First Reading: Isaiah 50:4-7; Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 22:8-9, 17-18a, 19-20, 23-24; Second Reading: Philippians 2:6-11;

Gospel:   Luke 22:1423:56 or Luke 23:1-49 

The Palm Sunday Reflection is by, Fr. RAZAFINANDRAINA Noël Marie Cyprien Médard SJ., Director, Centre Arrupe Madagascar (CA MDG).

This week, inaugurated by the solemn entry of our Lord into Jerusalem, is the holiest for all of us, Christians around the world. It preserves the very essence of our faith, our existence, and our hope. The Gospel according to Saint Luke, chapter 19, verses 28–40, opens the liturgy on this Palm Sunday.

Jesus dares to enter Jerusalem publicly without hiding, unlike in previous days: “After his brothers had gone up to the feast, then he also went up, not publicly but in secret.” (John 7:10). Jesus foresaw what was going to happen to Him upon entering Jerusalem, especially considering the increasing tension between Him and the Jewish religious leaders in recent times. They sought to eliminate Him (John 7:1). How many times had they already tried to kill Him, but “His hour had not yet come.” This time, however, He takes the challenge head-on and shows His resolve to take His destiny into His own hands. He has no plans apart from those of the Father: to offer His life for the salvation of the world—including those who will condemn Him.

To carry out His entry, He asks His disciples to help find a young donkey. He uses His relationships to fulfill the Father’s will: relationships with His disciples and with His environment, symbolized by the donkey. Even though He is the almighty Son of God, He chooses to work with others. This approach must also become part of our own Christian way of life. Jesus teaches us that fulfilling God’s will requires us to value others and to collaborate with them.

On Palm Sunday, we read the Gospel of Christ’s Passion. What unfolds reveals the paradox of life: on one side, there is the blind hatred of the Jewish leaders, shown through lies, manipulation, violence, and death; on the other, there is the infinite love of God embodied in Jesus, expressed through His total self-gift, His faithfulness to His mission, and His unwavering trust in God, His Father. His ultimate goal—whatever the cost—is to restore an eternal bond between us and the Triune God: the institution of the Eucharist, the gift of self, the gift of life.

Jesus’ death sentence stems from human wickedness. When hatred and jealousy take root in our hearts, our ability to discern becomes distorted, just like that of the Jewish leaders and Pilate. We lose the objectivity of our judgment and, even more so, the illumination of God’s Spirit. Jesus accepted all of this because His trust in the Father and His hope in the victory of life over death gave Him the strength to endure His passion to the end. We ask Him to give us that same strength in our daily struggles against injustice, corruption, lies, selfishness, hatred, and violence.

May this Holy Week strengthen our efforts and renew our commitment as true Pilgrims of Hope.

Amen!