The Crown of Thorns

My spiritual director once told me to do a daily rosary.  In addition, he told me to reflect on each mystery as I did it.  I’ve found myself doing this now for months since then and it has increasingly made me feel closer to God the father, the son, the church, and the Virgin Mary.  However, of all the mysteries that stick out to me the most, the one that I keep coming back to is the crown of thorns.

As it says in the book of Matthew, as Christ was scourged by the Romans during his trial, the Roman soldiers took Jesus and placed a crown of thorns on his head.  The intent was to mock him for his title of “King of the Jews,” a moniker they nailed above his head on his cross.  Yet ironically, since he was the “King of the Universe,” that parody crown became the symbol of Christ’s authority over his subjects: us.

In the Greek and Roman world, crowns were fashioned as wreaths and made out of different plants or flowers and had different representations.  For the Greeks, they were a sign of victory at games, association with religious ceremonies, or for performances.  The symbolism was continued by the Romans, but the wreath eventually became more associated with military accomplishment and power.  Julius Caesar himself wore a wreath made of laurels to symbolize his military victories and it was normalized for emperors to wear by his nephew, Caesar Augustus, the first Roman Emperor.  For Christ though, his crown was not made out of laurels, roses, or gold, but instead thorns.  They would have been thick enough to dig into his head and inflict great pain on him as he carried his cross for his crucifixion.

It’s also a fitting symbol for God’s love as it is an inverse of the curse that was inflicted on Adam.  As Adam was being punished for accepting the forbidden fruit “And to Adam he said, ‘Because you have listened to the voice of your wife, and have eaten of the tree of which I commanded you, “You shall not eat of it,” cursed is the ground because of you; in toil you shall eat of it all the days of your life; thorns and thistles it shall bring forth to you; and you shall eat the plants of the field’.”  Many historians and theologians accept Christ’s wearing of the thorns as redemptive for this reason.  On his head, as he is sent to die, he is carrying the pain and weight of those sins, including the original one.

In many ways this is also an inverse of Roman culture and leadership.  In Rome, strength was idolized as the symbol of man’s authority and ability.  The man who committed the most conquests, asserted himself the hardest, and fought the most wars was usually the one who was awarded the highest honors.  Unsurprisingly, 75% died of unnatural and usually violent causes, proving that they were the poster children of the phrase “For all who take the sword will perish by the sword.”

Christ, meanwhile, sacrificed himself for us so that all, Jew or Gentile, slave or free, would be reconciled to God and could be with him when they die.  That action is a reflection of what Christ said in his sermon on the Mount, “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven,” a promise he also makes to the poor in spirit.  So the great King of the earth conquered and redeemed not through violent conflict, assertion of power, or military strategy, but taking on the role of a servant and sacrificing his life.

We are called to imitate that willingness to sacrifice and that humility in service to God, the church, and our fellow man.  To prioritize others and to love them at great cost to ourselves.  That’s why the crown of thorns is such a powerful symbol.  Because it reminds us that our suffering and sacrifices redeem us and our neighbors the same way Christ’s sacrifice redeemed us.

I personally connect with it as well because it is also a symbol of leadership.  Many people imagine positions of power represented the same way the most do: A golden crown representing strength, wealth, pleasantry, or freeness from pain.  In reality, leadership is a sacrifice because of the requirements and responsibilities one has to take as they rise.

A good leader always has to put the wellbeing of the team and the mission above their own needs.  To constantly be deprioritizing themselves and willing to make sacrifices so that whatever project they are working on can be seen to fruition.  Those sacrifices could include longer hours, greater passion, greater financial sacrifices, or simply spending more time with a struggling teammate to help them complete a task.

In addition, the failures of the team are a reflection of the person who leads because, as former President Harry S. Truman would say, “The Buck Stops Here.”  There’s no one higher the blame can be passed to, and the leader always has to take responsibility for where the team goes because they are the one driving those following their direction.  Never forget that Adam ate of the tree and yet blamed his wife, shirking his own responsibility.  So if a project fails, even if someone else can be blamed, it always comes back as a reflection of the person who put that person in that position and let them go as far as they did.

That’s why the crown of thorns is the most appropriate symbol for leadership: because it is a sacrifice to suffer the responsibility of the team.  To actively be willing to guide people in a direction towards a hopefully good end and help them accomplish what they never could on their own.  It’s what Christ did when he sacrificed himself for us on the cross, and it’s what we do when we help others get to where they need to go.  It’s why I like to say, “If you can’t feel the thorns, you’re not wearing a real crown.”