Meanwhile, back in the torture room, the cardinal is now being forced to bleed into a chalice and consecrate his own blood, not to God, but to Satan. They also cut off his big toe, and he is made to hold it up like a Host and say, "This is my body," the keenwitted Angelo observing that it's the first time he's told anything like the truth in fifty years of systematic lying.
In a disturbing scene set in a torture room, the cardinal undergoes a gruesome ritual where he is compelled to bleed into a chalice. This act, rather than consecrating his blood to God, serves a dark purpose as it is dedicated to Satan. The tension escalates when his big toe is severed, forcing him to raise it as if it were a sacred Host, uttering the phrase, "This is my body." This moment is both profound and ironic, highlighting the cardinal's long history of deceit.
Angelo, a figure present in this harrowing situation, keenly observes that the cardinal’s forced admission is the first semblance of truth he has spoken in fifty years of lies. This underscores the bleak reality of the cardinal’s existence, trapped in a life of pretense and manipulation. The irony within this scene not only emphasizes the horror of the ritual but also the character's desperate relationship with truth and power.
