Palm Sunday of the Lord’s Passion (April 13) 8-minute homily in 1-page
Introduction: The Church celebrates this sixth Sunday of Lent as both Palm Sunday and Passion Sunday. This is the time of year when we stop to remember and relive the events which brought about our redemption and salvation. What we commemorate and relive during this week is not just Jesus’ dying and rising, but our own dying and rising in Jesus, which will result in our healing, reconciliation, and redemption. Attentive participation in the Holy Week liturgy will deepen our relationship with God, increase our Faith, and strengthen our lives as disciples of Jesus. Today’s liturgy combines contrasting moments, one of glory, the other of suffering: the royal welcome of Jesus in Jerusalem, and the drama of the trial, culminating in the crucifixion, death, and burial of the Christ.
Scripture lessons summarized: Today’s first reading, the third of Isaiah’s four Servant Songs, like the other three, foreshadows Jesus’ own life and mission. The Refrain for today’s Responsorial Psalm (Ps 22), ”My God, My God, why have You abandoned Me?” plunges us into the heart of Christ’s Passion. The Second Reading, taken from Paul’s letter to the Philippians, is an ancient Christian hymn representing a very early Christian understanding of who Jesus is, and of how his mission saves us from sin and death. The first part of today’s Gospel describes the royal reception Jesus received from his admirers, who paraded with him for a distance of the two miles between the Mount of Olives and the city of Jerusalem. In the second part of today’s Gospel, we listen to/participate in a reading of the Passion of Christ according to Luke. We are challenged to examine our own lives in the light of some of the characters in the Passion story – like Peter who denied Jesus, Judas who betrayed Jesus, Herod who ridiculed Jesus, Pilate who acted against his conscience as he condemned Jesus to death on the cross, and the leaders of the people who preserved their position by getting rid of Jesus.
Life messages: We need to answer 6 questions today: 1) Does Jesus weep over my sinful soul as he wept over Jerusalem at the beginning of his Palm Sunday procession? 2) Am I a barren fig tree? God expects me to produce fruits of holiness, purity, justice, humility, obedience, charity, and forgiveness. Do I? Or worse, do I continue to produce bitter fruits of impurity, injustice, pride, hatred, jealousy, and selfishness? 3) Will Jesus need to cleanse my heart with his whip? Jesus cannot tolerate the desecration of the temple of the Holy Spirit (which I have become), by my addiction to uncharitable, unjust, impure thoughts, words, and deeds; nor does Jesus praise my business mentality or calculation of loss and gain in my relationship with God, my Heavenly Father. 4) Do I welcome Jesus into my heart? Am I ready to surrender my life to him during this Holy Week and welcome him into all areas of my life as my Lord and Savior? Let us remember that we are all sinners who have crucified Jesus by our sins, but we are still able to turn to Jesus again to ask for pardon and mercy in the Sacrament of Reconciliation. It is through the Passion of Jesus that we receive forgiveness: “with His stripes we are healed.” (Is 53:5). 5) Are we like the humble donkey that carried Jesus, bringing Jesus’ universal love, unconditional forgiveness, and sacrificial service to our families, schools, places of work, and communities by the way we live our lives? 6) Do we reread our own story in the characters in Jesus’ passion story as well? What about Peter who denied Jesus, Judas who betrayed Jesus, the Apostles who fled for their lives, Pilate who betrayed his conscience, the High Priests who abused his position, the guards and soldiers who inflicted unbearable pain on Jesus, and/or the people who welcomed Jesus on Palm Sunday and then betrayed him during his trial?
(Another one-page synopsis): Palm Sunday of the Lord’s Passion
Significance of the Holy Week:
1) A week of remembrance and appreciation
2) A week of thanksgiving
3) A week of repentance and reconciliation
4) A week to keep Christ’s New Commandment of Agape love
5) A week to deepen our Faith and strengthen our relationship with God.
Significance of Palm Sunday: 1) A day to remember two contrasting moments of Christ’s triumph and tragedy.
Anecdote: American president Abraham Lincoln had his moment of triumph and tragedy 160 years ago in 1865. Palm Sunday in 1865 marked the end of the Civil war. The General of the Confederate Army surrendered to the General of the Union Army. It was the greatest moment of triumph for the American president Abraham Lincoln. But he was assassinated five days later, on Good Friday, the greatest tragedy for the president and the nation.
Today’s Scripture readings: In the first reading, Jesus Christ is presented as the “suffering Servant” of Isaiah’s prophecy.
In the second reading, taken from Paul’s Letter to the Philippians, Jesus’ saving mission is highlighted.
In the first part of today’s Gospel reading, we hear the details of Jesus’ triumphant reception to the city of Jerusalem. We are told that Jesus’ followers welcomed him as the king who came to them riding on a donkey. We are also told how Jesus wept over Jerusalem, cleansed the Temple of Jerusalem, and cursed a barren fig tree.
But in the second part, the reding of the Passion from the Gospel of Luke, we reflect on Jesus’ unjust trial and humiliating, cruel torture and crucifixion.
Life messages: Questions we should ask:
1)Does Jesus weep over the sinful situation of our souls?
2) Am I a barren fig tree?
3) Will Jesus need to cleanse my heart with his whip?
4) Do I welcome Jesus into my heart as my personal Savior and God?
5) Are we rea, and spirit of forgiveness to others?
PALM SUNDAY OF THE LORD’S PASSION (April 13, 2025):
For Procession: Is 50:4-7; Phil 2:6-11; Lk 19:28-40;); For Holy Mass: Lk 22:14—23:56 (or 23:1-49)
Homily starter anecdotes: #1: Reminder of Maccabaean victory celebration: A key element in our understanding of the connection between the contrasting receptions Jesus received on Palm Sunday a reception of love and glory sung by the people, and a reception of fear, hatred and violence of Good Friday on the Via Dolorosa leading up the hill of Calvary, by Jesus’ Jewish enemies and the Roman Political power is to recognize the difference in their organizers and motives!
The actions, words, symbols and motives behind Palm Sunday indicated to the people taking part a willing enthusiastic welcome to Jesus as a conquering Messiah whom they assumed to be a religious and political Redeemer who would save the Jews from foreign rule and regain for them religious and political freedom. The occasion of this reception was carefully chosen by the Lord God to coincide with the Passover feast which celebrated the Jewish liberation from Egyptian rule and slavery. The palms used in the procession and the slogan used (“Hosanna!” meaning “Save us, God!”) were probably used by Judas Maccabaeus and his men December 14, 164 BC, when they purified the Temple from its desecration by pagan Greek overlords which began on that same date in 167 BC by order of Antiochus IV Epiphanes, and in the June 3, 141 BC victory parade to the Temple after Simon Maccabaeus, last of the family, had retaken and cleared the Citadel in Jerusalem. In 1 Mc 13:51, we read: “On the twenty-third day of the second month, in the one hundred seventy-first year, the Jews entered it with praise and palm branches, and with harps and cymbals and stringed instruments, and with hymns and songs, because a great enemy had been crushed and removed from Israel.” (At present, the Jews all over the world, celebrate this festival of freedom as Hanukkah.
The governor Pilate and his counselors, on the other hand, were terrified of a rebellion by the people of Israel who out-numbered them in their presence in Jerusalem. For if the rebellion succeeded, the Province would oust them from Jerusalem and Israel, they would lose control of (and so the tax money from) this prosperous province, and thus would incur the wrath of the current Empeoror which would cost them their positions and perhaps their own lives. It was natural, then, that the Romans, when they saw the crowds of people carrying palm branches and giving a royal reception to a very popular, miracle-working rabbi, Jesus, judged this to be a threat to their power and a banner for revolution, were justified in their concern. For they interpreted people’s slogan “Hosanna!” as “Save us!” from Roman occupation! Besides, the Jewish rabbis had been teaching that the final redemption of the Jews would take place with the Messiah’s arrival. With 1½ to 2 million Jews in and around the city for the Passover, the situation was highly volatile, and Jesus’ ride on a donkey, as prophesied by Zechariah, seemed to have all the signs of producing great trouble and revolt. So the Romans informally made allies of some of the Temple priesthood (largely Sadducees), who were planning to arrest Jesus (the suspected center for the trouble), because these priests were the people most closely allied to Rome, and they would lose their power and income in the case of a popular uprising. This collusion between Pilate and the High Priest Caiaphas and their supporters is exactly what we see on Good Friday on the Via Dolorosa and at the “Place of the Skull” Calvary, where the proesion ended with the crucifixion, death, and burial of Jesus, “King of the Jews.” a final end to threat to undisputed Roman power and the maintenance of law and order in Jerusalem. The Passion accounts we read today and will read again on Good Friday, describe the arrest, trial, and willing crucifixion of Jesus. Given the political, religious, and social context, this is hardly surprising. Keeping that in the back of our minds helps us to make sense of certain parts of the action that will follow. (Fr. Murray from Jerusalem).
# 2: Are you a donkey with a Christian name only, or one carrying Christ? An interesting as well as challenging old fable tells of the colt that carried Jesus on Palm Sunday. The colt thought that the reception was organized to honor him. “I am a unique donkey!” this excited youngster might have thought. When he asked his mother if he could walk down the same street alone the next day and be honored again, his mother said, “No! You are nothing without Him who was riding you.” Five days later, the colt saw a huge crowd of people in the street. It was Good Friday, and the soldiers were taking Jesus to Calvary. The colt could not resist the temptation to gain another royal reception. Ignoring the warning of his mother, he ran to the street, but he had to flee for his life as soldiers chased him and people stoned him. Thus, the colt finally learned the lesson that he was only a poor donkey without Jesus riding on him. — As we enter Holy Week, today’s readings challenge us to examine our lives to see whether we carry Jesus within us, and bear witness to Him through our living, or do not, and so are Christians in name only.
# 3: Zechariah foresaw it. Jesus fulfilled it: The Greek author Plutarch describes how Kings are supposed to enter a city. He tells about one Roman general, Aemilius Paulus, who won a decisive victory over the Macedonians. When Aemilius returned to Rome, his triumphal procession lasted three days. The first day was dedicated to displaying all the artwork that Aemilius and his army had plundered. The second day was devoted to all the weapons of the Macedonians they had captured. The third day began with the rest of the plunder borne by 250 oxen, whose horns were covered in gold. This included more than 17,000 pounds of gold coins. Then came the captured and humiliated king of Macedonia and his extended family. Finally, Aemilius himself entered Rome, riding in a magnificent chariot. Aemilius wore a purple robe, interwoven with gold. He carried his laurels in his right hand. He was accompanied by a large choir singing hymns, praising the military accomplishments of the great Aemilius. (http://www.sigurdgrindheim.com/sermons/king.html ) That, my friends, is how a King enters a city. But the King of Kings? He entered riding on a lowly donkey. Zechariah envisioned the King of Kings, the Messiah, coming not on a great stallion, but riding on a humble donkey. Zechariah foresaw it. Jesus fulfilled it. (http://www.tosapres.com/sermons.php?sermon=96).
#4: Hurray to Marconi: When the ‘Unsinkable Titanic’ sank in the abyss of the Atlantic Ocean on April 15, 1912, 1517 people lost their lives. However, 705 people escaped death thanks to the radio communication established between the Titanic and the Carpathia. When the radio message was received by RMS Carpathia, a transatlantic passenger steamship, it raced at high speeds to pick up the survivors in lifeboats. When the Carpathia arrived in New York, Marconi who had invented and introduced radio communication, was at the port to receive the survivors. When the survivors heard that Marconi was there, they sang his praises saying he was their ‘savior’ and they thronged to see him. — Two thousand years ago people sang the praises of Jesus in Jerusalem and they thronged to see him when they found out he had come to save them from their sins and give them new life. (Fr. Jose. P, CMI).
Introduction: The Church celebrates this Sixth Sunday in Lent as both Passion Sunday and Passion Sunday. It is on Palm Sunday that we enter Holy Week, welcoming Jesus into our lives and asking Him to allow us a share in His suffering, death, and Resurrection. This is the time of the year when we stop to remember and relive the events which brought about our redemption and salvation. The Holy Week liturgies present us with the actual events of the dying and rising of Jesus. These liturgies enable us to experience in our lives, here and now, what Jesus went through then. In other words, what we commemorate and relive during this week is not just Jesus’ dying and rising, but our own lifetime of dying and rising in Him, which will result in our healing, reconciliation, and redemption. Just as Jesus did, we, too, must lay down our lives freely by actively participating in the Holy Week liturgies. In doing so, we are allowing Jesus to forgive us our sins, heal the wounds in us caused by our sins and the sins of others, and transform us more completely into the image and likeness of God. In these ways, we will be able to live more fully the Divine life we received at Baptism. Attentive participation in the Holy Week liturgies will also deepen our relationship with God, increase our Faith, and strengthen our lives as disciples of Jesus. But let us remember that Holy Week can become “holy” for us only if we actively and consciously take part in the liturgies of this week. During this week of PASSION — Passionate suffering, Passionate grace, Passionate love, and Passionate forgiving – each of us is called to remember the Christ of Calvary and then to embrace and lighten the burden of the Christ Whose passion continues to be experienced in the hungry, the poor, the sick, the homeless, the aged, the lonely, and the outcast. Today’s liturgy combines two moments seen in contrast: one of glory, — the welcome of Jesus into Jerusalem — the other of suffering: the drama of his trial which ends in his freely accepted and offered condemnation, crucifixion, and death. Let us rejoice and sing as Jesus comes into our life today. Let us also weep and mourn as his death confronts us with our sin. The African-American song asks the question, “Were you there when they crucified my Lord? Were you there when they nailed Him to a tree?” The answer to both is YES, a definite YES. Yes, we were there in the crowd on Sunday, shouting, “Hosanna!” and on the following Friday, “Crucify Him!”
First reading, Isaiah 50:4-7, explained: In the middle section of the book of the prophet Isaiah, chapters 40-55, there are four short passages which scholars have called the Songs of the Suffering Servant. Today’s first reading is the third Servant Song. These four songs are about a mysterious figure whose suffering brings about a benefit for the people. In the original author’s mind, the servant was probably a figure for the people of Israel, or for a faithful remnant within the people. The Songs portrayed the antithesis of Israel’s messianic expectations, because Israel expected a triumphant Messiah while the prophet foresaw a “suffering servant” Messiah. Jesus saw aspects of his own life and mission foreshadowed in the Servant Songs, and the Church refers to them in this time of solemn meditation on the climax of Jesus’ earthly life. These songs foretell Jesus’ conscious and active choice to remain faithful to his saving mission no matter what the cost: “I have not … turned back” and “I gave my back to those who beat me.” The kingship of Jesus was to mean suffering and humiliation, not just publicity and grandeur. In today’s Responsorial Psalm, (Ps 22), the Psalmist puts his trust in Yahweh for deliverance and salvation. The context of this day’s worship also conveys Jesus’ confidence in God’s protection in the midst of His trial and crucifixion. The passage encourages us to be companions of Jesus in suffering by offering our own sufferings in union with the redemptive sufferings of Christ, so that we may become collaborators in that suffering. The passage also challenges us to accept what we cannot change, so that we may endure the difficulty for as long as it is necessary, just as Christ did. (Personal application of the suffering servant prophecy: This prophecy speaks to you and me on at least two levels. First, we meditate on the prophet’s words, and recognize how much suffering Jesus went through for our salvation. Such meditation can only lead us to love him more and to desire that our will accord with his will at all times. Now at another level, we put ourselves into that prophetic scene. Wherever we see the word “I” or “me” we change that by inserting our own first name. In this way we will see that the Lord is calling us to imitate him. It can be an “aha” moment for us, a sudden understanding and a sudden call for a decision).
Second Reading, Philippians 2:6-11 explained: This section of Paul’s Letter to the Philippians is an ancient Christological hymn representing a very early Christian understanding of Who Jesus IS and how his mission saves us from sin and death. It is a message that Paul received from those who had been converted to Christ. It is a summary of ‘the great mysteries of our redemption,’ and it rightly serves as a preview of the events of Holy Week. It describes how Jesus, though Son of God, “emptied himself” of Divine glory and took the form of a man like us, in all things except sin. Out of love and obedience, Jesus willingly accepted his death, “even death on a cross.” Because Jesus humbled himself and did not cling to any of his special privileges as God’s Son, “God greatly exalted him and bestowed on him the name which is above all names.” We are called to have the same attitude of humility and obedience that Christ our Lord had. Christians reading this passage today are joining the first people who ever pondered the meaning of Jesus’ life and mission. We’re singing their song and reciting their creed during this special time of the year, when we remember the most important things Our Lord did. God humbled himself for us! Jesus’ triumph was his self-giving on the cross to open for us the road to the Father. All we can do in response is to bow our heads in awe, and present our loving, contrite hearts to God, begging for mercy. God wants our heart to be humbled, contrite, and truly repentant because only in that surrendered, enlightened, humbled condition is it open, and so able, to receive His Mercy and His Love.
The Gospel Readings: The first part of today’s Gospel (Lk 19:28-40) describes the royal reception which Jesus received from his admirers. They paraded with him for two miles: from the Mount of Olives to the city of Jerusalem. Two-and-a-half million people were normally present to celebrate the Jewish feast of the Passover. Jesus permitted such a royal procession for two reasons: 1) to reveal to the public that he was the promised Messiah, and 2) to fulfill the prophecies of Zechariah (9:9): “Rejoice heart and soul, daughter of Zion…. see now your King comes to you; he is victorious, triumphant, humble and riding on a donkey…”), and Zephaniah (3:16-19): “Fear not, O Zion, be not discouraged! The Lord, your God, is in your midst, a mighty Savior … He will … renew you in His love … I will save the lame, and assemble the outcasts … I will bring about their restoration.” (The traditional “Palm Sunday Procession” at Jerusalem began in the fourth century AD when the Bishop of Jerusalem led the procession from the Mount of Olives to the Church of the Ascension). In the second part of today’s Gospel (Lk 22:14—23:56; or 23:1-49), we listen to/participate in the Passion of Christ according to Luke. We are challenged to examine our own lives in the light of some of the characters in the story like Peter who denied Jesus, Judas who betrayed Jesus, Pilate who acted against his conscience and condemned Jesus, Herod who ridiculed Jesus, and the religious leaders of the people who preserved their position by getting rid of Jesus.
Special features of Luke’s passion narrative: 1) St. Luke in his Gospel presents Jesus as “the Savior of mankind.” So, in his passion narrative too, he stresses that Jesus suffered and died to save mankind. This, then, is not just the tragic story of one man; this is a story of a Savior who is fulfilling a mission. 2) From the outset, St. Luke also establishes Jesus’ death as an ‘innocent’ martyr who was betrayed, denied, and abandoned by friends, unjustly charged by a frenzied mob led by threatened religious leaders and abetted by weaseling politicians. Only in St. Luke’s narrative does Pilate pronounce Jesus’ innocence three times. Again, only St. Luke’s Gospel shows us Herod declaring Jesus’ innocence. We also notice the centurion’s statement, “Surely, this was the Son of God!” Even one of the criminals crucified with Jesus attests to Jesus’ innocence, “We are only paying the price for what we’ve done, but this man has done nothing wrong,” then declares his own faith in Jesus, begging, “Remember me, Lord, when you come into your Kingdom!” 3) St. Luke also affirms the fact that the “forgiving power” of God was already at work in Jesus before his death. His enemies humiliate him, strike him, scourge him. Soldiers make a crown with thorns, a crown for the “King of the Jews.” Herod mocks him. Through it all there is Jesus, and for his part, he does not strike back, he does not scold, he does not accuse, he does not blame. At every turn in this tangled web, in response to every individual and to the crowds who caused his suffering and death, Jesus forgives! Most remarkably, Jesus is ready to forgive his executioners, and, on the cross, he forgives asking his
Father to forgive those who are putting him to death (ourselves included), and promises paradise to one of the criminals who died with him who has asked, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your Kingdom.” Another wonder is his capacity in suffering to go out to others: to “turn towards” the women of Jerusalem, to acknowledge their grief, and to express his own concern for them. 4) Finally, right from the beginning of his ministry in the synagogue of Nazareth through his death on the cross at Calvary, Jesus is “’Spirit-filled’ and is always in union with God through prayer.” In Luke’s Gospel, Jesus is the rejected prophet, but he is also the one who trusts utterly in God. Jesus seems to be the victim, but, through it all, he is in fact, the master of the situation because he is master of himself. We notice that St. Luke’s depiction of Jesus at prayer on the Mount of Olives lays less stress on his being troubled and sorrowful and more in his union with God. That prayer is answered when an angel sent to strengthen him. This strength saw him through to the end, so that, just before he died Jesus prays, “Father, into your hands I commend my spirit.”
Gospel exegesis: Notes on Palm Sunday events: 1) Jesus rides on a lowly donkey: Doesn’t it seem odd that Jesus would walk 90 miles from the Galilee to Bethany and then secure a donkey for the final two miles to Jerusalem? In those days, Kings used to travel in such processions on horseback during wartime but preferred to ride a donkey in times of peace. I Kgs 1:38-41 describes how Prince Solomon used his father David’s royal donkey for the ceremonial procession on the day of his coronation. Jesus entered the Holy City as a King of Peace, fulfilling the prophecy of Zechariah. The Gospel specifically mentions that the colt Jesus selected for the procession was one that had not been ridden before, reminding us of a stipulation given in I Samuel 6:7 concerning the animal that was to carry the Ark of the Covenant.
2) The mode of reception given: Jesus was given a royal reception usually reserved for a king or military commander. I Mc 13:51ff describes such a reception given to the Jewish military leader Simon Maccabaeus in 171 BC. A similar reception given to another military general is found in II Mc 10:6-8. Judas Maccabaeus, who led the struggle against the Greek Seleucid Emperor, Antiochus IV Epiphanes, and liberated the Temple from pagan control in 163 BC.
3) The slogans used: The participants sang the “Hallel” psalm (Psalm 118), and shouted the words of Psalms 25 and 26. The Greek word “hosiana” originally meant “save us now” (II Sm 14:4). The people sang the entire Psalm 118 on the Feast of the Tabernacles when they marched seven times around the Altar of the Burnt Offering. On Palm Sunday, however, the people used the prayer “Hosanna” as a slogan of greeting. It meant “God save the king of Israel.”
4) The symbolic meaning of the Palm Sunday procession: Nearly 25,000 lambs were sacrificed during the feast of the “Pass Over,” but the lamb which was sacrificed by the High Priest was taken to the Temple in a procession four days before the main feast day. On Palm Sunday, Jesus, the true Paschal Lamb, was also taken to the Temple in a large procession.
5) Reaction of Jesus: Before the beginning of the procession, Jesus wept over Jerusalem: “As he drew near, he saw the city and wept over it, saying, “If this day you only knew what makes for peace – but now it has been hidden from your eyes. For the days are coming upon you when your enemies will raise a palisade against you; they will encircle you and hem you in on all sides. They will smash you to the ground and your children within you, and they will not leave one stone upon another within you because you did not recognize the time of your visitation.’” (Lk 19:41-42). When the procession was over, Jesus cleansed the Temple (Lk 19:45-46). On the following day, Jesus cursed a barren fig tree tree for “lying” with its leaves. It looked good from the outside, but there were no figs there. Surely, he must have intended a reference to the Temple. The religious folk of his day were impotent and infertile. They had taken a good thing, religion, and reduced it to an empty sham.
Life Messages: 1) Let us not cause Jesus to weep over us. There is a Jewish saying, “Heaven rejoices over a repentant sinner and sheds tears over a non-repentant, hardhearted one.” We need to imitate the prodigal son and return to God, our loving Father, through the Sacrament of Reconciliation during this last week of Lent so that we may participate fully in the joy of Christ’s Resurrection.
2) We need to be fruit-producing and not barren fig trees. God expects us to produce fruits of holiness, purity, justice, humility, obedience, charity, and forgiveness. We should not continue to produce bitter fruits of impurity, injustice, pride, hatred, jealousy, and selfishness.
3) Let us not desecrate our hearts and prompt Jesus to cleanse it with His whip. Jesus cannot tolerate the desecration of the temple of the Holy Spirit (which we have become), by our addiction to uncharitable, unjust and impure thoughts, words, and deeds, or by our business mentality — calculation of loss and gain — in our relationship with God, our Heavenly Father.
4) We need to welcome Jesus into our hearts in a special way during the Holy Week. We must be ready to surrender our lives to Jesus during this Holy Week and welcome Him into all areas of our life as our Lord and Savior, singing “Hosanna.” Today, we receive palm branches at the Divine Liturgy. Let us take them to our homes and put them in a place where we can always see them. Let the palms remind us that Christ is the King of our families, that Christ is the King of our hearts, and that Christ is the only true answer to our quest for happiness and meaning in our lives. And if we do proclaim Christ as our King, let us try to make time for Him in our daily life. Let us remember that He is the One with Whom we will be spending eternity. Let us be reminded further that our careers, our education, our finances, our homes, all of the basic material needs in our lives are only temporary. Let us prioritize and place Christ the King as the primary concern in our lives. It is only when we have done this that we will find true peace and happiness in our confused and complex world.
5) We need to be ready to become like the humble donkey that carried Jesus. As we “carry Jesus” to the world, we may receive the same welcome that Jesus received on Palm Sunday, but we may also meet the same opposition, crosses, and trials later. Like the donkey, we are called upon to carry Christ to a world that does not know Him. Let us always remember that a Christian without Christ is a contradiction in terms. Such a one betrays the Christian message. Hence, let us become transparent Christians during this Holy Week, enabling others to see in us Jesus’ universal love, unconditional forgiveness, and sacrificial service.
6) We need to face these hard questions on Palm Sunday. Are we willing to follow Jesus, not just to Church but in our daily life? Are we willing to entrust ourselves to Him even when the future is frightening or confusing, believing God has a plan? Are we willing to serve Him until that day when His plan for us on earth is fulfilled? These are the questions of Palm Sunday. Let us take a fresh look at this familiar event. It could change us forever, because the Passion of Jesus shows us that, though we are sinners who have crucified Jesus, we are able, by His gift, to turn back to Jesus again and ask for his mercy in the Sacrament of Reconciliation. It is through the Passion of Jesus that we receive forgiveness: “But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; upon Him was the chastisement that made us whole, and with His stripes we are healed.” (Is 53:5).
7) On which side will we take a stand? Will we say by our life and the way we live, “Blessed is He who comes in the Name of the Lord?” Or will we say by our life and the way we live, “Crucify Him,” and, like Pilate, wash our hands of Him?
Jokes of the Week: 1) Little Johnny was sick on Palm Sunday and stayed home from Church with his mother. His father returned from Church holding a palm branch. The little boy was curious and asked, “Why do you have that palm branch, Dad?” His father explained, “You see, when Jesus came into town, everyone waved palm branches to honor Him; so we got palm branches today.” “Aw, shucks,” grumbled Little Johnny. “The one Sunday I can’t go to Church, and Jesus shows up!”
2) The king on a donkey! Some of you heard my story about the husband and the wife who had quarreled. It had been a pitched battle of wills, each digging heels in to preserve the position each had vehemently taken. Emotions had run high. As they were driving to attend a family wedding in a distant city, both were nursing hurt feelings in defensive silence. The angry tension between them was so thick you could cut it with a knife. But, then the silence was broken. Pointing to a donkey standing in a pasture out beside the road, the husband sarcastically asked, “Relative of yours?” The wife quickly replied, “By marriage!”
WEBSITES ON HOLY WEEK RESOURCES (The easiest method to visit these websites is to copy and paste the web address or URL on the Address bar of any Internet website like Google or MSN and press the Enter button of your Keyboard).
1) http://www.textweek.com/holyweek.htm 2) http://catholicfaitheducation.blogspot.com/2009/04/resources-for-holy-week-and-easter.html 3) http://www.churchyear.net/holyweek.html, 4) http://www.liturgy.co.nz/churchyear/palmsunday.html
5) Fr. Don’ collection of video homilies & blogs: https://sundayprep.org/ (copy and paste the web address or URL on the Address bar of any Internet website like Google or MSN and press the Enter button of your Keyboard)
6) Video Sunday-Scripture study by Fr. Geoffrey Plant: https://www.youtube.com/user/GeoffreyPlant2066
Holy Week videos: Holy Week parish mission: https://youtu.be/OlpTFUqOkj0
Catholic online video: https://www.youtube.com/user/GeoffreyPlant2066
Various clips from different movies: https://youtu.be/rdyJO-_aAv8
https://youtu.be/SoujG6h7UGI
Jesus’ Last Week in Jerusalem (from Agape Bible Study)
Day #1: Saturday is the 9th of Nisan. Six days before the Passover Jesus attends a dinner in Bethany at the home of Martha, Mary, and Lazarus where Mary anoints His feet (Jn 12:1-8).
Day #2: Sunday is the 10th of Nisan, the day Jesus rode into Jerusalem (Jn 12:12-19). Day #3: Monday is the 11th of Nisan. Day #4: Tuesday is the 12th of Nisan. Day #5: Wednesday is the 13th of Nisan, two days before the Passover as the ancients counted. The chief priests decide to find a way to put Jesus to death. He attends a dinner in Bethany at the home of Simon where a woman anoints His head (Mt 26:2-13; Mk 14:1-9).
Day #6: Thursday is the 14th of Nisan; the day of the Passover sacrifice, six days after the dinner at Bethany. The Passover sacrifice took place at the Temple after the afternoon sacrifice of the Tamid lamb, which was moved forward an hour (See the e-book, “Jesus and the Mystery of the Tamid Sacrifice.”) The liturgical worship service continued with the sacrifice of the Passover victims from 3 – 5 PM our time (the 3rd to the 9th hours Jewish time) unless the day of the sacrifice fell on a Friday. In that case, according to the Jewish Talmud, the afternoon worship service began at twelve-thirty in the afternoon, and the Passover sacrifices began the next hour at 1:30 (Mishnah: Pesahim, 5:1B-D). The meal of the Passover victims took place in residences in Jerusalem after sundown on the first night of the feast of Unleavened Bread (our Thursday night but for the Jews the beginning of their Friday). Jesus celebrated the sacred meal of the Passover victim, which we call the “Last Supper,” with His friends that night as He completed the Old Covenant sacred meal and instituted the New Covenant sacred meal of the Eucharist ( Mt 26:17-20, 26-29; Mk 14:12-17, 22-25; Lk 22:7-20).
Day #7: Friday: Jesus’ arrest, trials (before the Sanhedrin and the Roman governor, Pilate), and crucifixion.
27 Additional anecdotes:
1) Two processions: “Two processions entered Jerusalem on a spring day in the year 30 … One was a peasant procession, the other an imperial procession. From the east, Jesus rode a donkey down the Mount of Olives, cheered by his followers. Jesus was from the peasant village of Nazareth, his message was about the kingdom of God, and his followers came from the peasant class …On the opposite side of the city, from the west, Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor of Idumea, Judea and Samaria, entered Jerusalem at the head of a column of imperial cavalry and soldiers. Jesus’s procession proclaimed the Kingdom of God; Pilate’s proclaimed the power of empire. The two processions embody the central conflict of the week that led to Jesus’ crucifixion. As Mark tells the story in 11:1-11, Jesus’ procession is a prearranged ‘counter-procession.’” The meaning of the demonstration is clear, for it uses symbolism from the prophet Zechariah in the Jewish Bible. According to Zechariah, a king would be coming to Jerusalem (Zion), ‘humble, and riding on a colt, the foal of a donkey’ (9:9). Jesus’s procession deliberately countered what was happening on the other side of the city. Pilate’s procession embodied the power, glory, and violence of the empire that ruled the world. Jesus’ procession embodied an alternative vision, the Kingdom of God. The king, riding on a donkey, will banish war from the land—no more chariots, warhorses, or bows. Commanding peace to the nations, Jesus will be a king of peace. Pilate’s military procession was a demonstration of both Roman imperial power and Roman imperial theology — worshipping the emperor as a god. It was the standard practice of the Roman governors of Judea to be in Jerusalem for the Jewish festivals … to be in the city in case there was trouble … The mission of the troops with Pilate was to reinforce the Roman garrison permanently stationed in the Fortress Antonia, overlooking the Jewish Temple and its courts. No wonder, the Roman governor recognized the peasant procession as a threat to his government and, hence, decided that its leader should be exterminated.” (Marcus Borg and John Dominic Crossan, The Last Week: A Day-by-Day Account of Jesus’ Final Week in Jerusalem.
2) Welcome to the triumph and the tragedy of the Holy Week: On Palm Sunday, April 9, 1865, Confederate General Robert E. Lee surrendered to Ulysses S. Grant, General of the Union Army, at the Appomattox Court House, Appomattox, Virginia. This surrender ended the bloodiest war ever fought on American soil. State against state, brother against brother, it was a conflict that literally tore the nation apart. Five days later, on Good Friday, April 14, 1865, America’s most revered president, Abraham Lincoln, was shot and mortally wounded by John Wilkes Booth in Ford’s Theatre. It was Lincoln who wrote the 1863 Emancipation Proclamation that ended slavery in the U.S. forever. It was Lincoln who wrote and gave The Gettysburg Address. Lincoln hated war, but he was drawn into this one because he believed it was the only way to save the nation. On Palm Sunday, the war ended. Triumph. On Good Friday, Abraham Lincoln became the first U.S. president to be assassinated. Tragedy. — Welcome to Holy Week. Welcome to the triumph and the tragedy of the six days preceding Easter. (Surrender location corrected by Fr. Richard W. Frank, richardwfrank1@yahoo.com)
3) The cross and the crucifix down through the centuries: Until the fifth century AD, the early Christians generally avoided representing the Cross with the body of Jesus; in fact, even bare crosses were rarely depicted until the fourth century AD. As J. H. Miller (op. cit.) explained, there were many reasons for the Church’s reluctance to openly represent the cross as its symbol. For many Jews and Gentiles, the cross underscored the seemingly irreconcilable contradiction of Christian belief, viz. that a crucified man could also be God. As various early heresies attacked either the divinity or humanity of Christ, the symbol of the cross, which seemed to exacerbate the conflict, was avoided. Not until the fourth century (during the reign of Constantine) did the cross begin to appear everywhere in public places as the pre-eminent symbol of Christianity. Despite the frequency of its representation in Christian art and architecture, the cross remains an ambivalent symbol. In its crossbeams meet death and life, sin and salvation, conquest and victory, immanence and transcendence. The cross represents both the basest aspects of the human condition and the most sublime reflection of divinity. As Karl Rahner once explained, “the cross of the Lord is the revelation of what sin really is. The cross of Christ mercilessly reveals what the world hides from itself: that it, as it were, devours the Son of God in the insane blindness of its sin — a sin in which Godless hate is truly set on fire upon contact with the love of God” (The Content of Faith, Crossroad Press, New York: 1992). 12:32). — As the dual revelation of the sinfulness of humanity and the love of God, the cross is unparalleled.
( Sanchez Files).
4) He took the form of a slave. There is an event in the life of the black Dominican friar, St. Martin de Porres, that is worth recalling on Passion Sunday. Most readers will know something about this lay brother of Lima, Peru. He was born in 1579, died in 1639, and was proclaimed a saint in 1962. Back in Peru’s colonial days, the ruling Spaniards brought over thousands of African blacks as slaves. Some of the slaves eventually won their freedom, most did not; and there was as much racial discrimination in South America as there has been in the United States. In his own person, Martin summarized the woes of the kidnapped black race. His Mother, Anna Velasquez, was a free black woman; his father a Spanish nobleman – in rank if not in character. When Anna showed Juan de Porres his baby boy, he exclaimed, “I won’t accept him as mine. He’s too dark!” Eventually, he came around and acknowledged his legal paternity. But he did very little to help his son, so Martin had to live out the role of a half-caste on the fringe of Liman society. Another mulatto might have soured on life. Not Martin. He chose sanctity over cynicism. Joining the Dominican Order, he spent his life in utter humility and service of others. One day this unselfish lay brother learned that his superior, faced with a shortage of funds to run the monastery, had set out for the market to sell some of the house’s most valuable items. Martin ran after the priest and caught up with him before he had reached the marketplace. “Please don’t sell our possessions,” the saint blurted out. “Sell me! I’m not worth being kept in the order, anyhow; and I am strong and can work!” The superior, deeply touched, shook his head, “Go back to the monastery.” he said gently, “you are not for sale!” So Martin remained free. But he had at least tried sincerely to imitate the Christ who did “empty Himself and took on the form of a slave… obediently accepting even death, death on a cross.” (Phil 2:7.8 Today’s second reading. (Father Robert F. McNamara.
5) “What did the Christians’ God do then? On Marco Polo’s celebrated trip to the Orient, he was taken before the great and fearsome ruler, Genghis Khan. Now what was Marco Polo supposed to do before this mighty pagan conqueror? One false move could cost him his life. He decided to tell the story of Jesus as it is recorded in the Gospels. It is said that when Marco Polo related the events of Holy Week, describing Jesus’ betrayal, His trial, scourging, and crucifixion, Genghis Khan became more and more agitated, more engrossed in the story, and more tense. When Marco Polo pronounced the words, “Then Jesus bowed his head and yielded up His spirit,” Genghis Khan could no longer contain himself. He interrupted, bellowing, “What did the Christians’ God do then? Did He send thousands of angels from Heaven to smite and destroy those who killed his Son?” — What did the Christians’ God do then? He watched His beloved Son die, that’s what the Christians’ God did then. For that was the way God chose for Jesus to ascend the throne of His Kingdom and to establish His Lordship for all time. Not at all the way we would expect God to demonstrate His might and power, but that’s the way it was, and that is how we know what our God is like. In practical terms, that means that this suffering King who rules in love comes to lay His claim on our life. Our entire life is subject to His Lordship, not just a portion of it. To have Christ for our King means that we must rely on Him for everything, most of all the forgiveness of sins.
6) “Either give up Christ or give up your jobs.” Constantine the Great was the first Christian Roman emperor. His father Constantius I who succeeded Diocletian as emperor in 305 AD, was a pagan with a soft heart for Christians. It is said that when he ascended the throne, he discovered that many Christians held important jobs in the government and in the court. So he issued an executive order to all those Christians: “Either give up Christ or give up your jobs.” The great majority of Christians gave up their jobs rather than disown Christ. Only a few cowards gave up their religion rather than lose their jobs. The emperor was pleased with the majority who showed the courage of their convictions and gave their jobs back to them while he dismissed those who were willing to give up their allegiance to Christ to keep their jobs, saying to them, “If you will not be true to your God, you will not be true to me either.” — Today we join the Palm Sunday crowd in spirit to declare our loyalty to Christ and our fidelity to His teachings by actively participating in the Palm Sunday liturgy. As we carry the palm to our homes, we are declaring our choice to accept Jesus as the King and ruler of our lives and our families. Let us express our gratitude to Jesus for redeeming us by His suffering and death. We do so best by our active participation in the Holy Week liturgy and our reconciliation with God and His Church, as we repent of our sins and receive God’s pardon and forgiveness from Jesus through his Church.
7) Passion Sunday and the shadow of the cross: The Bishop of Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris during the early part of the last century was a great evangelizer who tried to reach out to unbelievers, scoffers, and cynics. He liked to tell the story of a young man who would stand outside the cathedral and shout derogatory slogans at the people entering to worship. He would call them fools and other insulting names. The people tried to ignore him but it was difficult. One day the parish priest went outside to confront the young man, much to the distress of the parishioners. The young man ranted and raved against everything the priest told him. Finally, the priest addressed the young scoffer, saying, “Look, let’s get this over with once and for all. I’m going to dare you to do something and I bet you can’t do it.” And, of course, the young man shot back, “I can do anything you propose, you white-robed wimp!” “Fine,” said the priest. “All I ask you to do is to come into the sanctuary with me. I want you to stare at the figure of Christ on His cross, and I want you to scream at the very top of your lungs, as loudly as you can. ‘Christ died on the cross for me, and I don’t care one bit.” So the young man went into the sanctuary, and looking at the figure, screamed as loudly as he could, “Christ died on the cross for me, and I don’t care one bit.” The priest said, “Very good. Now do it again.” And again the young man screamed, with a little hesitancy, “Christ died on the cross for me, and I don’t care one bit.” “You’re almost done now,” said the priest. “One more time.” The young man raised his fist, kept looking at the crucifix, but the words wouldn’t come. He just could not look at the face of Christ and say those words any more. The real punch line came when, after he told the story, the bishop said, “I was that young man. That young man, that defiant young man was I. I thought I didn’t need God but found out that I did.” (World Stories for Preachers and Teachers by William J. Bausch).
8) In the footsteps of Jesus, the donkey rider: There is a biography of a man who was one of the most learned people of his generation. He had two PhDs – one in philosophy, another in theology. Further, he was a world-class musician, and concert halls around the world were sold out when he went on tour. Then, to the surprise of everyone, he decided he wanted to go to a medical college to earn yet another doctoral degree in medicine. As soon as he had his medical degree, he left the comfortable surroundings of Western Europe and went into the jungles of Africa. There he cleared away part of the jungle and began building a clinic and a hospital. Once these were built, he started providing medical care to the young and old of Africa. Many years later, Dr. Albert Schweitzer won the Nobel Peace Prize for his ministry of healing in the jungles of Africa. When he accepted the Nobel Peace Prize, he shared with that distinguished crowd in Stockholm the reason he had built a hospital in Africa. The reason was summed up, he stated in the first words he always said to his native patients as they awakened from an operation. He would say: “The reason that you have no more pain is because the Lord Jesus told the good doctor and his wife to come to the banks of Ogooue River and help you. If you owe thanks to anyone, you owe it to the Lord Jesus.” He accepted the challenge to be a humble servant of Jesus Christ. — And this is our challenge! This is your challenge, this is my challenge, in this Holy Week. When we look beyond our own needs to the needs of others, we will be walking the road to becoming humble servants of Jesus Christ.
9) “Welcome home Mr. President.” In 1978, Newsweek magazine carried the story of the memorial service held for Hubert Humphrey, former Vice-President of the United States. Hundreds of people came from all over the world to say good-bye to their old friend and colleague. But one person who came was shunned and ignored by virtually everyone there. Nobody would look at him much less speak to him. That person was former President Richard Nixon. Not long before, he had gone through the shame and infamy of Watergate (which began in June, 1972; it was revealed by news reporters Woodward and Bernstein in Washington Post). Now he was back in Washington for the first time since his resignation from the presidency (August 9, 1974). Then a very special thing happened, perhaps the only thing that could have made a difference and broken the ice. President Jimmy Carter, who was in the White House at that time, came into the room. Before he was seated, he saw Nixon over against the wall, all by himself. He went over to [him] as though he were greeting a family member, stuck out his hand to the former president, and smiled broadly. To the surprise of everyone there, the two of them embraced each other, and Carter said, “Welcome home, Mr. President! Welcome home!” Commenting on that, Newsweek magazine asserted, “If there was a turning point in Nixon’s long ordeal in the wilderness, it was that moment and that gesture of love and compassion.” — The turning point for us is Palm Sunday. It is our moment of triumph. It was a triumph because God, Jesus, decided to ignore our miserable state and act on our behalf.
10) “Hosanna!” leading to the cross: Some years ago, a book was written by a noted American historian entitled When the Cheering Stopped. It was the story of President Woodrow Wilson and the events leading up to and following World War I. When that war was over, Wilson, the 28th president of the United States was an international hero. There was a great spirit of optimism abroad, and people actually believed that the last war had been fought, and the world had been made safe for democracy. On his first visit to Paris after the war, Wilson was greeted by cheering mobs. He was actually more popular than France’s own heroes. The same thing was true in England and Italy. The cheering lasted about a year. Then it gradually began to stop. At home, Woodrow Wilson ran into opposition in the United States Senate, and they refused to ratify US membership in his League of Nations. Under the strain of it all, the President’s health began to break. In the next election his party was defeated. So it was that Woodrow Wilson, a man who barely a year or two earlier had been heralded as the new world Messiah, came to the end of his days a broken and defeated man. — It’s a sad story, but one that is not altogether unfamiliar. The ultimate reward for someone who tries to translate ideals into reality is apt to be frustration and defeat. It happened that way to Jesus. When He emerged on the public scene, He was an overnight sensation. On Palm Sunday, leafy palm branches were spread before Him and there were shouts of “Hosanna!” But before it was all over, a tidal wave of manipulated opposition had welled up that brought Jesus to the cross.
10) Christ-less donkey arrested and handcuffed on a Palm Sunday: The light turns green, but the man doesn’t notice that the light has changed. The woman behind him begins pounding on her steering wheel and yelling at the man to move! The man doesn’t move! The woman is going ballistic, ranting and raving at the man, pounding on her steering wheel. When the light turns yellow, the woman begins blowing her car’s horn and screaming curses at the man. Finally, the man looks up, sees the yellow light, and accelerates through the intersection just as the light turns red. While she is still ranting, she hears a tap on her window and looks up into the barrel of a gun held by a very serious looking policeman. The policeman tells her to pull her car to the side, shut off the engine, come out and stand facing the car, while keeping both hands on the car roof. She is quickly cuffed, and hustled into the patrol car. The woman is too bewildered to ask any questions, and she is driven to the police station, where she is fingerprinted, photographed, searched, booked, and locked up in a cell. After a couple of hours, a policeman approaches the cell, and opens the door. The policeman hands her the bag containing her things, and says, “I’m sorry for this mistake, but you see, I pulled up behind your car while you were blowing your horn, and cursing at the car in front of you. I noticed the “Choose Christ” license plate holder, and the “Follow Me To Sunday School” bumper sticker, and Palm Sunday palm leaves inside the back windshield. So naturally I assumed you had stolen the car because such a nice Christian, who courageously displays Christian symbols in her car, would never act as you did.”
11) A donkey at Kentucky Derby? Church tradition tells us (though none of the Gospels report it), that this wasn’t Jesus’ first donkey ride. Matthew’s text doesn’t detail how Joseph traveled with Mary to Egypt and back to Nazareth again. Nor does Luke’s Gospel describe how Mary and Joseph journeyed to Bethlehem. But all of us have in our heads the picture of a pregnant Mary perched on the back of a sturdy donkey. Our mind’s eye puts her back on that beast for the escape to Egypt and the homeward trek to Nazareth after Herod had died. Church tradition has long suggested that in honor of the donkey’s humble service to Jesus, the animal was rewarded with a permanent “sign of the cross,” for most donkeys do show a distinctive black cross pattern across their sturdy shoulders. — Despite this lip service from Church tradition, the donkey still remains far beyond the pale of glory. Little girls don’t dream of riding across summer fields on a little donkey. The Kentucky Derby doesn’t blow the herald horn for a herd of dinky donkeys to race around the track. And everyone from Shakespeare to Pinocchio knows that fools and dolts are depicted as donkeys. Of course, the donkey’s other common name says it all: a donkey is just an . . . well, you know what that word is. — Yet if the mission of the Church is to carry Christ into the world, then each of us is called to be a donkey. There’s no particular glory in being a donkey. There are only long trails, steep roads, heavy loads, and little or no recognition for a completed job.
12) An angry Christ: A Catholic priest in Dayton, Ohio defied his archbishop by denying Communion to worshipers who did not observe a dress code. For several years he had denied the Sacraments to anyone who came to Church in “shorts, bare midriffs, tank tops, jeans, and sweatshirts.” Finally, the Archbishop retired the 73-year old priest for defying his authority. The priest said: “I do not hate the Archbishop. I have only pity for him, since he will have to face an angry Christ in judgment.” (Christian Century, January 24, 1990, page 73). — Whatever we may think of the good priest’s sartorial preferences, we must be shocked awake by his words: “an angry Christ.” Yes, according to the Gospel record, Christ did get angry. And He got angry over something a whole lot more important than a dress code. In fact, it might be argued that the attitude expressed by the good father in Dayton was precisely the sort of attitude that made Jesus really angry — putting roadblocks in front of people who wished to come to Him. The first place where it says He got angry was when He was forbidden to heal on the Sabbath. (Mk 3:5) In another place, anger is not mentioned, but implied. That was when He came to the Temple on the Monday of Passion Week. There, His passion burst forth against the moneychangers in the Temple.
13) A parade of humility: A pastor was once asked to speak at a banquet for a charitable organization. After the meeting, the program chairman handed the pastor a check. “Oh, I don’t want this,” the pastor said. “I appreciate the honor of being asked to speak. Keep the check and apply it to something special.” The program chairman asked, “Well, do you mind if we put it in our special fund?” “Of course not!” the pastor replied. “Could you please tell me what your special fund is for?” The chairman answered, “It’s so we can get a better speaker for next year.” — Life is full of humbling experiences. But, when we look at Jesus’ parade through the Holy City, we sense that it was an act of humility. He did not choose to ride into the city upon a stallion, but a donkey. He was not coming in the might and power of a conquering king, but as a humble servant.
14) “The Hero’s Quest.” Some of you will remember the name of Joseph Campbell. Campbell taught in relative obscurity for many years until Bill Moyers discovered him, did a series on public television about Campbell’s ideas about mythology and comparative religions, and thus elevated him into celebrity, most of it posthumous since Campbell died shortly after that television series. What caught Moyers’ attention was Campbell’s book entitled, The Hero with a Thousand Faces. Incidentally, it also caught George Lucas’s attention and was the inspiration for his film, Star Wars. The thesis of that book is that the same story appears over and over again in all the world’s literature, including the Bible. He called that story, The Hero’s Quest. He said that the plot is always the same. A hero must make a solitary journey, sometimes to climb a mountain to get the prize, sometimes to go to the cave to slay the dragon, sometimes to journey the gates of the forbidden city. The hero is the person who faces hostile powers, enters the struggle, prepared to give his or her life, and then comes out of it a new person, with a new life. — Those stories are everywhere. They are a part of every culture. In Greece, we see it as the Golden Fleece. In Britain, we find it in the Arthurian legends and the story of the Holy Grail. And in the Bible, it is the story of Abraham leaving Ur of Chaldees, the most civilized part of the world in those days, and journeying through many “dangers, toils, and snares” (Amazing Grace), to a promised land. Or it is Moses, leaving the comfort and security of shepherding in Midian to go to Egypt and confront Pharaoh. Or it is David, leaving the simple life of a shepherd boy and going out to meet the giant Goliath. But unparalleled story in history is Jesus, leaving the safety of Galilee and heading for Jerusalem to accomplish His mission of redeeming mankind by His suffering, death and Resurrection. That is the story of Palm Sunday.
15) “Sir, I just know I love Jesus.” In a Sociology of Religion class at the University of Virginia, the professor asked the students in the first class to describe their religious background and commitments. One young woman named Barb said she was a Christian. The professor asked, “What tradition of the Christian faith do you identify with? The northern European or English pietism or another?” The student did not understand his question. Finally, she said, “Sir, I don’t know exactly what you mean; I just know I love Jesus.” Right there in a classroom, Jesus was declared to be King and perhaps attracted more followers. One of my favorite golfers on the pro tour is Tom Lehman. He often says, “I think of myself as a Christian who plays golf, not as a golfer who is a Christian.” — What about you? Are you first a Christian and then secondarily a banker or a teacher or a salesperson or a Republican or a white person or a husband or a mother? Is the word “Christian” your most important adjective? When you declare, “Jesus is Lord!” have you revealed the essential you? — This Jesus is still marching down the streets of the world, calling people to decision. Jesus is the unidentified King who has no crown to wear or kingdom to command…until one person at a time declares by Faith, “Jesus is Lord for me. He will reign in my life.”
16) The myth of redemptive violence: “In a period when attendance at Christian Sunday schools is dwindling, the myth of redemptive violence has won children’s voluntary acquiescence to a regimen of religious indoctrination more extensive and effective than any in the history of religions. Estimates vary widely, but the average child is reported to log roughly 36,000 hours of television by age 18, viewing some 15,000 murders. What church or synagogue can even remotely keep pace with the myth of redemptive violence in hours spent teaching children or the quality of presentation? (Think of the typical “children’s sermon” – how bland by comparison!)” With that kind of insight as a background, perhaps we should EXPECT what happened to Jesus in the Holy Week.” (“The Myth of Redemptive Violence” http://www.biblesociety.org.uk/exploratory/articles/wink99.doc ).
17) After the shouts of Hosanna, we should walk to Golgotha: Bishop Kenneth Carder (Tennessee) wrote: “The Church of today has become an institution in which even belief in God is optional or peripheral. Marketing techniques for a multiple option institution have replaced response to the Gospel of Jesus Christ as the means of membership enlistment. The basic appeal is to self-defined needs rather than a call to radical discipleship. The Church’s mission, all too often, is to meet its members’ perceived needs rather than to serve God’s need for a redeemed, reconciled, and healed world.” — Our concept of consumerism has crept into the Church. To recruit persons and to be “marketable” we think that we need to be able to say: “Look what our Church can offer you.” In this atmosphere of a sorority rush party, talk of discipleship is muted. Discipleship means knowing Who Jesus Christ IS, and following the Revelation made known to us in His teaching, death, Resurrection, and presence. Commitment means that, after the shouts of Hosanna, we walk to Golgotha carrying His cross of suffering.
18) And Superman ducked! Jesus rides upon a donkey fulfilling an ancient prophecy, but clearly in total control. He knows what will happen to Him in Jerusalem. Still, He rides on. He does not seek to avoid the task to which He has been called. — This reminds me of a routine comedian David Brenner used to do about Superman in the movies. Go back with me in your minds. Picture this scene. Superman is confronting one of the bad guys. The bad guy would fire at Superman with a gun. Superman would smirk and throw his chest out. The bullets would bounce harmlessly away. But did you ever notice what happened next? Brenner said, “And then when the guy ran out of bullets, he would throw the gun at Superman. And Superman ducked.” He ducked! I’ll bet you never thought about that before. Bullets bounced off of him, but when a gun was thrown at him, Superman ducked. — Perhaps that amusing insight will serve to remind us that Jesus did not have to enter Jerusalem on Palm Sunday. He could have ducked His mission. But still He rode on.
19) King for a day: Once upon a time, before television, there was radio. One of the most popular daytime radio programs in those days was called Queen for a Day. Each day four or five women from the studio audience would tell the host what they would like to do if they could be “Queen for a Day.” Then, on the basis of applause, one woman was chosen, and insofar as they were able, the sponsors fulfilled her wildest desires. She was given a number of valuable prizes and for one day she reigned as “Queen.” — That sounds like what happened to Jesus, doesn’t it? Jesus was crowned “King for a Day” on that first Palm Sunday.
20) The humble king versus proud kings: The dictator Sulla during the time of the Roman republic invented “proscription,” by which he would just announce whom he wanted dead. This would be read out in public places and he then would reward anyone who would kill that particular person. Caligula abandoned himself to cruelty and lust. He declared himself to be a god and would often go through the streets of Rome dressed as Bacchus, Venus, or Apollo. The Romans were compelled to worship him, and he made the wealthiest citizens his priests. Having exhausted Rome and Italy, in AD. 39 Caligula led a large army across the Alps for the purpose of plundering Gaul, where the richest citizens were put to death and their property confiscated. — The crowd that cheered Jesus was familiar with such cruelties of the Kings and Emperors. Contrary to their experience, they found a new procession where the King was adorned with humility. (Fr. Bobby Jose).
21) “Help! Help!” There is an old story about a preacher who was having problems and decided to leave the ministry. But he ran into trouble finding another job. Finally, in desperation, he took a job at the local zoo. The gorilla had died, and since it had been the children’s favorite animal, the zoo officials decided to put someone in a gorilla costume until a real replacement could be found. To the minister’s surprise, he liked the job. He enjoyed ministering to children as the donkey on Palm Sunday carried Jesus. He got lots of attention and could eat all he wanted. There was no stress: there were no deadlines, complaints or committees. And he could take a nap anytime he wanted. One day he was feeling particularly frisky. So he began swinging on the trapeze. Higher and higher he went. But suddenly he lost his grip, flipped a couple of times, and landed in the next cage. Stunned and dazed, he looked up and saw a ferocious lion. In his panic he forgot he was supposed to be a gorilla and yelled, “Help! Help!” That ferocious lion turned in his direction and said, “Oh, shut up, man, I’m a minister too.” — Unlike these gorilla and lion ministers, all of us are supposed to be donkey ministers by becoming “donkey-givers,” like the man Jesus met long ago, who loaned his donkey to Jesus to ride as he entered Jerusalem to be greeted by the people wild joy and waving palm branches. We become “donkey-givers” when we give something that promotes Jesus and His Kingdom. Five hundred years from now as we delight in the glory of God’s Kingdom, we will not even remember how much money we earned on earth or how big our houses were or whether we had much status or popularity. But we will celebrate forever every single donkey we gave to the Master in the form of little things we have done for others in Jesus’ name for God’s glory.
22) Speaking Donkey: Ever wonder why the donkey is the only animal in the Bible that speaks? Karl Barth at his 80th birthday party offered this testimony: “In the Bible there’s talk of a donkey, or to be quite correct, an ass. It was allowed to carry Jesus to Jerusalem. If I have achieved anything in this life, then I did so as a relative of the ass who at that time was going his way carrying an important burden. The disciples had said to its owner: ‘The Master has need of it.’ And so, it seems to have pleased God to have used me at this time. Apparently, I was permitted to be the ass which was allowed to carry as best I could a better theology, a little piece” [as quoted by John Robert McFarland’s Preacher’s Workshop in “The Illustration is the Point,” The Christian Ministry, (January-February, 1988), 21.]
23) “The Traveler”: Richard Matheson wrote a science-fiction story called “The Traveler.” It’s about a scientist called Paul Jairus, who is part of a research team that has developed an energy screen to permit people to travel back into time. The first trip is scheduled to take place a few days before Christmas and Jairus has been picked to make the trip. He decides to go back in time to the crucifixion of Jesus on Calvary. Jairus is a non-believer and anticipates finding the crucifixion different from the way the Bible describes it. When the historic moment comes, Jairus steps into the energy screen and soon finds himself soaring back into time -100 years, 1000 years, 2000 years. The energy screen touches down on target and Calvary is swarming with people, everybody’s attention is focused on three men nailed to crosses about 100 feet away. Immediately Jairus asks the Command Centre for permission to move closer to the crosses, they grant it, but tell him to stay inside the energy screen. Jairus moves closer and as he does, his eyes come to rest on Jesus. Suddenly something remarkable begins to happen, Jairus feels drawn to Jesus, as a tiny piece of metal is drawn to a magnet. He is deeply moved by the love radiating from Jesus; it’s something he’d never experienced before. Then contrary to all his expectations, events on Calvary begin to unfold exactly as the Gospel described them. Jairus is visibly shaken. — The Command Centre realizes this and fears he’s becoming emotionally involved. They tell him to prepare for immediate return to the 20th century. Jairus protests, but to no avail. The trip back goes smoothly. When Jairus steps from the energy screen, it’s clear he’s a changed man. (Mark Link )
24) Victory of St. Polycarp: In Christian art, the martyrs are almost always shown holding palm branches as symbols of victory over temptation and suffering. These martyrs are our older brothers and sisters in the Faith; God wants us to learn from and be encouraged by them. Take the example of St Polycarp, Bishop of Smyrna. • In the year 155, Polycarp was condemned to death for refusing to give idolatrous worship to the Roman Emperor. As he was a well-known Christian leader, even though he was already in his 80s, his execution was made into a large public spectacle. • He was burned to death in the city stadium. • Normally, criminals executed that way were actually fastened to the pile of wood, so that they wouldn’t climb out of the fire. • But not Polycarp. • He told his guards: “He who gives me strength to endure the fire will also grant me to stay on the pyre unflinching even without your making sure of it with nails.” • According to eye witnesses, his last words were a prayer of blessing and thanksgiving to God for giving him the honor of sharing Christ’s cup of suffering. • Those same eye witnesses tell us that when the fire was lit, • a great flame blazed up, • but instead of burning Polycarp right away, • it surrounded him like a fiery force field; • his face was serene and his body glowed like gold being refined in a furnace. • As he peacefully breathed his last, the onlookers perceived a fragrant smell, as if incense were being offered. — This is the paradox of Palm Sunday, which God wants us all to experience: that Christ’s limitless love • can strengthen us to resist even the greatest temptations, • and fill us with interior peace and joy even amidst the flames of suffering that torment us here on earth. (E- Priest)
25) Helplessness of a terminal cancer patient: The renowned spiritual writer, Henri Nouwen, shares how he once went to a hospital to visit a man dying of cancer. The man was still relatively young and had been a very hardworking and generative person. He was the father of a family and provided well for them. He was the chief executive officer in a large company and took good care of both the company and his employees. Moreover, he was involved in many other organizations, including his Church, and, because of his leadership abilities, was often the one in charge. But now, this once-so-active man, this person who was so used to being in control of things, was lying on a hospital bed, dying, unable to take care of even his most basic needs. As Nouwen approached the bed, the man took his hand. It’s significant to note the particular frustration he expressed: “Father, you have to help me! I’m dying, and I am trying to make peace with that, but there is something else too: You know me, I have always been in charge—I took care of my family. I took care of the company. I took care of the Church. I took care of things! Now I am lying here, on this bed and I can’t even take care of myself. I can’t even go to the bathroom! Dying is one thing, but this is another! I’m helpless! I can’t do anything anymore!” — Despite his exceptional pastoral skills, Nouwen, like any of us in a similar situation, was left rather helpless in the face of this man’s plea. The man was undergoing an agonizing passivity. He was now a patient. He had once been active, the one in charge; and now, like Jesus in the hours leading up to his death, he was reduced being a patient, one who is ministered to by others. Nouwen, for his part, tried to help the man see the connection between what he was undergoing and what Jesus endured in his passion, especially how this time of helplessness, diminishment, and passivity is meant to be a time where we can give something deeper to those around us. (Quoted by Fr. Ron Rolheiser). — Among other things, Nouwen read the Passion narratives of the Gospels aloud to him because what this man was enduring paralleled very clearly what Jesus endured in the hours leading up to his death, a time we Christians entitle, “the Passion of Jesus.” What exactly was the Passion of Jesus?
26) Obediently accepting death on a cross: Andy lived in Jersey City. His father worked for the great meat-packing firm of Swift and Company. Andy’s dad used every opportunity to educate his son along practical lines. One day when the boy was about ten, he took him on a tour of the Swift packinghouses in Newark to show him how they killed animals for the meat-markets. Swift called these places their “abattoirs.” The French word abattoir sounds a little less gross, but it means the same as the English “slaughter-house.” What the butchers did there was a necessary but bloody business, not always easy for a visitor to stomach. Andy noticed in particular the way in which the different types of animals reacted to impending death. The beef cattle and calves struggled and bellowed with fear. Pigs squealed and squirmed and tried to escape. But the sheep were different. They simply stood there meek and silent, offering no resistance to their slayers. When Andy grew up, he became a priest. He never forgot the way he had seen sheep behave in the face of death, and he often pointed out in his Holy Week sermons how appropriately the Christ who died for us is called “the Lamb.” — The Jews of Bible times knew very well how sheep acted under these circumstances. Sheep and goats were their main livestock. Isaiah spoke out of experience when he foretold in vision how the Messiah would die: “Like a lamb led to the slaughter or a sheep before the shearers, he was silent and opened not his mouth.” (Is 53:7) — Today as we enter upon Passion Week, let us bear in mind this symbol of Christ as a lamb, and during the narrative of His passion and death see how well it was fulfilled. (Father Robert F. McNamara).
27) Conversion experience of actress who played Veronica: In Mel Gibson’s movie, The Passion of the Christ, the actress who played St. Veronica had a conversion experience, right there in the midst of filming the scene. Sabrina Impacciatore is an Italian actress and although she had grown up Catholic, she had long ago stopped practicing her Faith. At the time when they began filming, she was at a spiritual low point in her life. She later explained that she really wanted to believe in Jesus, but she just couldn’t do it. Her scene in the movie is quite memorable. Jesus is carrying his cross to Calvary and he falls again for the third or fourth time. The crowds surge in around him, abusing him as he lies on the ground. Without much success the soldiers try to control the crowds. And gliding through the middle of all this confusion is Veronica. She looks at Jesus with love and devotion. She kneels down beside him and says, “Lord, permit me.” She takes a white cloth and wipes his face which is covered with blood, dirt, and sweat. She then offers him a drink. It’s a brief moment of intimacy in the middle of violent suffering. Sabrina said it was a very hard scene to film. The churning crowd kept bumping into her and disrupting the moment of intimacy. And so they had to film it over and over again. Twenty times they had to film it before getting it right.
And that was providential. Because after twenty times of kneeling before the suffering Christ, looking into his eyes, and calling him Lord, the actress felt something start to melt inside her. She wasn’t seeing the actor pretending to be our Lord; she was seeing our Lord himself. Later, she explained that while she looked into his eyes, she found that she was able to believe. “For a moment,” she said, “I believed!” That experience lit the flame of hope in her darkened heart. Sabrina finally understood the words Jesus spoke from the Cross when he said, “Father, forgive them, they know not what they do.” The brutality of the scene made a big impression on her. She found herself thinking, “Jesus is someone I can trust, he went through this for me.” Even when we reject him, scourge him, crown him with thorns, betray him, and finally crucify him, our Lord still continues to love us. The Passion is God saying to us, “I will keep loving you.” — The name Veronica comes from the two words vera and icon and these two words mean true image. This true image refers to the image of Jesus’ face that was left on the cloth that was used to wipe his face. This relic is kept at the Vatican and scientists can’t explain it. Vera icon, the true image, eventually became Veronica, the name given to the anonymous woman who loved Jesus. As Christians all of us are supposed to be a Veronica, a true icon, a true image of Jesus. Because it’s only in him, only when we live in his image, living as a true icon of our Lord, that we can truly be happy. When we pray the Stations of the Cross, right before station number six we sing of Veronica, “Brave but trembling came the woman,/ none but she would flaunt the Roman,/ moved by love beyond her fear.” So as we enter into Holy Week, like Sabrina, the actress, like St. Veronica herself, let us look into the eyes of our Lord, giving ourselves to him in all things, praying for the grace not to be afraid to love … not be afraid to bring Him all of our sins, to bring to him our hurts, our doubts, our troubles, our hardness of hearts, our everything. … trusting Him in everything. In doing this our Lord will transform us, making us into a true image of Himself. (Fr. Christopher J. Ankley) https://stjeromebc.org/pastors/palm-sunday-of-the-passion-of-the-lord/ (L-25)
“Scriptural Homilies” Cycle C (No 24) by Fr. Tony (akadavil@gmail.com)
Visit my website by clicking on https://frtonyshomilies.com/ for missed or previous Cycle A homilies, 141 Year of Faith “Adult Faith Formation Lessons” (useful for RCIA classes too) & 197 “Question of the Week.” Contact me only at akadavil@gmail.com. Visit also https://www.catholicsermons.com/homilies/sunday_homilies under Fr. Tony’s homilies and under Resources in the CBCI website: https://www.cbci.in for other website versions. (Vatican Radio website: http://www.vaticannews.va/en/church.html uploaded my Cycle A, B and C homilies in from 2018-2020) (Fr. Anthony Kadavil, Fr. Anthony Kadavil, C/o Fr. Joseph M. C. , St. Agatha Church, 1001 Hand Avenue, Bay Minette, Al 36507)
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