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Palm Sunday
March 24
PROCESSION AND PASSION
From a commentary by Blessed Guerric of Igny 1
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When Jesus entered Jerusalem like a triumphant conqueror, many were
astonished at the majesty of his bearing; but when a short while afterward he
entered upon his passion, his appearance was ignoble, an object of derision. If
today’s procession and passion are considered together, in the one Jesus
appears as sublime and glorious, in the other as lowly and suffering. The
procession makes us think of the honor reserved for a king, whereas the passion
shows us the punishment due to a thief.
In the one Jesus is surrounded by glory and honor, in the other he has
neither dignity nor beauty. In the one he is the joy of all and the glory of the
people, in the other the butt of men and the laughing stock of the people. In the
one he receives the acclamation: Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he
who comes as the king of Israel; in the other there are shouts that he is guilty
of death and is reviled for having set himself up as king of Israel.
In the procession the people meet Jesus with palm branches, in his
passion they slap him in the face and strike his head with a rod. In the one they
extol him with praises, in the other they heap insults upon him. In the one they
compete to lay their clothes in his path, in the other he is stripped of his own
clothes. In the one he is welcomed to Jerusalem as a just king and savior, in the
other he is thrown out of the city as a criminal, condemned as an impostor. In
the one he is mounted on an ass and accorded every mark of honor; in the other
he hangs on the wood of the cross, torn by whips, pierced with wounds, and
abandoned by his own. If, then, we want to follow our leader without stumbling
through prosperity and through adversity, let us keep our eyes upon him,
honored in the procession, undergoing ignominy and suffering in the passion,
yet unshakably steadfast in all such changes of fortune.
Lord Jesus, you are the joy and the salvation of the whole world; whether
we see you seated on an ass or hanging on the cross, let each one of us bless and
praise you, so that when we see you reigning on high we may praise you for ever
and ever, for to you belong praise and honor throughout all ages.
1 Journey with the Fathers – Year B – New City Press – NY – 1993 – pg 40.