Son of God, crucified,
wounded and bloodied.
The first is Satan. It’s he who wishes
to do the greatest harm to the human race. He’s the father of lies, the
most evil of evil-doers. The temptations he employs to distress people
and make them do evil are two in kind: he tempts them with comforts and
distresses them with trials. At the beginning he tempted Our Lord on the
Mount of Temptation with promises of comforts, power and wealth; now,
at the end, he distress Him with torment, with the passion. When his
first temptations failed miserably, he left the Lord and departed far
from Him. But he didn’t abandon Him completely, though; he left merely
for a time (Luke 4, 13).
That period had passed and he now
presented himself once more. On this occasion he didn’t need to appear
openly, in full view. This time he could work through people. He made
use of the sons of darkness who, blinded by the glorious radiance of
Christ, delivered Him into the hands of Satan. And he, in turn, used
them as a weapon against Christ the Lord. And he was right there with
them, in every tongue that blasphemed against Christ, in every mouth
that spat on His most honourable face, in every hand that scourged Him
and set the crown of thorns on His head, in every heart that burned with
envy and hatred towards Him.
The second is a group of evil-doers, the
elders of Israel and the political, religious and spiritual leaders.
These were the Scribes and Pharisees, the Sadducees and the priests,
headed by King Herod. Envy and fear drove them to commit this crime
against the Lord. They were consumed with envy because the Lord was
wiser, better and more powerful than them. They feared for their
positions, for their authority, for their glory and their wealth, if the
people were to side with Christ. This is why they shouted: “Do you see
that you’re gaining nothing? Look, people are going after him” (John, 12, 19). This was because of their fear, their weakness and their envy.
