Palm Sunday, we begin Holy Week, the chief week of the Christian liturgical year.
We focus upon the Paschal Mystery (the dying and rising of Jesus), the journey of Jesus from this earthly life through the mystery of death into a glorious heavenly life.
“Paschal” refers to the Passover, the passing of the angel of death over the homes of Hebrews in ancient Egypt (a passing over that spared their firstborn child). In a larger sense, Passover refers to the Exodus from their oppressors. The Jewish community re-experiences this annually in the Seder service, this year beginning on April 5.
Our global Catholic community was reminded on Ash Wednesday that we are a speck of dust among billions. But the sign of the cross with the ashes symbolizes that God redeemed each of us, specks of dust, through Jesus by the power of the Spirit. God will transform us into his likeness forever.
On Palm Sunday, we reflect especially upon a paradox: the triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem, and the passion and death of Jesus. From the tragedy of Good Friday, there is the triumph of Easter—Jesus, crucified, risen, and gloriously alive among us, especially in the sacramental life of the Church.
The word of God from Isaiah brings a poem about a servant who suffers for us. The early Christian community identified Jesus in this servant.
Paul’s letter to the Christian community at Philippi quotes an early Christian hymn about God who became one of us, obedient even to death. God greatly exalted him.
And the Gospel according to Matthew proclaims the passion and death of Jesus.
Despite advice He has provided time and again, Jesus finds his disciples sleeping. Stay awake with Jesus for the good news.
Next Thursday, Friday, and Saturday are known as the triduum (from a Latin word meaning a period of three days).
Thursday, we will commemorate the Lord’s Supper: the washing of feet is a symbol of service; in the eating of a meal Jesus gives himself to us in the signs of bread and wine (a symbol of our oneness with God and our fellow human beings).
Good Friday, we meditate upon the passion and death of Jesus: the Garden of Gethsemane; the trial; the Crucifixion; the burial; the veneration of the cross; and a simple Communion service.
At the Easter vigil, we reflect upon the passage of Jesus from earthly life through death into a transformative, transfigured heavenly life. The resurrection is a pledge of our own liberation from death into life. The vigil includes fire (a symbol of Jesus as the light); the proclamation of the story of our salvation in the scriptures; the baptism of candidates; renewal of our own baptismal promises; and the Eucharist.
Easter proclaims that Jesus is risen, gloriously alive among us. This is indeed the paramount week of our liturgical year -- the crucial paradox of our salvation. I urge all to participate in these services.
I conclude with a favorite story. A ship, the Deutschland, ran aground off the coast of England in 1875. Fierce winds swamped the lifeboats. No one saw the ship’s distress signals. Among the 157 passengers who perished were five Franciscan nuns who were traveling to a new ministry.
Gerard Manley Hopkins was profoundly moved by newspaper accounts and dedicated his poem The Wreck of the Deutschland to these five nuns. They stayed below deck because there wasn’t room for all on deck. Hopkins saw in their deaths a parallel to Jesus suffering for the sake of the many. As the water rose, the nuns clasped hands and were heard, according to the poem, saying, “O Christus, O Christus, komm schnell” meaning “O Christ, O Christ, come quickly!”
The poem -- ultimately a tribute of solidarity and hope -- concludes with this line: “Let him easter in us, be a dayspring to the dimness of us.” The word “easter” is a nautical term meaning steering toward the east, into the light. Here, that light is Jesus.
“Let Christ easter in us” so that we may practice virtue. “Let Christ easter in us” so that he may empower us to serve in solidarity as healers, teachers, servants like him. “Let Christ easter in us” so that we may find courage to bear our crosses as he bore his cross for us.
During Lent, we have been striving to steer toward the light of Jesus, to navigate the tides of daily life.
I pray that Holy Week will inspire us to seek ever more enthusiastically the God who became flesh in Jesus, and who by his life, death and resurrection is gloriously alive among us by the power of the Spirit. And because He lives, we live. And that we will be able to pray, “O Christ, O Christ, come quickly so that you can easter in us, live in us, as our light forever.” Amen.
