Skip to main contentAccessibility feedback
Dear catholic.com visitors: This website from Catholic Answers, with all its many resources, is the world’s largest source of explanations for Catholic beliefs and practices. A fully independent, lay-run, 501(c)(3) ministry that receives no funding from the institutional Church, we rely entirely on the generosity of everyday people like you to keep this website going with trustworthy, fresh, and relevant content. If everyone visiting this month gave just $1, catholic.com would be fully funded for an entire year. If you’ve never made a gift, now is the time. Your donation will be matched dollar for dollar this week only. Thanks and God bless.
Dear catholic.com visitors: This Catholic Answers website, with all its free resources, is the world’s largest source of explanations for Catholic beliefs and practices. We receive no funding from the institutional Church and rely entirely on your generosity to sustain this website with trustworthy, accessible content. If every visitor this month donated $1, catholic.com would be fully funded for an entire year. If you’ve never made a gift, now is the time. Your donation will be matched dollar for dollar this week only. Thanks and God bless.

What does it mean that Jesus sweated blood?

Question:

I’m trying to understand the Passion of Our Lord better. What does it mean that Jesus sweated blood?

Answer:

There is a known medical condition known as hematidrosis in which a person has blood or blood pigments present in his sweat. This happens when ruptures in the skin occur that allow blood or blood pigment to move from the capillaries into the sweat glands.

On the literal level, it would seem that Jesus, suffering the extreme stress of the Agony in the Garden, began to suffer from hematidrosis. On the spiritual level, this event foreshadows the shedding of his blood for us on the cross.

On the apologetic level, the recording of this detail reveals Luke as the careful investigator and historian that he was. Hematidrosis is rare enough that–given the state of medical knowledge at the time–Luke (who was a doctor) may not have known about it, and so he recorded the detail. Though even if he did know about the condition, it still reveals his careful reporting of detail.

Did you like this content? Please help keep us ad-free

More from Catholic.com

Enjoying this content?  Please support our mission!Donate