Palm Sunday

April 2, 2023
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Today, Catholic Christians begin Holy Week with the celebration of Palm Sunday of the Lord’s Passion, usually simply called Palm Sunday.

In the Gospel of Matthew, we read:

When they drew near Jerusalem and came to Bethphage on the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples, saying to them, “Go into the village opposite you, and immediately you will find an ass tethered, and a colt with her.  Untie them and bring them here to me.  And if anyone should say anything to you, reply, ‘The master has need of them.’  Then he will send them at once.”  This happened so that what had been spoken through the prophet might be fulfilled: 

“Say to daughter Zion, ‘Behold, your king comes to you, meek and riding on an ass, and on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden.'” 

The disciples went and did as Jesus had ordered them.  They brought the ass and the colt and laid their cloaks over them, and he sat upon them.  The very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, while others cut branches from the trees and strewed them on the road.  The crowds preceding him and those following kept crying out and saying:

“Hosanna to the Son of David; blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord; hosanna in the highest.” 

And when he entered Jerusalem, the whole city was shaken and asked, “Who is this?”  And the crowds replied, “This is Jesus the prophet, from Nazareth in Galilee” (Matthew 21: 1-11).

The photo above shows Fr. Bob celebrating Palm Sunday in 2022 in La Libertad before entering the Church of Our Lady of Mercedes for Mass.