First reading Isaiah 50:4-7
The Lord has given me
a disciple’s tongue.
So that I may know how to reply to the wearied
he provides me with speech.
Each morning he wakes me to hear,
to listen like a disciple.
The Lord has opened my ear.
For my part, I made no resistance,
neither did I turn away.
I offered my back to those who struck me,
my cheeks to those who tore at my beard;
I did not cover my face
against insult and spittle.
The Lord comes to my help,
so that I am untouched by the insults.
So, too, I set my face like flint;
I know I shall not be shamed.
Psalm or canticle: Psalm 21:8-9,17-20,23-24
Second reading Philippians 2:6-11
Jesus Christ’s state was divine,
yet he did not cling
to his equality with God
but emptied himself
to assume the condition of a slave
and became as men are;
and being as all men are,
he was humbler yet,
even to accepting death,
death on a cross.
But God raised him high
and gave him the name
which is above all other names
so that all beings
in the heavens, on earth and in the underworld,
should bend the knee at the name of Jesus
and that every tongue should acclaim
Jesus Christ as Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.
Gospel Matthew 27:11-54
Jesus was brought before Pontius Pilate, the governor, and the governor put to him this question, ‘Are you the king of the Jews?’ Jesus replied, ‘It is you who say it.’ But when he was accused by the chief priests and the elders he refused to answer at all. Pilate then said to him, ‘Do you not hear how many charges they have brought against you?’ But to the governor’s complete amazement, he offered no reply to any of the charges.
At festival time it was the governor’s practice to release a prisoner for the people, anyone they chose. Now there was at that time a notorious prisoner whose name was Barabbas. So when the crowd gathered, Pilate said to them, ‘Which do you want me to release for you: Barabbas, or Jesus who is called Christ?’ For Pilate knew it was out of jealousy that they had handed him over. Now as he was seated in the chair of judgement, his wife sent him a message, ‘Have nothing to do with that man; I have been upset all day by a dream I had about him.’
The chief priests and the elders, however, had persuaded the crowd to demand the release of Barabbas and the execution of Jesus. So when the governor spoke and asked them, ‘Which of the two do you want me to release for you?’ they said, ‘Barabbas.’ ‘But in that case,’ Pilate said to them ‘what am I to do with Jesus who is called Christ?’ They all said, ‘Let him be crucified!’ ‘Why?’ he asked ‘What harm has he done?’ But they shouted all the louder, ‘Let him be crucified!’ Then Pilate saw that he was making no impression, that in fact a riot was imminent. So he took some water, washed his hands in front of the crowd and said, ‘I am innocent of this man’s blood. It is your concern.’ And the people, to a man, shouted back, ‘His blood be on us and on our children!’ Then he released Barabbas for them. He ordered Jesus to be first scourged and then handed over to be crucified.
The governor’s soldiers took Jesus with them into the Praetorium and collected the whole cohort round him. Then they stripped him and made him wear a scarlet cloak, and having twisted some thorns into a crown they put this on his head and placed a reed in his right hand. To make fun of him they knelt to him saying, ‘Hail, king of the Jews!’ And they spat on him and took the reed and struck him on the head with it. And when they had finished making fun of him, they took off the cloak and dressed him in his own clothes and led him away to crucify him.
On their way out, they came across a man from Cyrene, Simon by name, and enlisted him to carry his cross. When they had reached a place called Golgotha, that is, the place of the skull, they gave him wine to drink mixed with gall, which he tasted but refused to drink. When they had finished crucifying him they shared out his clothing by casting lots, and then sat down and stayed there keeping guard over him.
Above his head was placed the charge against him; it read: ‘This is Jesus, the King of the Jews.’ At the same time two robbers were crucified with him, one on the right and one on the left.
The passers-by jeered at him; they shook their heads and said, ‘So you would destroy the Temple and rebuild it in three days! Then save yourself! If you are God’s son, come down from the cross!’ The chief priests with the scribes and elders mocked him in the same way. ‘He saved others;’ they said ‘he cannot save himself. He is the king of Israel; let him come down from the cross now, and we will believe in him. He puts his trust in God; now let God rescue him if he wants him. For he did say, “I am the son of God.”’ Even the robbers who were crucified with him taunted him in the same way.
From the sixth hour there was darkness over all the land until the ninth hour. And about the ninth hour, Jesus cried out in a loud voice, ‘Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?’ that is, ‘My God, my God, why have you deserted me?’ When some of those who stood there heard this, they said, ‘The man is calling on Elijah’, and one of them quickly ran to get a sponge which he dipped in vinegar and, putting it on a reed, gave it him to drink. ‘Wait!’ said the rest of them ‘and see if Elijah will come to save him.’ But Jesus, again crying out in a loud voice, yielded up his spirit.
(Here all kneel and pause for a short time.)
At that, the veil of the Temple was torn in two from top to bottom; the earth quaked; the rocks were split; the tombs opened and the bodies of many holy men rose from the dead, and these, after his resurrection, came out of the tombs, entered the Holy City and appeared to a number of people. Meanwhile the centurion, together with the others guarding Jesus, had seen the earthquake and all that was taking place, and they were terrified and said, ‘In truth this was a son of God.’
Reflection
By Jeanne Therese Hilario-Andres
How I miss waving a brightly-decorated palaspas on Palm Sunday! Here in the UK, all we get is a dried piece of bark, blessed and folded into a small cross. But whether it’s a fresh green palaspas or a dried tree bark, no matter the shape or colour, I remind myself that at the beginning of Holy Week, it is how I welcome Jesus into my heart that really matters.
Jesus’ final journey from Jericho to Jerusalem was a well-attended one. He had gone around towns and villages curing the sick, gathering a large crowd of followers around him. As He left Galilee, crossed the Jordan and went to Judea, this crowd went and traveled with Him.
Now, the distance between Jericho to Jerusalem was around 15 miles (24 km) – roughly, perhaps, like the distance from Quezon City to Alabang. In those days, and accounting for an elevation increase of about 3400 feet (1060 m), that journey would have taken around 8 hours to cover on foot. Why did these people bother coming? What did they think Jesus was going to Jerusalem for? Perhaps they thought, since Jesus was the Messiah, that He was planning to take His rightful place and become the King they had been waiting for? They probably looked forward to His coronation once He had established Himself as the new King of Israel.
A triumphal, kingly entry. Out of so many visitors entering Jerusalem that day, why the fuss over Jesus’ arrival? It wasn’t His first visit to Jerusalem. In fact, He must have traveled this route and passed through this particular gate many times throughout His life as an ordinary Jew. Why all the excitement? Probably because the large crowd that accompanied Him from Jericho was hailing Him as a new King coming to be crowned in the city.
Imagine that a big, important celebrity is coming to your town. Imagine, for instance, that your city is on the route to be taken by Britain’s Prince William and soon-to-be Princess Catherine on the way back from their wedding. The royal carriage will pass through your street! How loudly will you cheer? Will you wave banners? Sing songs? Try to catch their eye as they drive past?
Similarly, if you had been living in Jerusalem then, wouldn’t you do the same if you found that Jesus, the renowned Teacher and Healer, the One called the Messiah, was coming to your city? I certainly would!
I remember listening to a homily once: These people who welcomed Jesus so joyfully when He entered Jerusalem, where were they when He was tortured and tried before Pilate on Thursday night, and crucified on Friday afternoon? What became of the large crowd who had marched with Him into Jerusalem? Why was Jesus left alone to suffer? How could the jubilant, palm-waving crowd of Palm Sunday have been replaced by the scornful, mocking crowd that insisted that Pilate condemn Jesus to death?
Which crowd are you a part of?
Today you stand with your palaspas ready, eager to welcome Jesus into your town, your church, your home, your heart. Where will you be on Holy Thursday and on Good Friday? Are you ready to stay and suffer with Him, too?
Lord, I welcome You as King and Savior into my heart today. You know my heart and its hopes and fears. I know that my choices matter to You. Help me to choose, every single day, to stay with You, not only through happy, triumphant moments, but more so during times of suffering, pain, betrayal and rejection. Let me never be part of the crowd that nailed You to the cross. Let my thoughts, emotions and actions remain in You and with You throughout this week. Let me never forget your deep and personal love for me, that led You to through the streets of Jerusalem, all the way to Calvary. Amen.
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