Cycle A - Cycle B - Cycle C
Procession: Luke 19:28-40
Isaiah 50:4-7
Psalm 22
Philippians 2:6-11
Matthew 26:14 - 27:66
-Luke 19
We can still hear the children of Jerusalem singing the praises of the Messiah who everyone thought would liberate from the Roman Empire. We even join with those who nearly two thousand years ago took palm branches from trees to greet the man they wanted to make their king. But this joy is fake. It is based on self-interests. This man raised the dead, gave sight to the blind, proclaimed liberation, and even walked on the surface of the sea. What will he do for us now?
But Jesus does not meet the expectations of the people of his day and is seen as a threat by those in power. The cries of joy and praise soon turn into jeers and insults. Before we know what has happened, the week is ending and Jesus is on the cross. The man who did everything that God asked of him, who preached the Kingdom and brought people back to God through healing and teaching, was abandoned by his most intimate friends, tortured and executed.
As we gather to celebrate and commemorate our Lord's entry into Jerusalem and his Passion, what are we looking for? Was it more important that we gather to celebrate Eucharist as a community, or that we get our annual supply of palms to hang in our homes? Are we coming to enter into this week of salvation: to stay with Jesus, and to enter into the Paschal Mystery; or are we too going to abandon Jesus like his disciples did? Will we abandon Jesus' presence in our community as we rush out of Mass after communion or before the final song because we didn't realize that Mass would be so long? Will we join Jesus and our parish family in prayer and contemplation this week, or will we only gather to chatter and socialize, not really allowing ourselves (or others) time to enter into the the quiet prayers and passion of the Lamb of God who was slain? Will we keep watch with the Lord and stay by his side as he stays with us?
As we enter into this Holy Week and as we approach the Triduum Season - the Great Three Days of Holy Thursday night through Easter Sunday night, and as we passover into the season of Easter, may we stand with the Lord as he has always done for us. May we gather not to gain something for ourselves, but to give of ourselves - to empty ourselves - as Jesus did. May we sing "Hosanna!" aware of the commitment to and with Jesus that it calls us into.
Peace, Shaun Lowery
Cycle A - Cycle B - Cycle C