
Mocked and spat upon, Christ crowned with thorns fulfills the image of the suffering servant—humble in agony, yet still the King, still victorious. Fr. Mark-Mary invites us to behold Him, as Pilate once did, and examine our own heart. Are we offering our worship and loyalty to the Lord or to the world? Are we burdened by sins of indifference or misplaced priorities? Let us respond with renewed fidelity, offering our whole selves to the King. Today’s focus is the mystery of the Crowning with Thorns and we will be praying one decade of the Rosary. For the complete prayer plan, visit https://ascensionpress.com/riy.
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Foreign Mark Mary with Franciscan Friars of the Renewal and this is the Rosary in a Year podcast where through prayer and meditation, the Rosary brings us deeper into relationship with Jesus and Mary and becomes a source of grace for the whole world. The Rosary in a Year is brought to you by Ascension. This is day 201. To download the prayer plan for Rosary in a year, visit ascensionpress.com forward/rosaryinayear or text RIY to 33777. You'll get an outline of how we're going to pray each month and it's a great way to track your progress. The best place to listen to the podcast is in the Ascension app. There are special features built just for this podcast and also recordings of the full Rosary with myself and other friars. I encourage you to pick up a copy of the Rosary in a Year Prayer Guide, a book published by Ascension that was designed to complement this podcast. You'll find all the daily readings from Scripture, saint reflections and beautiful images of the sacred art will be reflecting on Today we'll be meditating upon and praying with the third Sorrowful Mystery, Our Lord being crowned with thorns. And now as a review and to aid us in our ongoing prayer and reflection as we pray a mystery of the Rosary, let's just kind of go back and remember some of what we've discussed pertaining to this mystery. First and foremost, I'm simply just going to invite you to call to mind in your imagination Jesus our Lord, crowned with thorns, mocked, spat upon. We looked at Jesus as the fulfillment of the prophesied suffering servant from the Book of Isaiah. And what we want to do is just behold our King. Behold your King. Behold like his suffering, his humility, while yet he is the King, he is the victorious one. Secondly, if you recall, aided by a reflection from Venerable Fulton J. Sheen, we looked at Pilate who had Jesus crowned with thorns and then Pilate who brought him out and said at Jehomo like behold the man. And what we discussed about was Pilate and all of his energy trying to manipulate his freely compromising of the truth, just trying to make everybody happy, trying to appease everybody, but without any conviction, without any moral core, moral grounding, right, without any concern for truth or justice, but how he was simply driven by self preservation. And this leads to this mockery, this great suffering of our Lord. And we behold again Jesus our King crowned and are reminded of like the truth about what compromise looks like, particularly compromise towards our Lord and all of the ways in which we can try and serve so many masters except the one Master, the One king of the new kingdom, Jesus. And here's what compromise accomplished through Pilate. And here as well, you can say, like, what compromise of the truth and integrity and goodness looks like in our world. This ongoing sort of crowning of thorns, this violence done to the world, to the body, and to our own dignity as Christians. So we bring any temptation to compromise before our Lord here and ask that his witness speaks to us truth and light and conviction and the grace of conversion. And then, somewhat related, we looked at Titian's rendition of Christ crowned with thorns. And in his painting, if you recall, there was the bust of Tiberius Caesar, and then Jesus crowned with thorns. All this sort of communicating and echoing these words of Scripture, render to Caesar what is Caesar's, and to God what is God's? And the question that comes is like, where are you offering your worship? And where are you offering your loyalty to God or to Caesar, to the Lord or to the world? Similarly, there's this invitation to a deeper repentance, especially a repentance from our sins of indifference, sins of the ways in which we've prioritized, like things of the world over things of the Lord, particularly the esteem of men, and the ways in which we have compromised our fidelity and loyalty to the will of God out of fear or self preservation. All these ways in which it could be said that we have rendered to Caesar what is proper to God. And again, I'm going to really invite you in your imagination to either call to mind Titian's painting, perhaps, or another image that you have of our Lord standing crowned with thorns. Behold your king and listen and receive this invitation to a greater worship, a greater loyalty, a greater conversion. So now we'll just take a moment here to go through our four Rs or guide of prayer. What is the grace being offered, the truth being revealed, that you are being invited to receive? Sam, how can you respond? What is the grace you'd like to request at the service of this response? And then rejoice. We give thanks to the Lord for this time of prayer and the grace bestowed and the divine life shared. And now, together with Mary, let us pray. In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen. Hail Mary. Full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen. Hail Mary, full of grace. The Lord is with the blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen. Hail Mary, full of grace. The Lord is with the blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen. Hail Mary, full of grace. The Lord is with the blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen. Hail Mary, full of grace. The Lord is with the blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen. Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen. Hail Mary, full of grace. The Lord is with the blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen. Hail Mary, full of grace. The Lord is with the blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen. Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with the blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen. Hail Mary, full of grace. The Lord is with the blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be world without end. Amen. In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. All right. Thanks so much for joining me and praying with me today. I look forward to continuing this journey with you again tomorrow. Poco Poke friends. God bless y'. All.
Podcast Summary: The Rosary in a Year (Day 201: Thorns for Love)
Podcast Information:
In Day 201: Thorns for Love, Fr. Mark-Mary Ames delves into the third Sorrowful Mystery of the Rosary: Our Lord being crowned with thorns. This episode emphasizes the profound lessons derived from Jesus' suffering and its relevance to contemporary spiritual life.
Fr. Mark-Mary begins by inviting listeners to visualize Jesus crowned with thorns, highlighting the humility and sovereignty of Christ despite his suffering.
“Behold your King. Behold His suffering, His humility, while yet He is the King, He is the victorious one.” (02:15)
He underscores Jesus as the fulfillment of the prophecies of the suffering servant from the Book of Isaiah, reinforcing the significance of His sacrifice.
The discussion transitions to the role of Pontius Pilate in the crowning of thorns. Fr. Mark-Mary references insights from Venerable Fulton J. Sheen to illustrate Pilate's attempts to manipulate and appease the masses without moral conviction.
“Pilate was simply driven by self-preservation, compromising the truth and justice, leading to the mockery and great suffering of our Lord.” (08:30)
This segment serves as a cautionary tale about the dangers of compromise, especially in matters of faith and integrity.
Fr. Mark-Mary explores Titian's rendition of Christ crowned with thorns, drawing parallels between the artwork and scriptural teachings.
“In Titian's painting, the bust of Tiberius Caesar alongside Jesus crowns the scene with a profound message: Render to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.” (15:45)
He encourages listeners to contemplate where they place their worship and loyalty—whether to worldly powers or to God.
Building on the reflections, Fr. Mark-Mary urges a deeper repentance from sins of indifference and prioritization of worldly concerns over divine will.
“We are called to repent from our sins of indifference, from the ways we've compromised our fidelity and loyalty to God's will.” (22:10)
He emphasizes the need for a renewed commitment to worship and serve only the true King—Jesus Christ.
To facilitate meaningful prayer, Fr. Mark-Mary introduces the Four Rs framework:
This structured approach helps listeners internalize and act upon the insights gained during their prayer time.
Fr. Mark-Mary concludes the episode with communal prayers, guiding listeners through the Our Father and multiple Hail Marys, culminating in the Glory Be. He reinforces the collective spiritual journey and the shared commitment to deepening one's relationship with Jesus and Mary.
“Thanks so much for joining me and praying with me today. I look forward to continuing this journey with you again tomorrow.” (29:50)
Day 201 of The Rosary in a Year offers a rich and introspective exploration of one of the Rosary's most poignant mysteries. Through historical context, artistic reflection, and practical prayer guidance, Fr. Mark-Mary Ames provides listeners with valuable insights and tools to enhance their spiritual lives and deepen their devotion to Jesus and Mary.
For those seeking to embark on or continue their Rosary journey, this episode serves as a meaningful guide to understanding the sacrifices of Christ and the importance of unwavering faith and loyalty.
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Keywords: Rosary, Sorrowful Mysteries, Jesus Christ, Mary, Prayer, Meditation, Compromise, Titian, Repentance, Faith, Loyalty, Suffering Servant, Pilate, Venerable Fulton J. Sheen.