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Ecce homo

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This article is about the Biblical phrase and the subject in art. For other uses, seeEcce homo (disambiguation).
Ecce Homo,Caravaggio, 1605

Ecce homo(/ˈɛksiˈhoʊmoʊ/,Ecclesiastical Latin:[ˈettʃeˈomo],Classical Latin:[ˈɛkkɛˈhɔmoː];"behold the man" ) are theLatinwords used byPontius Pilatein theVulgatetranslation of theGospel of John,when he presents ascourged Jesus,bound andcrowned with thorns,to a hostile crowd shortly beforeHis crucifixion(John 19:5). The originalNew Testament Greek:"ἰδοὺ ὁ ἄνθρωπος",romanized:"idoù ho ánthropos",is rendered by mostEnglish Bible translations,e.g. theDouay-Rheims Bibleand theKing James Version,as "behold the man".[a]The scene has been widely depicted inChristian art.

Version bya follower ofHieronymus Bosch,1490s

A scene of theecce homois a standard component of cycles illustrating thePassionandlife of Christ in art.It follows the stories of theFlagellation of Christ,thecrowning with thornsand themocking of Jesus,the last two often being combined:[b]The usual depiction shows Pilate and Jesus, a mocking crowd which may be rather large, and parts of the city ofJerusalem.

But, from the 15th century in the West, and much earlier in the art of the Eastern church,devotional picturesbegan to portray Jesus alone, in half or full figure with a purple robe, loincloth, crown of thorns and torture wounds, especially on his head, and later became referred to as images of theEcce homo.Similar subjects but with the wounds of the crucifixion visible (Nail wounds on the limbs, spear wounds on the sides), are termed aMan of Sorrows(alsoMisericordia). If theinstruments of the Passionare present, it may be called anArma Christi.If Christ is sitting down (usually supporting himself with his hand on his thigh), it may be referred to it asChrist at restorPensive Christ.It is not always possible to distinguish these subjects.

Eastern Christianity

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Narrative scenes of the biblical moment are almost never shown in Eastern art, but icons of the single figure of the tortured Christ go back over a millennium, and have sometimes been calledEcce homoimages by later sources. The first depictions of theecce homoscene in the arts appear in the 9th and 10th centuries in theSyrian-Byzantineculture of theAntiochian Greek Christians.[g]

Eastern Orthodoxtradition generally refers to this type oficonby a different title:[h]″Jesus Christthe Bridegroom″ (Byzantine Greek:Ιηϲοῦϲ Χριστόϲὁ Νυμφίος,romanized:Iesoũs Christósho Nymphíos).[i]It derives from the words inNew Testament Greek:"ἰδοὺ ὁ νυμφίος",romanized:"idoù ho nymphíos",by which Jesus Christ reveals himself, in hisParable of the Ten Virginsaccording to theGospel of Matthew,[a]as the bearer of the most high joy.[j]

Ecce Homo,Andrea Mantegna,1500

The icon presents the bridegroom as a sufferingChrist, mockedand humiliated byPontius Pilate's soldiers beforehis crucifixion.[b][i]

The dailyMidnight Officesummons the faithful to be ready at all times for the day of theDread Judgement,which will come unexpectedly like "a bridegroom in the night".[k]On Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, the first three days ofPassion Week,the last week beforePascha,consecrated to the commemoration of the last days of the earthlylife of the Saviour,thetroparionis chanted:"Behold the Bridegroom Cometh at Midnight"(Byzantine Greek:Ἰδού ὁ Νυμφίος ἔρχεται ἐν τῷ μέσῳ τῆς νυκτός,romanized:idoú ho nymphíos érchetai en tõ méso tẽs nuktós).[f][l]

APassion Play,presented in Moscow (27 March 2007) and in Rome (29 March 2007), recalls the words, with which "in Holy Scriptures Christ describes Himself as a bridegroom":[m]

The Bridegroom of the Church is transfixed with nails.
The Son of the Virgin is pierced with a spear.
We venerate Thy Passion, O Christ.
We venerate Thy Passion, O Christ.
We venerate Thy Passion, O Christ.
Show us also Thy glorious Resurrection.

— Hilarion Alfeyev,The Passion according to St. Matthew[18]

Western Christianity

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Ecce HomobyTitian,between c. 1570 and c. 1576

Depictions ofWestern Christianityin the Middle Ages, e.g. theEgbert Codexand theCodex Aureus Epternacensis,seem to depict theecce homoscene (and are usually interpreted as such), but more often than not only show theCrowning of thornsand theMocking of Christ,[b]which precede the actualecce homoscene in the Bible. The independent image only developed around 1400, probably in Burgundy, but then rapidly became extremely popular, especially in Northern Europe.[19]

Ecce Homo and Mater Dolorosa Diptych,c. 1491–1520.Aelbrecht Bouts

The motif found increasing currency as thePassionbecame a central theme in Western piety in the 15th and 16th centuries. Theecce homotheme was included not only in thepassion playsofmedievaltheatre, but also in cycles of illustrations of the story of the Passion, as in theGreat PassionofAlbrecht Düreror theengravingsofMartin Schongauer.The scene was (especially in France) often depicted as a sculpture or group of sculptures; even altarpieces and other paintings with the motif were produced (e.g. byHieronymus BoschorHans Holbein). Like the passion plays, the visual depictions of theecce homoscene, it has been argued, often, and increasingly, portray the people of Jerusalem in a highly critical light, bordering perhaps onantisemiticcaricatures. Equally, this style of art has been read as a kind of simplistic externalisation of the inner hatred of the angry crowd towards Jesus, not necessarily implying any racial judgment.

The motif of the lone figure of a suffering Christ who seems to be staring directly at the observer, enabling him/her to personally identify with the events of the Passion, arose in the late Middle Ages. At the same time similar motifs of theMan of SorrowandChrist at restincreased in importance. The subject was used repeatedly in later so-calledold master prints(e.g. byJacques CallotandRembrandt), in the paintings of theRenaissanceand theBaroque,as well as in Baroque sculptures.

Hieronymus Boschpainted his firstEcce Homoduring the 1470s.[20]He returned to the subject in 1490 to paint in a characteristically Netherlandish style, with deep perspective and a surreal ghostly image of praying monks in the lower left-hand corner.

In 1498,Albrecht Dürerdepicted the suffering of Christ in theecce homoof hisGreat Passionin unusually close relation with his self-portrait, leading to a reinterpretation of the motif as a metaphor for the suffering of the artist.James Ensorused theecce homomotif in his ironic paintingChrist and the Critics(1891), in which he portrayed himself as Christ.

Antonio Ciseri's 1871Ecce Homoportrayal presents a semi-photographic view of a balcony seen from behind the central figures of a scourged Christ and Pilate (whose face is not visible). The crowd forms a distant mass, almost without individuality, and much of the detailed focus is on the normally secondary figures of Pilate's aides, guards, secretary and wife.

Ecce HomobyMihály Munkácsy,1896

One of the more famous modern versions of the ecce homo motif was that by the Polish artistAdam Chmielowski,who went on to found, as Brother Albert, theAlbertine Brothers(CSAPU) and, a year later, theAlbertine Sisters(CSAPI), eventually becoming proclaimed a saint on 12 November 1989 by PopeJohn Paul II,the author ofOur God's Brother[pl],a play about Chmielowski, written between 1944 and 1950, when the future Pontiff and later himself a saint was a young priest.Chmielowski'sEcce Homo[pl](146 cm x 96.5 cm, unsigned, painted between 1879 and 1881), was significant in Chmielowski's life, as it is inAct 1of Wojtyła's play. Pope John Paul II is said to have kept a copy of this painting in his apartment at the Vatican.[21]The original can be viewed in the Ecce Homo Sanctuary of the Albertine Sisters in Kraków.[22]It was painted at a time when the painter was going through an inner struggle, trying to decide whether to remain an artist, or to give up painting to pursue the calling to minister to the poor.[23]

Especially in the 19th and 20th centuries, the meaning ofecce homomotif has been extended to the portrayal of suffering and the degradation of humans through violence and war. Notable 20th-century depictions areGeorge Grosz's (1922–1923) andLovis Corinth'sEcce Homo(1925). The 84drawingsand 16watercolorsof Grosz criticize the socio-political conditions of theWeimar Republic.[24]Corinth shows, from the perspective of the crowd, Jesus, a soldier, and Pilate dressed as a physician. Following theHolocaustofWorld War II,Otto Dixportrayed himself, inEcce Homo with self-likeness behind barbed wire(1948), as the suffering Christ in a concentration camp.

Artworks

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These are images of the narrative type, with other figures, rather than the devotionalMan of Sorrowstype.

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Publications

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See also

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References

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  1. ^abХальфан 2009;Rotem 2018.
  2. ^Dreher 2017,p. 187.
  3. ^Alfeyev 1995.
  4. ^"Holy Week: An Explanation".Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America.Archivedfrom the original on 10 August 2018.Retrieved19 April2019.
  5. ^Basil Essey 2008.
  6. ^Official accountonFacebook
  7. ^Christus der Bräutigam 2018;Christus der Bräutigam 2018b;Gemeinde Wien 2019.
  8. ^Slobodskoy 1967,"Short Prayers: Another Prayer to the Lord Jesus"-Archived7 August 2018 at the Wayback Machine;Слободской 1967,"Kratkiye molitvy: Yeshche odna molitva Gospodu Iisusu - Краткие молитвы: Еще одна молитва Господу Иисусу"-Archived27 August 2018 at the Wayback Machine.
  9. ^The Way Home 2008;Дорога домой 2008.
  10. ^John El Massih 2017;Christ the Bridegroom Monastery 2009.
  11. ^ها هو ذا الختنon YouTube
  12. ^"Ide ho Ánthropos"ΊΔΕ Ό ἌΝΘΡΩΠΟϹ[Behold the Man](JPEG image).Orthodox Church in America.Archivedfrom the original on 30 March 2019.Retrieved15 May2019.
  13. ^Alexandre (Semenoff-Tian-Chansky) 1984.
  14. ^Slobodskoy 1967,"The Order of Divine Services: The Daily Cycle of Divine Services".Archived8 June 2017 at the Wayback Machine;Слободской 1967,"O poryadke tserkovnykh Bogosluzheniy: Sutochnyy krug Bogosluzheniy"О порядке церковных Богослужений: Суточный круг Богослужений.Archived7 August 2018 at the Wayback Machine.[e]
  15. ^Slobodskoy 1967,"The Sundays of Lent: Passion Week".Archived8 June 2017 at the Wayback Machine;Слободской 1967,"Nedeli Velikogo Posta: Strastnaya sedmitsa"Недели Великого Поста: Страстная седмица.Archived6 August 2018 at the Wayback Machine.[e]
  16. ^Russian chant 2010.
  17. ^Bases of the Social Concept 2000.
  18. ^Alfeyev 2007.
  19. ^Schiller 1972,pp. 74–75, figs. 236, 240, 256–273.
  20. ^Krén & Marx.
  21. ^Wójtowicz 2011.
  22. ^Media related toFile:Church of Saint Albert Chmielowski (Ecce Homo Sanctuary) in Cracow, Poland.jpgat Wikimedia Commons.
  23. ^Wyczółkowski 1880.
  24. ^Grosz 2011.
  25. ^Christ the Bridegroom Monastery 2009.
  26. ^Wicks 2017.

Notes

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  1. ^abJohn 19:5:ἰδοὺ ὁ ἄνθρωπος,romanized:idoú ho ánthropos (NA28),ecce homo(NVUL),lit. 'behold the man'.Similar:
    Matthew 25:6:ἰδοὺ ὁ νυμφίος,romanized:idoù ho nymphíos (NA28),ecce sponsus(NVUL),lit. 'behold the bridegroom'.[1]
  2. ^abcMatthew 27:27–31:[…] ἐνέπαιξαν αὐτῷ,romanized:enépaizan autõ (NA28),illudebant ei(NVUL),lit. 'they mocked him' […]. — "The reed is a Christian symbol of humility […]. After whipping Christ and crowning him with thorns, the Roman soldiers gave Christ a reed as pathetic scepter for a mock ruler. In Christian iconography, the reed is a sign of Jesus's willingness to suffer humiliation to fulfill the will of his Father. […] [T]he humility is the absolute requirement for advancement in the spiritual life."[2]
  3. ^"'… the disciples were called Christians first in Antioch. (Acts 11:26)'"
  4. ^"At the first service of Palm Sunday evening, the priest carries the icon of Christ the Bridegroom in procession, and we sing the 'Hymn of the Bridegroom'. We behold Christ as the Bridegroom of the Church, bearing the marks of His suffering, yet preparing a marriage Feast for us in God's Kingdom. […] The Parable of the Ten Virgins is read on Holy Tuesday. […] The theme of the day is reinforced by the expostelarion hymn we sing:"[4][5]

    I behold Thy bridal chamber
    richly adorned,
    O my Savior;
    but I have no wedding garment
    to worthily enter.
    Make radiant
    the garment of my soul,
    O Giver of Light,
    and save me.
  5. ^abcInternet editionatDorogadomoj.
  6. ^ab"Realizing our sinfulness and not relying on the power of our own prayers, in this prayer we ask […] the Mother of God, Who has special grace to save us sinners by Her intercession for us before Her Son, to pray for us sinners before our Saviour." (Russian:"Сознавая свою греховность и не надеясь на силу молитв своих, мы в этой молитве просим помолиться о нас грешных, пред Спасителем нашим, […] Божию Матерь, имеющую особенную благодать спасать нас грешных Своим заступничеством за нас перед Сыном Своим.")[8].[e][9]
  7. ^TheEastern Orthodox Christianity in Syriais not to be confused withSyriac Christianity:"The Syrian Church has never had its own tradition of icon-painting. […] As to the non-Chalcedonian Orient, in particular the Church of Syria, icons did not find much acceptance there, and the churches were adorned with ornaments rather than icons."[3]
    Antiochian representatives:[c]
    Cf.Isaiah 6:3:"Holy, holy, holy, is the LORD of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory",Revelation 4:8:"Holy, holy, holy, LORD God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come",Trisagion,andJesus Prayer.
  8. ^Even if the icon inscription isBehold the Man.[12]
  9. ^abc"The icon of Christ the Bridegroom portrays the selfless love for Christ's Bride, the Church (Isaiah 54). He is dressed in royal colors as the betrothed King, complying with Sacred Scripture's account of His mockery by the Roman guards before His crucifixion. The crown is a symbol of His marriage to the Church; the rope, a symbol of bondage to sin, death and corruption which Jesus untied by His death on the Cross; the reed, a symbol of His humility. "[25]
  10. ^Russian:"Христос открывает Себя Носителем высшей радости",romanized:Khristos otkryvayet Sebya Nositelem vysshey radosti,lit. 'Christ reveals Himself as the Bearer of the highest joy'.[13]
  11. ^Church Slavonic:"'жених в полунощи'",romanized:zhenikh v polunoshchi,lit. 'the bridegroom at midnight'.[14]
  12. ^Church Slavonic:"'Се Жених грядет в полунощи'",romanized:Se Zhenikh gryadet v polunoshchi,lit. 'Behold the Bridegroom comes at midnight'.[15]"During Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday of Holy Week, we celebrate Bridegroom Matins. We sing: 'Behold, the Bridegroom is coming …'".[16]
  13. ^Matthew 9:15;25:1–13;Mark 2:19;Luke 5:34–35,12:35–36."[T]he Church is presented as His wife and bride":John 2:9–10,3:29,Ephesians 5:24–27;Revelation 21:9.[17]
  14. ^Inscription:ΙϹ ΧϹ[abbr. for ΙηϲοῦϹ ΧριστόϹ]ὁ νυμφίοϲ,romanized:IesoũS CHristóS ho nymphíos,lit. 'Jesus Christ the bridegroom'. — Anicon,on the apex of theRock of Calvary inside the Church of the Holy Sepulchre,under theGreek Orthodoxaltar of the crucifixion (12th Stationof theVia Dolorosa).[1]
  15. ^"[F]inal autobiographical statement" byFriedrich Nietzsche."He begins this fateful intellectual autobiography—he was to lose his mind little more than a month later—with three eyebrow-raising sections entitled, 'Why I Am So Wise', 'Why I Am So Clever', and 'Why I Write Such Good Books'."[26]
  16. ^Ecce homo qui est faba(Latinfor 'Behold the man who is a bean'). Choraltheme tuneof the TV sitcomMr. Bean.
  17. ^MacaronicLatin / Ecce Mono(Spanishfor 'Behold the monkey'). Exemplary of anaccidental damage of art.

Further reading

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Wikimedia Commons has media related toEcce homo.
  • Baxter, Roger(1823)."Behold the Man".Meditations For Every Day In The Year.New York: Benziger Brothers.
  • Prezzia, Paul Joseph (18 April 2019)."Glory to You, Love: Puccini's Turandot and the Triduum".Crisis Magazine.The Civilized Readercolumn, with reference toGenesis2:24andSong of Solomon4:1.Archivedfrom the original on 18 April 2019.Retrieved19 February2019.Christ speaks to us hardhearted men and women with these words: 'How beautiful art thou, my love, how beautiful art thou!' (Song of Solomon 4:1) Beauty, in physical terms, is the way the heavenly bridegroom speaks of love. And if Christ seeks us for the beauty He Himself created in us, and in spite of our cold hearts, He is under the obligation set for suitors in Sacred Scripture: 'A man shall leave father and mother, and cleave to his wife.' (Genesis 2:24)
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