Homily for Palm Sunday of the Lord's Passion - Year A

The readings for Palm Sunday of the Lord's Passion - Year A may be found at:

https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/032926.cfm

In the two gospels we’ve proclaimed,

at the beginning of Holy Mass

and this one, just now,

the evangelist St. Matthew 

gives us two very different scenes.

And today, the Church places them side by side -

not by accident - but on purpose.

Light and dark.

Joy, hope, excitement, anticipation and praise

next to

sorrow, shock, betrayal, abandonment and silence.

As Jesus enters Jerusalem,

the crowds cry out,

"Hosanna to the Son of David;

blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord;

hosanna in the highest."

Only to shout days later -

"Barabbas!"

"Let him be crucified!"

"Let him be crucified!"

Joy and hope becoming anger and betrayal.

And that -  

should stop us in our tracks -

because it forces us to ask a hard question -

What changed?

We know Jesus didn’t.

He entered Jerusalem 

the same way He always comes -

humble, unassuming, gentle.

Not with power. Not with force.

But with love and peace.

The problem wasn’t Jesus.

The problem was the expectation.

The people wanted a king - a certain kind of king.

One to defeat their enemies.

One to restore power.

One to make everything right - 

on their terms - as they defined them.

And when Jesus didn’t do that,

when He didn’t fit their expectations,

the way they thought He should. They turned on Him.

And if we’re honest -

we’ve done the same thing.

We welcome Jesus,

when He blesses us.

When life is going well.

When prayers are answered.

When faith feels good.

But when the cross appears?

When things don’t go our way?

When following Him costs us something?

That’s when our hearts can turn.

Palm Sunday holds up a mirror to our hearts.

Because the same voice that shouts,  “Hosanna”,

can, quite quickly,  yell something very different.

And yet - 

He doesn’t turn back.

He doesn’t change course.

He doesn’t force us to join.

He continues, faithfully,

all the way to the cross.

Along the way, 

we see everything.

Betrayal. Denial. Abandonment.

Disciples falling asleep - multiple times.

One betrays Him.

Another denies Him - three times.

The disciples scatter and disappear.

And Jesus stands alone.

And from the cross, He cries out -

“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”

He enters into the deepest place of human suffering.

The place where it feels like God is nowhere to be found,

or has gone silent.

He does that 

so that no one who has ever felt that way

is ever alone again.

That’s the kind of King He is.

Not one who conquers by power - 

but one who saves by love.

Not one who avoids suffering - 

but one who enters into it -

and transforms it - into the place 

where salvation happens.

And that’s why Holy Week matters.

Because it shows us how God works.

Not through control or domination,

but through humility. Through sacrifice.

Through love that doesn’t quit.

And that same Jesus who walks to Calvary,

will meet us again - on this altar.

So the question for us this week is simple.

Will we follow Him?

Beyond the palms and adoration?

Into his Passion?

Will we join Him in the Upper Room?

Will we stay awake in the Garden?

Will we stand attentively at the foot of the Cross?

Because following Jesus

is not proven in the waving of palms,

but in staying when it’s hard.

This Holy Week - don’t treat it like a checklist.

Be present. Walk it. Enter into it.

Come to the liturgies.

Go to the Chrism Mass.

Experience Tenebrae.

Stay awake with us for adoration on Holy Thursday.

Venerate the Cross and walk the Stations on Good Friday.

Sit in the silence.

Let it speak directly to your heart.

Because 

if we walk with Him to Calvary,

we will be ready -

not just to celebrate Easter -

but to rise -

with Him.