Today we processed into the Church
crying “Hosanna, Hosanna to the Son of David!” This cry echoes
the words of the crowd that joyously welcomed Our Lord Jesus into
Jerusalem, riding on a simple donkey with a small crowd of simpletons
as disciples. Certainly this is not the King we expect when we think
of the Most High God, exalted above all the earth! And yet our Lord
shows his humility in this entrance, performed not because he feeds
off the praise of the masses, but because He wants to fulfill His
Father's Will, to drink from the cup, even if it means the cup of
suffering. And how quickly the suffering comes, and how quickly the
crowds turn. And perhaps most painfully for Our Lord, how quickly
those closest to Him abandon Him. I can only imagine that when He
looks from the cross for those three hours, he certainly noticed that
practically all of them were scattered and nowhere to be found.
Pope Francis, as the Roman Pontiff,
the Vicar of Christ on earth, sometimes relives very poignantly the
mysteries of Our Lord's life. In these days when the masses of our
world, the raucous crowd of our time is praising the Pope for his
witness, indeed a good one, I can't help but think that they are very
often misunderstanding him just as the mobs misunderstood Jesus.
They wave their palms today in praise, but will they soon turn to
yell out “crucify him”? Like Jesus, Pope Francis does not enjoy
public opinion for its own sake, but only if it is the Father's will,
and I expect Him, like many popes before him, to be a sign of
contradiction, a man of mixed reception.
When the masses abandon our Pope, when
the crowds cry out against the Church, and when the mobs demand
Jesus' life, where will we be? It is easy to sing “Hosanna” when
everyone else does, but will we still be there at the end? Let us
try to be faithful. And also, as Pope Francis asks of us (and shows
us with his very life), let us be missionary disciples, those who
witness to Christ at all times, especially by our humility,
our mercy, our
love. These palm
branches are signs that we make Jesus our King. I challenge you to
carry these around with you. In your pockets, etc. Make a cross of
them if you wish. Use them as missionary tools, as methods of
evangelization. Help others to see Jesus the King, your
king, by your life. And do not abandon Him when the road becomes
difficult, for then is your greatest chance to testify to the God who
loves us with such deep love.
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