Here is the reflection I shared with those who gathered in prayer to begin Holy Week this year.
The best is yet to
come
There is something about the liturgy of Palm Sunday that
captures the heart as soon as it begins.
Like a good book or a good movie, we become instantly immersed into the
adventure that is unfolding, one scene, one gesture, one word at a time.
The drama begins right away. Today the liturgy did not begin with a word
of welcome; it began with the distribution of palms as soon as you walked
through the door; it began, not with an opening hymn but with an explanation: today, we have gathered to herald with the
whole Church the beginning of the celebration of our Lord’s Paschal Mystery. On a normal day, someone would be arrested
for trying to steal another person’s property, but today we recall a day in
history when a simple word: The Lord
needs it (Mk 11:6), was enough to
change accusation into acquiescence.
An unexpected parade began this liturgy, complete with
joyful Hosannas and the waving of
palm branches, but as soon as the parade reached its destination, reality set
in, as though the festivities had caught us off guard and before we knew it we
were trapped in a different reality that we could no longer deny. The words of the prophet Isaiah foretell the
truth of the situation: I gave my back to
those who struck me … I did not hide my face from insult and spitting (Is
50:6) and Saint Paul’s words to the Philippians point out the deeper meaning of
Jesus’ actions: he emptied himself,
taking the form of a slave … obedient to the point of death (Phil 2:8).
Throughout his final day on earth, Jesus’ attitude was
very different from any other man; he was already focused outward and
upward. His concern was always for the
other people involved in the drama. When
the guests around the dinner table were about to judge the woman who poured oil
on his feet, he replied: Leave her alone;
she has done a good service for me (Mk 14:6). In the garden, the fruit of his prayer said
it all: Not what I want, but what you
want (Mk 14:36).
The story of Palm Sunday is our story, because there is
suffering in all our lives: sickness, loneliness, even ridicule. In moments such as these, we can choose to
focus on ourselves, or we can focus outward and upward like Jesus did, although
it’s not easy to do that. Like Jesus, we
can choose not to strike back, not to retaliate, but to focus on the positive,
creative virtues of justice, forgiveness and peace.
The story of the Lord’s passion is not just a really well
written story. It is an invitation to
focus outward and upward when trials come.
The liturgy of Palm Sunday is an invitation to enter into Holy Week with
great anticipation. Let us enter more
fully into the heart and mind of Christ this week. It’s easy to be a disciple when Jesus and we
are walking on level ground but this week will be filled with all kinds of
hills and valleys, but if we journey together, right beside Jesus, we’ll see
that we are never alone, even in the deepest valleys and every valley, no
matter how dark and foreboding it might be, always leads to the hilltop on the
other side.
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