Palm Sunday of the Lord’s Passion – Year A: 29.03.26
Cill Mhuire Church, Newbridge
Mass @ 10.30am
Homily:
More than at any other time of the year, Palm Sunday opens up for us an experience that will last a week, an experience of liturgy as sacred theatre, liturgy as drama. There will be moments in the week that disturb, that upset, that leave us cold. In this week of theatre we are invited not just to be spectators, but to become active participants.
Today congregations across the world in their own way, will reenact Christ’s entry into Jerusalem. But Christians in Jerusalem will be unable to participate in such a celebration on the Mount of Olives. The situation is not new, the local community has been unable to follow the usual Lenten journey celebrations because of the conflict that has beset their region. The Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa encourages us to pray the rosary for peace. I suggest we also light our candle for peace in all our parishes as our own Holy Week sacred theatre unfolds.
The joy of Palm Sunday passes too quickly. The ‘short gospel’[1] as it’s known from Matthew, ends too quickly. The joy seems very surface and momentary. Sometimes I questioned about the inclusion of the much longer Passion Narrative just proclaimed. We will hear a version of it again, later on Good Friday, so I wondered then, why the repetition? It’s there to allow us to anticipate, like in all drama’s ’to whet our appetite’. When we go to a play we know how it will end, but it doesn’t stop us going; we allow the plot lines, the actors, the stage settings to invite us into all the other aspects of the production.
Palm Sunday opens up for us all Holy Week, the drama of Jesus’ living and dying for us. We participated moments ago too willingly in the crowd scenes shouting to release Barabbas[2] and to crucify Jesus[3]. Let’s go deeper. Allow ourselves to become Simon of Cyrene, of whom Matthew barely mentions[4]. Wherever there is pain or poverty or loneliness, Jesus waits for our helping hand. As we reach out to help, it’s the hand of Jesus this week we hold.
[1] Mt.21:1-11
[2] Mt.27:21
[3] Mt.27:22; Mt.27:23
[4] Mt.27:32