“Pie Iesu Domine, dona eis requiem” meaning ‘Holy Jesus, Lord, Grant them rest’ is a line out of a 13th century Latin hymn probably sang by monks as the carried out their daily rituals. The first time I became aware of it was during the viewing of the outrageously funny British comedy ‘Monty Python and the Holy Grail’. A group of monks walking in single file and each holding a piece of wood about the size of a cutting board, chanted the words as a form of a hymn, and at precisely the same moment would whack themselves in the head at the end of the chant, only to repeat the procedure over and over again.
Apparently, Monks or Priests or whatever order of the many Roman Catholic ‘Holy Men’ there are, would go through the motions of whipping themselves supposedly to get closer to God and basically say to God , “Yeah, I’ve been a bad boy, so I’m going to give myself a spanking. See, I can do it on my own.
Self – Flagellation
Self-flagellation in Catholicism, a practice called corporal mortification, is a form of penance done to emulate Christ’s suffering, atone for sins, and draw closer to God. While once more common, it is now practiced by only a very small minority of Catholics, often within conservative religious orders, and typically involves the use of a discipline (a rope with small knots) for a short period, not to cause serious injury. The practice has roots in medieval times and is seen by practitioners as a way to purify the soul, control sinful desires, and help focus on spiritual matters.
Interesting. As much as we may think this was a goofy practice , there may actually be something to it. I know that the Bible doesn’t tell us to literally whip ourselves as a supposed method of becoming a better Christian, but we do have an example of a man who whipped himself into spiritual shape on a daily basis, and he was the Apostle Paul. Here are his words.
The phrase “I beat my body” comes from 1 Corinthians 9:27, a Bible verse where the Apostle Paul says, “No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize” (NIV). The verse is not meant literally, but describes the practice of disciplined self-control, bringing the physical body under control to live a righteous life.
Have you ever become so frustrated with yourself for making a mistake that you used the heel of your palm to smack yourself in the forehead? I think we all have at one point or another. There used to be a commercial on TV for V-8, a vegetable beverage made of tomatoes and other veggies, where someone upon realizing they could have had a V-8 instead of some disappointing, less nutritious option, would smack themselves in the forehead and exclaim “I could have had a V-8!! So there, it’s not such a weird thing after all. It’s important to note that the person did not continue to hit themselves in the head repeatedly, resulting in a possible concussion, unconsciousness, or even death from ‘Blunt Force Trauma’.
What I’m getting at is that there a more than a few of us that are essentially walking around, chanting a depressing hymn in the original Latin, and smacking ourselves in the head as some sort of ‘Penitent’ gesture, over and over again. What I would also like to say is that if you wish to say sorry to God, then just do it. However, if you think that God wants you to mope around from now to eternity feeling sorry for yourself because of the naughty things that you did, then perhaps yo need to get to know God a little bit better. If you were truly sorry, then know that God has already accepted your apology. It’s that simple. When Jesus died for our sins, he blew open the doors so that all people can come to God and receive forgiveness, first time they ask, provided that they are sincere in their request. And God most definitely knows whether you are or not. So come to terms with the fact that Jesus took the hits on our behalf and paid the price, once and for all, so we could be set free from the bondage of sin. Our job is to go and ’Sin no more’, and spread the word about what Jesus did for us, instead of walking around all somber looking like a scolded puppy, wondering just when we are going to get another smack.
Saturday October 18th, 2025
By Lucien Alexander Delean Aka ‘Looch’