Palm Sunday of the Lord’s Passion
When making a long road trip with little ones in the back seat, you can almost bet that sooner or later, the all-important question will come flying up to the front: “Are we there yet?” Apart from typical preschool curiosity and impatience, it could easily be one of the most foundational questions asked at any age and in any circumstances.
Today, Palm Sunday, the liturgy takes us on a kind of wild, white-knuckled emotional ride filled with twists and turns. At last, Jesus and his ragtag band of student apostles have arrived at Jerusalem, the goal of that intentional pilgrimage that took them through marginal villages with marginal people along the way. At this point, we notice a new kind of tension arising within ordinary travel and lodging arrangements. This was the final clash of opposites. He, the Messias, the long-awaited King of Kings, the hope of the people, needed to make an important entrance for the sake of the faithful and yet could only arrive as a sign of contradiction. Even though predicted by the Old Testament, how could His arrival be more contradictory than the King of Kings riding a donkey? This was, in fact, a laughingstock to the Romans and non-believers. Moreover, we can wonder how those traveling with Him were expected to deal with this?
The impact of contradiction carries over and touches each of us whenever we pick up a palm on this Palm Sunday. We associate palms with the cheering crowd. But we also feel the power of peer pressure, or worst of all, mob violence. In a moment of excitement, cheering voices can easily change to jeering voices. Can simple palms challenge us to find our true stance not only in Holy Week but also throughout the entire year?
Today’s liturgy can be a review of our many faith journeys with the Lord up to this point. Once again, on this Palm Sunday, we must honestly answer that “Are we there yet?” question. And the answer is: “not yet!” We still have so much to learn, to stand amazed, shocked, stretched, and eventually shaped in gratitude by traveling with the Lord along the highways and byways of life.
Reflection by Fr. Daniel Petsche, OSB
Posted in Articles for Lent, Daily Reflections