Ecce Homo

[Pendragon]

Ecce Homo

Did I not say before you all I wanted no part in all of this?
You dragged him in before my judgment seat as one worthy of death.
I have never seen or looked into eyes that stirred my heart like his.
Look at him now and tell me what he’s ever done to deserve this path?
It’s was you who called him a blasphemer, and one who would be King,
In my questioning of this man he is unafraid, he has a quiet dignity.
Indeed it was very hard for me to get him to even say anything—
Threatened with death, he feared not its power, nor did he faint to feel its sting.
I did not want to harm him at all, you forced my hand to have him scourged,
How he even lives this moment, is something I find hard to understand at all.
You have a purple robe round his bloodstained body and his head crowned with thorns,
You have turned my hall of justice into a gruesome masquerade ball!
I wash my hands with water and I proclaim my innocence of the blood from this man’s hands:
But all of you present take a good look. Remember this is what you wanted and planned!

Dale Harris
© 12/11/07

[AuntShecky]

Whoever wrote the Pontius Pilate section of the New Testament had insight into human nature, especially the
unctuous side-stepping of public officials.
In this piece of yours, I like how you chose him as the "speaker" of the poem.

[Pendragon]

Whoever wrote the Pontius Pilate section of the New Testament had insight into human nature, especially the
unctuous side-stepping of public officials.
In this piece of yours, I like how you chose him as the "speaker" of the poem.I thank you Auntie. I always thought Pilate would have had more to say than the simple "Ecce Homo!" that was left as his legacy speech. I really needed to work in his other "And what is truth?" into the speech, but I simply could not find a way to work it and bring out Christ as bloody masterpiece to be unveiled by Pilate's two words. Well, we shall see what tomorrow brings in my poems with odd titles...

Pen

[chasestalling]

i'll be sure to get out of your way should our vectors meet

eric kim

[Virgil]

Ooo, I like much of this Pen. The first four lines seemed very strong:

Did I not say before you all I wanted no part in all of this?
You dragged him in before my judgment seat as one worthy of death.
I have never seen or looked into eyes that stirred my heart like his.
Look at him now and tell me what he’s ever done to deserve this path?
And these seem very strong too:

In my questioning of this man he is unafraid, he has a quiet dignity.
Indeed it was very hard for me to get him to even say anything—
Threatened with death, he feared not its power, nor did he faint to feel its sting.
The weak lines seem to me to be the ones that are rather obvious statements that Pilate would make, like this: "It’s was you who called him a blasphemer, and one who would be King". Well, I don't know if that's actually an obvious thing Pilate would say, or perhaps it's because it's an obvious thing to be said.

I also agree with Aunty. Pilate is an incredible window into the human soul, as you capture in this poem.

[motherhubbard]

A poem from Pilate’s perspective. How interesting. You are so good at coming up with a new take on things. I loved the quiet dignity phrase, but not so much the masquerade ball phrase- that stuck out strange to me. I’m not sure it went well with the other words you chose.

this was my favorite part. I guess it’s the entire middle;)





In my questioning of this man he is unafraid, he has a quiet dignity.
Indeed it was very hard for me to get him to even say anything—
Threatened with death, he feared not its power, nor did he faint to feel its sting.
I did not want to harm him at all, you forced my hand to have him scourged,
How he even lives this moment, is something I find hard to understand at all.