Prince of Pax

Summary

The "Prince of Pax" reflects on the suffering and redemptive nature of a Christ-like figure, emphasizing the themes of compassion, forgiveness, and unbroken love, despite the senseless violence inflicted upon him.

Abstract

The article "Prince of Pax" contemplates the image of Christ supported by an angel, a marble relief reminiscent of Donatello's style, housed in the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. The text poetically describes the figure of Christ, adorned with olive, rejecting symbols of victory and suffering. It speaks of a divine child, pierced and breathless, yet cradled by an angel, symbolizing endless compassion since the dawn of time. The narrative emphasizes that this figure, though broken, remains unbroken in his mission of atonement, not as a spectacle of martyrdom but as an embodiment of love that does not seek sacrifice. The author muses on the senseless and unconscionable breaking of this divine being, which paradoxically results in fragments of forgiveness that are pieced together in redemption. The article suggests that this act of breaking is not for the faint-hearted or for those who seek to wash their hands of responsibility, but for the whole human race to understand grace.

Opinions

The author views the suffering of Christ as a symbol of endless compassion, not a momentary act of propitiation.
The text conveys that the divine figure's endurance of pain is not an example of martyrdom but a testament to a love that transcends the need for sacrificial blood or scapegoats.
The article suggests that the act of breaking and redemption is meant for the collective understanding of grace by humanity,

Prince of Pax

Author’s photo of Christ Supported by Angel. Marble relief in the style of Donatello 1520–40, Italy. Victoria and Albert Museum London UK

Cherished in a circlet of olive; spurned laurels and thorns.

A branch pierced His ribbed kite into crushing breathlessness.

A sparrow* angel cradles the head of the childless Son suffocated in the line of duty;

countless counts of compassion from time immemorial.

Not broken for an instant of propitiation;

because the perpetual vow of atonement dawned with the cosmos.

Not broken as an exemplar of martyrdom; Love asks not for sacrificial blood, nor scapegoats.

Broken senselessly; broken unconscionably.

Broken into fragments of forgiveness reassembled in redemption.

Broken for lukewarm hands to a fault of parted water.**

Broken as a severed ear is returned to its nest.

Broken as a pardoned traitor hangs on a silver tree.

What more can be heard of grace?

But only from the whole human race.

*Matt:10; 29 “Are not two sparrows sold for a cent? And yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father.”

**Pontius Pilate washed his hands of responsibility, reminiscent of Moses parting the Red Sea.