Sentence:  Just as we see him assuring the Jesuit <WSD>flagellist</WSD> that he will be glad to try penance some other day, or telling us that he did not think it expedient to die for his faith, we see in his work that personal integrity is situational, a performance calculated to appeal to a particular audience. 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  One who whips him or herself as an act of religious penitence; flagellant.