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| Palm Sunday -- Octavio Ocampo |
LITURGY of the PALMS
LITURGY of the PASSION
Though still commonly called Palm Sunday, in modern liturgical
practice the Sunday before Easter Day is referred to as ‘The Sunday of the Passion’.
This is because it is the first liturgical observance in the season of Holy
Week and Easter when a Gospel narrative of the sufferings (passion) of Jesus is
read. The older title is not lost,
however. This Sunday is unique in the Lectionary because it prescribes two Gospels,
and the first of these -- for the Liturgy of the Palms – tells the story of
Christ’s arrival in Jerusalem for the Passover. Riding on a donkey, and greeted
with enthusiasm by a crowd waving palm branches, it is traditionally described
as his ‘triumphal entry’.
It is only once modern worshippers have re-enacted this scene, and
taken part in their own procession, that they listen to the Passion narrative –
usually read or sung in a dramatic form by a number of different voices. Though
this second Gospel, whether in the full or the abbreviated form, is much
longer, the first is crucial in establishing the shape of our journey to
Easter. On Palm Sunday we begin with triumph, but it is short lived – and
hollow. The Bible readings for days that follow in Holy Week reflect the rising
tension, and contention, that surrounds Jesus. It culminates, finally, in his
betrayal, trial and death.
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| Jesus Christ -- Octavio Ocampo |
It is vitally important to see that in this intervening period, his
enemies not merely gain the upper hand; in the world’s terms they are also
victorious. What better outcome for those who see Jesus as a radical traitor to
their faith, and a threat to their political security, than that he should be
killed in the brutal way reserved for the worst of criminals? And what greater
evidence of his missionary failure, than that his most loyal disciples abandon
him in fear and wretchedness, and even deny that they ever knew him?
It is only when we grasp the depth of the degradation, pain and failure,
to which Jesus is subjected, together with the strength of his unwavering
obedience to God, that we can understand both the shallowness of his
‘triumphal’ entry on Palm Sunday, and the significance of his Resurrection on
Easter Day. By this mighty act God shows where true victory is to be found. It
remains, of course, for us to find the grace to long for it.
Octavio Ocampo (b. 1943) is one of Mexico's most prolific painters.
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