Palm Sunday Year C
Readings: Is. 50:4-7; Phil 2:6-11; Lk 22:14-23:56
It was Palm Sunday, and the family's 6-year old son had to
stay home while others went to church because of strep throat. When the rest of
the family returned home carrying palm branches, the little boy asked what they
were for. His mother explained, "People held them over Jesus' head as he
walked by." "Wouldn't you know it," the boy fumed. "The one
Sunday I don't go to Church, and Jesus shows up!” Yes, Jesus shows up in the
triumphal entry into Jerusalem which becomes prophetic: the one who enters the
city in triumph is the same one who is led out of the city by crowds to be
crucified. That is what we celebrate and commemorate on Palm Sunday - the
triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem. This is where Jesus will accomplish
the Paschal mystery through his passion, death and resurrection. The Palm
Sunday procession opens the Holy Week festivities towards Easter. There are two
sides of the Palm Sunday liturgy: the joyful mystery and the sorrowful mystery
pointing to the resurrection. There is the joyful entry into Jerusalem and the
immanent passion and death on the cross. The one who is joyfully acclaimed is
the same one who is soon to be condemned by the crowd to die on the cross for
our sins. Thus Jesus becomes a perfect model of what our journey of faith must
finally involve - being humiliated, persecuted to the point of accepting death
on the cross, so that God may raise us up on the last day.
In the Passion of our Lord according to Luke, we encounter a
drama of cosmic proportions with an interesting cast of characters, Jesus being
at the center stage. Luke takes a different approach from any of the
evangelists. While Mark’s approach underlines the isolation of Jesus
throughout, Matthew underlines a paradoxical royalty of Jesus (contradicted by
his humility), and John taking the same line but real royalty. Luke underlines
the innocence of Jesus (23:4, 14-15.22). Thus Jesus is a victim of the powers
of evil (22:3,31,53), but goes to his death to fulfill the will of the Father
(22:42-46). Luke portrays a certain serenity in Jesus’ death: “Father into your
hands, I commend my spirit.” So what message do we take home? 1) For Luke, the
passion is not just a narrative, but a reality that must be interpreted for
others as “Good News.” The passion narrative in Luke therefore underlines the
mercy, compassion and the healing power of Jesus (22:51,61;23:43). 2) Thus
Jesus goes to his death out of compassion for humanity: “daughters of Jerusalem
weep not for me”; “Father forgive them” ; “Today you will be with me in paradise.”
3) Jesus does not go to death lonely and abandoned unlike the passion story of
Mark, but in Luke Jesus is accompanied by others who follow him on the way of
the Cross (23:26-31,49). May we accompany Jesus in his suffering and death, so
we may enter into his resurrection at Easter. Have a blessed Easter.
©2013 John S. Mbinda
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