READINGS FOR PALM SUNDAY OF THE LORD’S PASSION, YEAR C, SUNDAY 10TH APRIL, 2022
Gospel before Procession: Luke 19:28-40
First Reading: Isaiah 50:4-7
Psalm: 21
Second Reading: Philippians 2:6-11
Gospel: The Passion of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Luke
22:14-23:56
REFLECTION BY FR CORNELIUS NWAOGWUGWU, CM
CONTRASTING MOMENTS OF GLORY AND SUFFERING
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,
Today, the Church celebrates Palm Sunday of the Lord’s Passion. It celebrates the triumphant arrival of Christ in Jerusalem, days before He was crucified. Palm Sunday of the Passion of the Lord is the final Sunday of Lent. It is the beginning of Holy Week.
As we enter into the Holiest of Weeks, we are invited to actively participate in the Holy Week events. This active participation will deepen our relationship with God and increase our faith in Jesus Christ.
Despite the challenging realities of this moment, we can still connect to God and each other. We may be struggling with physical celebrations of our events but we rejoice because we are still together in the Lord in some mysterious ways. For this, we thank God.
Palm Sunday of the Lord’s Passion, celebrates the combination of the contrasting moments of glory and suffering in the life of Jesus and by extension to our own lives.
The Gospel before the procession according to Luke, captures clearly these contrasting moments of glory and suffering in the realities of human existence. This Gospel narrates how Jesus visited Jerusalem. As Jesus was approaching, the people praised Him saying: “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!”. (Luke 19:28-40)
Jesus was well received by the people. They were hailing him as the Son of David and threw their cloaks, palm and olive branches on the road for Him to ride on with the colt He had borrowed for the day. Jesus was not only honoured but was also recognised as “a great and good man”.
But the story changed on Good Friday. Judas Iscariot betrayed Jesus. Peter denied Jesus. Herod ridiculed Jesus. In fact, “Hosanna” gave way to “crucify him”. The same people that were praising Jesus turned against Him even when “He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth”. (1 Peter 2:22). The same people who were praising Jesus were determined to kill Him even when the judge, Pontius Pilate, could not find any wrong that Jesus had done. Pilate said: “I have found no case against him that deserves death”. The other person with Jesus on the cross testifies that “this man has done nothing wrong”. Yet, Pilate acted against his conscience and condemned Jesus to death on the cross. (Luke 22:14-23:56)
This Passion narrative, explains the realities of our human nature and relationship with one another. This confirms the popular saying that “When the going is cool and fine many people would be your friends, but when the going is rough and hard fewer people would like to be associated with you.” What a world? What a slope sided relationship? What a contrast? Well, life is like that. The Good News is that if we put our trust, hope and faith in God like Jesus, we will go above the crowd and become victorious in life.
Foreshadow of the victorious mission of Jesus is expressed in today’s First Reading (Isaiah 50:4-7). The Response for today’s Responsorial Psalm, plunges us into the heart of Christ’s Passion that leads to victory. It says: “My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?” (Psalm 21). The Second Reading, taken from the letter of St Paul to the Philippians presents to us a very early Christian understanding of how the victory of Jesus saves us from sin and death. (Philippians 2:6-11)
During this Holy Week, we are invited to surrender our lives to Jesus and to welcome Him into all areas of our lives as our Lord and Saviour. Please, let us remember that we are sinners in need of God’s mercy. God expects us to produce fruits of love, holiness, purity, justice, humility, obedience, charity and forgiveness.
Jesus Christ is passionate for our wellbeing. This is important to Him. We are urged to trust in God at all times. We know that these hard times challenge our faith. Let us all take care of ourselves, our families and our community members and humanity. We are the visible signs of Jesus today. We bring through our works unconditional love, forgiveness and healing. Our sacrificial services to our families, places of work and communities express our love for God and humanity.
We cherish and very much appreciate the efforts of all our African Chaplaincy members who work with passion and dedication day and night to care for us spiritually and materially. They are helping to keep us safe. They update us with information as we continue to strive to overcome the challenges of this time. We sincerely applaud all others providing essential services at this crucial moment in our lives. We say thank you for your hard work and care for all of us.
As we cannot thank you all enough with words, we pray for God’s abundant blessings and protection on you and your families. May your sufferings end in praise to God and victory to humanity through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Fr. Cornelius Nwaogwugwu, CM.