I once attended Mass on Palm Sunday where the priest rode up the center aisle of the church on a donkey during the entrance procession. Others in the procession walked in front of the donkey carrying palms and chanting the ancient words we will hear today at Mass. “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!” This procession complete with the live animal caused quite a stir in the crowd gathered at Mass on the Sunday before Easter. Of course, only the excited little ones in the crowd could take Father’s ride on a donkey up the center aisle at face value. The rest of us were aware that re-enactment of Jesus’ triumphant entry into Jerusalem marks the beginning of the week where Christians the world over will observe and celebrate the dramatic events that are the foundation of our faith: the institution of the Eucharist at the Last Supper on Holy Thursday, the violent death of Jesus on the Cross on Good Friday, the sadness of Jesus dead and buried in the tomb on Holy Saturday, and then elation and joy as the glory of the Resurrection is revealed on Easter Sunday.
As the Lenten season draws to a close, we stand today at the beginning of the holiest week of the year. Lent, by design, is meant to be an intense time. The Lenten practices of fasting, prayer, and almsgiving are meant to free us from the sins of self-absorption and selfishness and draw us closer to God. However imperfect our own Lenten observance might have been, there is still time to ask God to help us turn away from sin and be faithful to the Gospel, to free us from the distractions of our hectic daily lives, and to prepare our hearts and minds to fully enter into the unfolding events of the coming Holy Week.
One way to fully enter into Holy Week is to place ourselves standing right in the midst of the first disciples. Here, we can experience first-hand the drama and suffering of Jesus’ last days on earth. In awe, we can stand with the women on Easter morning as they bravely peer into the empty tomb and feel the elation of the glory of the Resurrection! Intense, powerful, beautiful… these sacred mysteries of our faith will reveal to us anew, and ever more deeply and fully, what God has wrought for us in Jesus Christ, through the power of the Holy Spirit.
Blessings on your Holy Week! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!