Palm Sunday

April 2, Palm Sunday, 6th Sunday of Lent. 

 Liturgy of the Word -- Is. 50:4-7; Ps. 22:8-9, 17-18, 19-20, 23-24; Phil. 2:6-11; Mt. 26:14-27:66. 

 1. Note on March 29, Memorial of San Pedro Calungsod. March 29, being a Lenten day but not yet Holy Week, the Collect of San Pedro Calungsod may be used at the Mass. 

 2. Some Notes on Palm Sunday -- Palm Sunday, officially called Passion Sunday, is the 6th and last Sunday of Lent, and is the the 1st day of Holy Week. It commemorates the triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem. The ceremonies in Jerusalem were recorded in the 4th century by the pilgrim, Etheria, Today, the faithful carry palm branches or branches of other trees, where palms are not available. They represent the palm branches that the crowd scattered in front of Christ as he rode a donkey into Jerusalem. 

 3. All the four gospels narrate the story of Christ's entry (Mt. 21:1-11; Mk. 11:1-11; Lk. 19:28-44; Jn. 12:1-19). But only John's gospel marks the timeline, six days before the Passover (Jn. 12:1). The Synoptics say that the crowd laid their garments, cloaks, and cut rushes (flowering plants) on the path of the donkey, while John speaks of palm fronds. The Gospel of Matthew (Mt. 21:4-5) states that Christ's entry into Jerusalem fulfills the prophecy of Zechariah, "See, your king come to you, righteous and victorious, lowly and riding a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey" (Zech. 9:9). It suggests that Jesus was the King of Israel. 

 4. As Jesus rides into Jerusalem, the crowd sing "Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. We bless you from the house of the Lord" (Ps. 118:25-26). Since in Eastern tradition a horse would suggest an animal of war, riding a donkey into Jerusalem gives the idea that Jesus comes as the Prince of Peace. In Lk. 19:41, Jesus looks at Jerusalem and weeps over it. It is a foretelling of his Passion and the suffering that awaits the city in the events of the destruction of the Second Temple. 

 5. After the blessing of palms outside the church and procession into the church, Mass begins with the Collect. Red vestments are used to symbolize the Blood of the Passion. 

 6. 1st Reading, Is. 50:4-7 -- The Lord's Servant, a figure of Christ, speaks. "I gave my back to those who beat me, my cheeks to those who tore out my beard, my face I did not hide from insults and spitting" (v. 6, a foretelling of the Lord's passion). "The Lord God is my help, therefore I am not disgraced" (v. 7). 

 7. Responsorial Ps. 22:8-9, 17-18, 19-20, 23-24 -- Our Psalm has verious allusions to the Passion of Christ -- "All who see me mock me; they curl their lips and jeer; they shake their heads at me. He relied on the Lord - let him deliver him; if he loves him, let him rescue him" (vv. 8-9; see Mt. 27:43). "They have pierced my hands and my feet.... They stare at me and gloat; they divide my garments among them, for my clothing, they cast lots (vv. 17-19; see Mt. 27:35; Jn. 19:24). "But you, Lord, do not stay far off; my strength, come quickly to help me" (v. 20). I will proclaim and praise your name in the assembly (vv. 23-24). 

 8. The opening words of the Psalm, "My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?" (v. 1), were uttered by Jesus at the Crucifixion (see Mk. 15:34; Mt. 27:46). 

 9. 2nd Reading, Phil. 2:6-11 -- The humble total self-emptying of Jesus -- the rhythmic beauty of the verses suggests that they perhaps have been an early Christian hymn with certain additions by Paul. The verses are worth quoting in full. Have the attitude of Jesus, "Who though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God something to be grasped" (vv. 5-6). "Rather, he emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, coming in human likeness; and found human in appearance, he humbled himself, becoming obedient to death, even death on a cross" (vv. 7-9). "Because of this, God greatly exalted him and bestowed on him the name, that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus, every knee should bend, of those in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father" (vv. 9-11). 

 10. The self-emptying ("kenosis") of Jesus for our salvation is total: from divinity to humanity to servanthood, to death on the Cross. Yet it is his path to ultimate glorification -- Jesus Christ is the Lord! This path of humble self-abnegation is our path, too, to heavenly glorification. 

 11. Gospel , Mt. 26:14- 27: 66 -- The Passion Narrative is the main focus of Passion Sunday. The following may serve as an outline: agreement between Judas Iscariot and the chief priests to betray Jesus:: the Passover dinner, institution of the Holy Eucharist and the Priesthead; agony in the garden, betrayal and arrest of Jesus; trial of Jesus before the Sanhedrin, the denial of Peter, Jesus before Pilate; the death of Judas; the sentence of death on Jesus; the soldiers' mockery of Jesus, crowning with thorns; carrying of the cross, assistance of Simon the Cyrenian; the Crucifixion; finally, the death and burial of Jesus. 

 12. The outline glosses over the insane plotting of the leaders of Israel to have Jesus crucified. Nor does it describe the extreme humiliation and sufferings that Jesus silently endured at the hands of the Roman soldiers and of the crowd. Nor the awesome effects of his death on the dead, on the veil of the sanctuary, the quaking of the earth, and the faithfulness of the women-disciples of Jesus. All these are rich points of reflection and prayer that should flow into profound sorrow for sin and deep gratitude for the grace of salvation. 

 13. Prayer -- Almighty ever-living God, today we begin our most sacred week during which we commemorate the self-sacrifice of your beloved Son for our salvation. Grant, we pray, O Lord, that we may, with your grace, shed off our pride and selfishness, and humbly share in the sufferings of Jesus your Son through whom we receive eternal life in your Kingdom. This we pray through Christ our Lord. Amen. 

 Prayers, stay safe, God bless!