Homily of Pope Francis for Palm Sunday (25 March 2013)

Celebration of Palm Sunday 

of the Passion of our Lord 

Homily of Pope Francis

Saint Peter's Square

XXVIII World Youth Day

Sunday, 24 March 2013

1. Jesus enters Jerusalem. The crowd of disciples accompanies him in festive mood, their garments are stretched out before him, there is talk of the miracles he has accomplished, and loud praises are heard: �Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord. Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!� (Lk 19:38). 

Crowds, celebrating, praise, blessing, peace: joy fills the air. Jesus has awakened great hopes, especially in the hearts of the simple, the humble, the poor, the forgotten, those who do not matter in the eyes of the world. He understands human sufferings, he has shown the face of God�s mercy, and he has bent down to heal body and soul. 

This is Jesus. This is his heart which looks to all of us, to our sicknesses, to our sins. The love of Jesus is great. And thus he enters Jerusalem, with this love, and looks at us. It is a beautiful scene, full of light - the light of the love of Jesus, the love of his heart - of joy, of celebration. 

At the beginning of Mass, we too repeated it. We waved our palms, our olive branches. We too welcomed Jesus; we too expressed our joy at accompanying him, at knowing him to be close, present in us and among us as a friend, a brother, and also as a King: that is, a shining beacon for our lives. Jesus is God, but he lowered himself to walk with us. He is our friend, our brother. He illumines our path here. And in this way we have welcomed him today. And here the first word that I wish to say to you: joy! Do not be men and women of sadness: a Christian can never be sad! Never give way to discouragement! Ours is not a joy born of having many possessions, but from having encountered a Person: Jesus, in our midst; it is born from knowing that with him we are never alone, even at difficult moments, even when our life�s journey comes up against problems and obstacles that seem insurmountable, and there are so many of them! And in this moment the enemy, the devil, comes, often disguised as an angel, and slyly speaks his word to us. Do not listen to him! Let us follow Jesus! We accompany, we follow Jesus, but above all we know that he accompanies us and carries us on his shoulders. This is our joy, this is the hope that we must bring to this world. Please do not let yourselves be robbed of hope! Do not let hope be stolen! The hope that Jesus gives us. 

2. The second word. Why does Jesus enter Jerusalem? Or better: how does Jesus enter Jerusalem? The crowds acclaim him as King. And he does not deny it, he does not tell them to be silent (cf. Lk 19:39-40). But what kind of a King is Jesus? Let us take a look at him: he is riding on a donkey, he is not accompanied by a court, he is not surrounded by an army as a symbol of power. He is received by humble people, simple folk who have the sense to see something more in Jesus; they have that sense of the faith which says: here is the Saviour. Jesus does not enter the Holy City to receive the honours reserved to earthly kings, to the powerful, to rulers; he enters to be scourged, insulted and abused, as Isaiah foretold in the First Reading (cf. Is 50:6). He enters to receive a crown of thorns, a staff, a purple robe: his kingship becomes an object of derision. He enters to climb Calvary, carrying his burden of wood. And this brings us to the second word: Cross. Jesus enters Jerusalem in order to die on the Cross. And it is precisely here that his kingship shines forth in godly fashion: his royal throne is the wood of the Cross! It reminds me of what Benedict XVI said to the Cardinals: you are princes, but of a king crucified. That is the throne of Jesus. Jesus takes it upon himself� Why the Cross? Because Jesus takes upon himself the evil, the filth, the sin of the world, including the sin of all of us, and he cleanses it, he cleanses it with his blood, with the mercy and the love of God. Let us look around: how many wounds are inflicted upon humanity by evil! Wars, violence, economic conflicts that hit the weakest, greed for money that you can�t take with you and have to leave. When we were small, our grandmother used to say: a shroud has no pocket. Love of power, corruption, divisions, crimes against human life and against creation! And � as each one of us knows and is aware - our personal sins: our failures in love and respect towards God, towards our neighbour and towards the whole of creation. Jesus on the Cross feels the whole weight of the evil, and with the force of God�s love he conquers it, he defeats it with his resurrection. This is the good that Jesus does for us on the throne of the Cross. Christ�s Cross embraced with love never leads to sadness, but to joy, to the joy of having been saved and of doing a little of what he did on the day of his death. 

3. Today in this Square, there are many young people: for twenty-eight years Palm Sunday has been World Youth Day! This is our third word: youth! Dear young people, I saw you in the procession as you were coming in; I think of you celebrating around Jesus, waving your olive branches. I think of you crying out his name and expressing your joy at being with him! You have an important part in the celebration of faith! You bring us the joy of faith and you tell us that we must live the faith with a young heart, always: a young heart, even at the age of seventy or eighty. Dear young people! With Christ, the heart never grows old! Yet all of us, all of you know very well that the King whom we follow and who accompanies us is very special: he is a King who loves even to the Cross and who teaches us to serve and to love. And you are not ashamed of his Cross! On the contrary, you embrace it, because you have understood that it is in giving ourselves, in giving ourselves, in emerging from ourselves that we have true joy and that, with his love, God conquered evil. You carry the pilgrim Cross through all the Continents, along the highways of the world! You carry it in response to Jesus� call: �Go, make disciples of all nations� (Mt 28:19), which is the theme of World Youth Day this year. You carry it so as to tell everyone that on the Cross Jesus knocked down the wall of enmity that divides people and nations, and he brought reconciliation and peace. Dear friends, I too am setting out on a journey with you, starting today, in the footsteps of Blessed John Paul II and Benedict XVI. We are already close to the next stage of this great pilgrimage of the Cross. I look forward joyfully to next July in Rio de Janeiro! I will see you in that great city in Brazil! Prepare well � prepare spiritually above all � in your communities, so that our gathering in Rio may be a sign of faith for the whole world. Young people must say to the world: to follow Christ is good; to go with Christ is good; the message of Christ is good; emerging from ourselves, to the ends of the earth and of existence, to take Jesus there, is good! Three words, then: joy, Cross, young. 

Let us ask the intercession of the Virgin Mary. She teaches us the joy of meeting Christ, the love with which we must look to the foot of the Cross, the enthusiasm of the young heart with which we must follow him during this Holy Week and throughout our lives. May it be so.

� Copyright 2013 - Libreria Editrice Vaticana

Jesus Comes to Jerusalem as King

After Jesus had said this, he went on ahead, going up to Jerusalem. As he approached Bethphage and Bethany at the hill called the Mount of Olives, he sent two of his disciples, saying to them,  �Go to the village ahead of you, and as you enter it, you will find a colt tied there, which no one has ever ridden. Untie it and bring it here. If anyone asks you, �Why are you untying it?� say, �The Lord needs it.�� 

Those who were sent ahead went and found it just as he had told them. As they were untying the colt, its owners asked them, �Why are you untying the colt?� 

They replied, �The Lord needs it.� 

They brought it to Jesus, threw their cloaks on the colt and put Jesus on it. As he went along, people spread their cloaks on the road. 

When he came near the place where the road goes down the Mount of Olives, the whole crowd of disciples began joyfully to praise God in loud voices for all the miracles they had seen: 

�Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord!�

�Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!�

Luke 19:38

Palm Sunday

Palm Sunday is the Sunday before Easter, and marks the beginning of Holy Week, the week of events leading up to Jesus' death. It is one of the most important days in the life of the church. Palm Sunday commemorates the triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover. The significance of Jesus riding a donkey and having his way paved with palm branches is a fulfillment of a prophecy spoken by the prophet Zechariah.

Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion!

Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem!

Behold, your King is coming to you;

He is just and having salvation,

Lowly and riding on a donkey,

A colt, the foal of a donkey. 

Zechariah 9:9 

They brought the donkey and the colt, laid their clothes on them, and set Him on them. And a very great multitude spread their clothes on the road; others cut down branches from the trees and spread them on the road. Then the multitudes who went before and those who followed cried out, saying:

�Hosanna to the Son of David!

�Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!�

Hosanna in the highest!�

Matthew 21:7-9

Palm Sunday begins with the blessing of the palms. The procession follows, then Mass is celebrated, wherein the Passion and the Benediction are sung. The blessed palms are then taken home by the faithful after the Mass and placed in their houses. This marks the beginning of final days of Jesus leading to His crucifixion on Mount Calvary where He died to save us from our sins. Finally at the end of the Holy Week, we renew our baptismal promises and rejoice His Glorious Resurrection on Easter Sunday.

Let us rejoice in the Lord as our King just as the people rejoiced on that first Palm Sunday, saying, �Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!� (Luke 19:38).

Sunday, 24 March, 2013
Palm Sunday

Before procession with palms 

Gospel

Luke 19:28-40

²⁸ After Jesus had said this, he went on ahead, going up to Jerusalem. ²⁹ As he approached Bethphage and Bethany at the hill called the Mount of Olives, he sent two of his disciples, saying to them, ³⁰ �Go to the village ahead of you, and as you enter it, you will find a colt tied there, which no one has ever ridden. Untie it and bring it here. ³¹ If anyone asks you, �Why are you untying it?� say, �The Lord needs it.��
³² Those who were sent ahead went and found it just as he had told them. ³³ As they were untying the colt, its owners asked them, �Why are you untying the colt?�
³⁴ They replied, �The Lord needs it.�
³⁵ They brought it to Jesus, threw their cloaks on the colt and put Jesus on it. ³⁶ As he went along, people spread their cloaks on the road.
³⁷ When he came near the place where the road goes down the Mount of Olives, the whole crowd of disciples began joyfully to praise God in loud voices for all the miracles they had seen:

³⁸ �Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord!�

�Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!�

³⁹ Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to Jesus, �Teacher, rebuke your disciples!�

⁴⁰ �I tell you,� he replied, �if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out.�

At the mass
Reading 1
Is 50:4-7

⁴ The Sovereign Lord has given me a well-instructed tongue,
to know the word that sustains the weary.
He wakens me morning by morning,
wakens my ear to listen like one being instructed.
⁵ The Sovereign Lord has opened my ears;
I have not been rebellious,
I have not turned away.
⁶ I offered my back to those who beat me,
my cheeks to those who pulled out my beard;
I did not hide my face
from mocking and spitting.
⁷ Because the Sovereign Lord helps me,
I will not be disgraced.
Therefore have I set my face like flint, and I know I will not be put to shame.

Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 22:8-9, 17-18, 19-20, 23-24

⁸ �He trusts in the Lord,� they say,
�let the Lord rescue him.
Let him deliver him,
since he delights in him.�

⁹ Yet you brought me out of the womb;
you made me trust in you, even at my mother�s breast.

¹⁷ All my bones are on display;
people stare and gloat over me.
¹⁸ They divide my clothes among them
and cast lots for my garment.

¹⁹ But you, Lord, do not be far from me.
You are my strength; come quickly to help me.
²⁰ Deliver me from the sword,
my precious life from the power of the dogs.

²³ You who fear the Lord, praise him!
All you descendants of Jacob, honor him!
Revere him, all you descendants of Israel!
²⁴ For he has not despised or scorned
the suffering of the afflicted one;
he has not hidden his face from him but has listened to his cry for help.

Reading 2
Philippians 2:6-11

6 Who, being in very nature God,

    did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage;

7 rather, he made himself nothing

    by taking the very nature of a servant,

    being made in human likeness.

8 And being found in appearance as a man,

    he humbled himself

    by becoming obedient to death�

        even death on a cross!

9 Therefore God exalted him to the highest place

    and gave him the name that is above every name,

10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,

    in heaven and on earth and under the earth,

11 and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord,

    to the glory of God the Father.

Gospel
Luke 22:14�23:56

¹⁴ When the hour came, Jesus and his apostles reclined at the table. ¹⁵ And he said to them, �I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. ¹⁶ For I tell you, I will not eat it again until it finds fulfillment in the kingdom of God.�
¹⁷ After taking the cup, he gave thanks and said, �Take this and divide it among you. ¹⁸ For I tell you I will not drink again from the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.�
¹⁹ And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, �This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me.�
²⁰ In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, �This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you. ²¹ But the hand of him who is going to betray me is with mine on the table. ²² The Son of Man will go as it has been decreed. But woe to that man who betrays him!� ²³ They began to question among themselves which of them it might be who would do this.
²⁴ A dispute also arose among them as to which of them was considered to be greatest. ²⁵ Jesus said to them, �The kings of the Gentiles lord it over them; and those who exercise authority over them call themselves Benefactors. ²⁶ But you are not to be like that. Instead, the greatest among you should be like the youngest, and the one who rules like the one who serves. ²⁷ For who is greater, the one who is at the table or the one who serves? Is it not the one who is at the table? But I am among you as one who serves. ²⁸ You are those who have stood by me in my trials. ²⁹ And I confer on you a kingdom, just as my Father conferred one on me, ³⁰ so that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom and sit on thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.
³¹ �Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift all of you as wheat. ³² But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers.�
³³ But he replied, �Lord, I am ready to go with you to prison and to death.�
³⁴ Jesus answered, �I tell you, Peter, before the rooster crows today, you will deny three times that you know me.�
³⁵ Then Jesus asked them, �When I sent you without purse, bag or sandals, did you lack anything?�
�Nothing,� they answered.
³⁶ He said to them, �But now if you have a purse, take it, and also a bag; and if you don�t have a sword, sell your cloak and buy one. ³⁷ It is written: �And he was numbered with the transgressors�; and I tell you that this must be fulfilled in me. Yes, what is written about me is reaching its fulfillment.�
³⁸ The disciples said, �See, Lord, here are two swords.�
�That�s enough!� he replied.

Jesus Prays on the Mount of Olives

³⁹ Jesus went out as usual to the Mount of Olives, and his disciples followed him. ⁴⁰ On reaching the place, he said to them, �Pray that you will not fall into temptation.� ⁴¹ He withdrew about a stone�s throw beyond them, knelt down and prayed, ⁴² �Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.� ⁴³ An angel from heaven appeared to him and strengthened him. ⁴⁴ And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground.
⁴⁵ When he rose from prayer and went back to the disciples, he found them asleep, exhausted from sorrow. ⁴⁶ �Why are you sleeping?� he asked them. �Get up and pray so that you will not fall into temptation.�

Jesus Arrested

⁴⁷ While he was still speaking a crowd came up, and the man who was called Judas, one of the Twelve, was leading them. He approached Jesus to kiss him, ⁴⁸ but Jesus asked him, �Judas, are you betraying the Son of Man with a kiss?�
⁴⁹ When Jesus� followers saw what was going to happen, they said, �Lord, should we strike with our swords?� ⁵⁰ And one of them struck the servant of the high priest, cutting off his right ear.
⁵¹ But Jesus answered, �No more of this!� And he touched the man�s ear and healed him.
⁵² Then Jesus said to the chief priests, the officers of the temple guard, and the elders, who had come for him, �Am I leading a rebellion, that you have come with swords and clubs? ⁵³ Every day I was with you in the temple courts, and you did not lay a hand on me. But this is your hour�when darkness reigns.�

Peter Disowns Jesus

⁵⁴ Then seizing him, they led him away and took him into the house of the high priest. Peter followed at a distance. ⁵⁵ And when some there had kindled a fire in the middle of the courtyard and had sat down together, Peter sat down with them. ⁵⁶ A servant girl saw him seated there in the firelight. She looked closely at him and said, �This man was with him.�
⁵⁷ But he denied it. �Woman, I don�t know him,� he said.
⁵⁸ A little later someone else saw him and said, �You also are one of them.�
�Man, I am not!� Peter replied.
⁵⁹ About an hour later another asserted, �Certainly this fellow was with him, for he is a Galilean.�
⁶⁰ Peter replied, �Man, I don�t know what you�re talking about!� Just as he was speaking, the rooster crowed. ⁶¹ The Lord turned and looked straight at Peter. Then Peter remembered the word the Lord had spoken to him: �Before the rooster crows today, you will disown me three times.� ⁶² And he went outside and wept bitterly.

The Guards Mock Jesus

⁶³ The men who were guarding Jesus began mocking and beating him. ⁶⁴ They blindfolded him and demanded, �Prophesy! Who hit you?� ⁶⁵ And they said many other insulting things to him.

Jesus Before Pilate and Herod

⁶⁶ At daybreak the council of the elders of the people, both the chief priests and the teachers of the law, met together, and Jesus was led before them. ⁶⁷ �If you are the Messiah,� they said, �tell us.�
Jesus answered, �If I tell you, you will not believe me, ⁶⁸ and if I asked you, you would not answer. ⁶⁹ But from now on, the Son of Man will be seated at the right hand of the mighty God.�
⁷⁰ They all asked, �Are you then the Son of God?�
He replied, �You say that I am.�
⁷¹ Then they said, �Why do we need any more testimony? We have heard it from his own lips.�

23 Then the whole assembly rose and led him off to Pilate. ² And they began to accuse him, saying, �We have found this man subverting our nation. He opposes payment of taxes to Caesar and claims to be Messiah, a king.�

³ So Pilate asked Jesus, �Are you the king of the Jews?�
�You have said so,� Jesus replied.
⁴ Then Pilate announced to the chief priests and the crowd, �I find no basis for a charge against this man.�
⁵ But they insisted, �He stirs up the people all over Judea by his teaching. He started in Galilee and has come all the way here.�
⁶ On hearing this, Pilate asked if the man was a Galilean. ⁷ When he learned that Jesus was under Herod�s jurisdiction, he sent him to Herod, who was also in Jerusalem at that time.
⁸ When Herod saw Jesus, he was greatly pleased, because for a long time he had been wanting to see him. From what he had heard about him, he hoped to see him perform a sign of some sort. ⁹ He plied him with many questions, but Jesus gave him no answer. ¹⁰ The chief priests and the teachers of the law were standing there, vehemently accusing him. ¹¹ Then Herod and his soldiers ridiculed and mocked him. Dressing him in an elegant robe, they sent him back to Pilate. ¹² That day Herod and Pilate became friends�before this they had been enemies.
¹³ Pilate called together the chief priests, the rulers and the people, ¹⁴ and said to them, �You brought me this man as one who was inciting the people to rebellion. I have examined him in your presence and have found no basis for your charges against him. ¹⁵ Neither has Herod, for he sent him back to us; as you can see, he has done nothing to deserve death. ¹⁶ Therefore, I will punish him and then release him.� 
¹⁸ But the whole crowd shouted, �Away with this man! Release Barabbas to us!� ¹⁹ (Barabbas had been thrown into prison for an insurrection in the city, and for murder.)
²⁰ Wanting to release Jesus, Pilate appealed to them again. ²¹ But they kept shouting, �Crucify him! Crucify him!�
²² For the third time he spoke to them: �Why? What crime has this man committed? I have found in him no grounds for the death penalty. Therefore I will have him punished and then release him.�
²³ But with loud shouts they insistently demanded that he be crucified, and their shouts prevailed. ²⁴ So Pilate decided to grant their demand. ²⁵ He released the man who had been thrown into prison for insurrection and murder, the one they asked for, and surrendered Jesus to their will.

The Crucifixion of Jesus

²⁶ As the soldiers led him away, they seized Simon from Cyrene, who was on his way in from the country, and put the cross on him and made him carry it behind Jesus. ²⁷ A large number of people followed him, including women who mourned and wailed for him. ²⁸ Jesus turned and said to them, �Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for me; weep for yourselves and for your children. ²⁹ For the time will come when you will say, �Blessed are the childless women, the wombs that never bore and the breasts that never nursed!� ³⁰ Then

��they will say to the mountains, �Fall on us!�
and to the hills, �Cover us!��

³¹ For if people do these things when the tree is green, what will happen when it is dry?�

³² Two other men, both criminals, were also led out with him to be executed. ³³ When they came to the place called the Skull, they crucified him there, along with the criminals�one on his right, the other on his left. ³⁴ Jesus said, �Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.� And they divided up his clothes by casting lots.
³⁵ The people stood watching, and the rulers even sneered at him. They said, �He saved others; let him save himself if he is God�s Messiah, the Chosen One.�
³⁶ The soldiers also came up and mocked him. They offered him wine vinegar ³⁷ and said, �If you are the king of the Jews, save yourself.�
³⁸ There was a written notice above him, which read: this is the king of the jews.
³⁹ One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at him: �Aren�t you the Messiah? Save yourself and us!�
⁴⁰ But the other criminal rebuked him. �Don�t you fear God,� he said, �since you are under the same sentence? ⁴¹ We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong.�
⁴² Then he said, �Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.�
⁴³ Jesus answered him, �Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise.�

The Death of Jesus

⁴⁴ It was now about noon, and darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon, ⁴⁵ for the sun stopped shining. And the curtain of the temple was torn in two. ⁴⁶ Jesus called out with a loud voice, �Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.� When he had said this, he breathed his last.
⁴⁷ The centurion, seeing what had happened, praised God and said, �Surely this was a righteous man.� ⁴⁸ When all the people who had gathered to witness this sight saw what took place, they beat their breasts and went away. ⁴⁹ But all those who knew him, including the women who had followed him from Galilee, stood at a distance, watching these things.

The Burial of Jesus

⁵⁰ Now there was a man named Joseph, a member of the Council, a good and upright man, ⁵¹ who had not consented to their decision and action. He came from the Judean town of Arimathea, and he himself was waiting for the kingdom of God. ⁵² Going to Pilate, he asked for Jesus� body. ⁵³ Then he took it down, wrapped it in linen cloth and placed it in a tomb cut in the rock, one in which no one had yet been laid. ⁵⁴ It was Preparation Day, and the Sabbath was about to begin.
⁵⁵ The women who had come with Jesus from Galilee followed Joseph and saw the tomb and how his body was laid in it. ⁵⁶ Then they went home and prepared spices and perfumes. But they rested on the Sabbath in obedience to the commandment.