The soldier seems to be hauling Jesus to his feet. He is grasping Jesus’ clothes and trying to pull him up. Jesus, even though having fallen because of the weight of the cross, paradoxically, seems to be hanging on to the cross. It is almost as if the cross has become his only support. The soldier is focussed on getting a tiresome job done. Jesus is clinging to the one thing he has to do; it is the cross that is his death and our life. It is all Jesus can do in his suffering to concentrate just on the cross and say to himself, ‘I have to do this.’
Kendal Catholic Priest 