Lord of the Column, Grieving Our Suffering Earth

Published March 26, 2025

by Mary Jane Miller

The solemn procession, the traditional bringing of the Lord of the Column to San Miguel, will happen on Saturday and Sunday, April 5 and 6. The sculpture of the flagellation of Christ will be carried from the Sanctuary in Atotonilco to San Juan de Dios Church, as it is each year. The tradition dates back to 1823, when a plague was occurring in San Miguel. When the locals decided to bring the statue to town as an offering of prayer, the plague abated.

The image commemorates the biblical text where Pilate took Jesus and had him flogged with 40 lashes (John 19). “The Son of Man is going to be delivered into the hands of men; they will kill him, and three days after his death, he will rise again.” (St. Mark 9, 30-37).

The severe flagellation portrayed is a means of identifying with the suffering of Christ. My suggestion here is to imagine that our world is being beaten by humanity. If we can see cruelty in the story of Jesus, perhaps we can see the injustice we have reigned upon the earth and between one another.

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