By Fr Antony Christy, SDB –
April 5: Palm Sunday 2020
Isaiah 50:4-7; Philippians 2:6-11; Matthew 26:14-27:66
Jesus enters Jerusalem. Jesus knows well what awaits him there… he had told his disciples that the Son of Man would be handed over to be tried and tortured; he had seen people plotting against him and waiting for a moment to lay hands on him; he had heard the whispers against him that it is better that one man dies for the whole of Israel. In spite of all these, Jesus sets his face towards Jerusalem, he enters Jerusalem.
We are traversing an odd moment in history, not just odd, but hard too! The other day a Governor in the United States of America, speaking to the press said, ‘many pose a question, when will be back to normal? Let me tell you, after these experiences, we can never be back to normal; we would only be back to a ‘new normal’.’ That is more or less the intensity of the experience we are living through these days.
And the season of lent this year has been for a great extent intensely tinted with this sadness and anxiety. Not merely amidst the usual lenten sobriety, but amidst this unusual calamitous scene all around us, this Sunday we are invited to a festivity; to a joyous reception of the Lord into our dwellings! Exactly so did Jesus find, the joy of those people as he entered Jerusalem. His face was fixed on a Jerusalem that was waiting with condemnation and the Calvary that was holding out the Cross to him! But still, Jesus joins the rejoicing people in their celebration, notwithstanding the anxiety that clung to his soul. When someone suggested that he stop the people from all the frenzy, he disagreed with them and allowed the jubilation and joined them in it. True Love celebrates Life, come what may!
Jesus’ solemn entry into Jerusalem, is not merely a road show; it is much more. Like the disciples who had the transfiguration experience to sustain themselves, the common believers are given this solemn reception as something that they can fall back on when things would look to be going wrong. He wants them to understand the celebration and the following confusions, the jubilation and the following tragedies, the triumphant entry and the shameful exit…all of these as part of a grand plan, the salvific plan. How is it possible?
It becomes possible for when realise that life is from God’s hands and when we learn to live life from God’s hands. That is what the world as a whole has lost, forgotten for a while. The world and humanity have taken everything into their own hands – life and death, nature and space, living and non-living creatures… everything has been usurped into the selfish hands of the world and the materialistic humanity! And here is the call to surrender everything, every little thing that happens – joy or sorrow, challenge or victory, opportunity or obstacle… surrender everything into the hands of God and find its meaning from there. This is living life from God’s hands! When we do this there will be no dearth for celebration in life, come what may.
Jesus was constantly motivated by the Mission that was entrusted to him by the One who sent him. It was this mission that defined his thoughts, words and actions. When there was a temptation of resting on the glory of the wonders that were happening, or the pressure from the people to make him their king, or the tendency towards attachment to a particular place or people, Jesus had his mind clear. He always said, we have to go to other villages and proclaim the good news! Getting lost in the glories of victories or getting absorbed into the failures of human frailty – neither of this happens with a true apostle of the Lord! How does this happen?
It happens when we know what it means to live life for God’s Mission – that was all that mattered to Jesus. That is why a call from Herod for signs or a plea from Pilate for a submission or the threats from the high priests – all of them fell on a deaf ear. He could call Herod a ‘fox’ and he could snub Pilate saying he was after all a puppet in the hands of the people and in God’s hands. Jesus’ mind was focused on just one thing: living life for God’s Mission. Nothing that seemed a threat could deter him on his mission!
The self-definition of Jesus in relation to his mission was so categorical: I came that you may have life, life in all its fullness. The true glory of God is a human being fully alive, and Jesus is the prototype of this. Difficulties, rejections, let downs, oppositions, criticisms and condemnations, nothing really mattered for Jesus. The only concern that was uppermost in his mind was his call to live his life to the full – nobody, nothing, no situation could stop him from that. He was not moved by praises, nor bogged down by criticism, neither was he overwhelmed by a need to prove himself to the world. How could he be so calm and serene?
It was so because Jesus was convinced that living life to the full consisted of all these experiences put together. Amidst the challenges, anxieties and sufferings, what matters is hope, trust, and courage in the Lord with which to leap into the future, filled with joy, splendour and peace that God alone can give. Behold, I come to do your will, says the Son and challenges us to do the same: to live our life to the full. Not to give up at the first of problems; not to give in to the least of the tests; but to remain faithful to the will of God, and obey with the same humility as the Son of God who emptied himself to the point of accepting death on the Cross.
Let us look at the picture that the readings paint today…the man who foresees a terrible time amidst the people gathered around in extraordinary jubilation; the calmness of Jesus and the excitement of the people. This is living the moment to the full, living every thing that comes our way with intensity, this is celebrating life come what may! Jesus was capable of this, because he loved his Father and he was so convinced that God loved him absolutely! That is the secret – amidst all our uncertainties and anxieties, we need to ask ourselves: do we love God with all our heart; and how confident are we on the love that God has for us?
The sign that we truly love the Lord and are absolutely certain of the love of the Lord, would be that we live our life from God’s hands, live our life for God’s mission and live our life to the full, after the example of our Master and Lord, Jesus Christ. Hosanna, blessed is he who comes!
Fr Antony Christy is a Salesian Priest from 2005, who has a Masters in Philosophy (specialisation in Religion) and a Masters in Theology (Specialisation in Catechetics). He is currently pursuing his doctoral research in Theology at Salesian Pontifical University, Rome. Walking with the Young towards a World of Peace and Dialogue is the passion that fires him.