Script
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Music: He was despised (Handel Messiah)
The reading is from the Gospel of John.
John 19:4-6
Pilate went out again and said to them, "Look, I am bringing him out to you to let you know that I find no case against him." So Jesus came out, wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. Pilate said to them, "Here is the man!" When the chief priests and the police saw him, they shouted, "Crucify him! Crucify him!" Pilate said to them, "Take him yourselves and crucify him; I find no case against him."
Ecce Homo ‘Here is the man’. Now Jesus has reached the stage of anonymity. He has no name – ‘the man’. It is easier to act appallingly towards someone if he is already depersonalized. Pilate’s desire for agreement is going to force him into a corner. He tries to avoid responsibility by transferring the responsibility to others. ‘It’s nothing to do with me’ says Pilate.
But as I contemplate this scene, it has everything to do with me. Here is my hero, struggling on my behalf; a model of humanity who is being dehumanized; an embodiment of God’s love who is being smothered by hatred.
Dearest Jesus. . .