Palm
Sunday (C1)
(Isaiah 50:4-7; Philippians 2:6-11; St. Luke 22:14-23:56)
Today’s
reading of the Passion and death of Our Blessed Lord Jesus was written by St.
Luke who was not one of the Twelve Apostles nor was he present at Our Lord’s crucifixion. The other two synoptic Gospel accounts of the
crucifixion were written by SS. Mark and Matthew: Matthew was, indeed, himself present
on Calvary, while St. Mark is generally understood to have been the disciple
and amanuensis of St. Peter, and thus His Gospel gives us Peter’s unique
experience and memory of Jesus’ life and teaching before the horror of His
sufferings and death on Calvary.
For
such close disciples of Jesus as Peter and Matthew (Levi), being present on
Calvary when Jesus’ crucifixion took place must have been an overwhelming
experience, and both Matthew’s and Mark’s Gospel reflect their authors’ seared
memories of that tragic event. Luke was
not present on Calvary and, by that very fact being less traumatized by the
visual horrors of the Crucifixion, he alone thought to tell us of the beginning
of the Last Supper Jesus held with His Apostles before Calvary:
When
the hour came, Jesus took His place at table with the Apostles. He said to them, “I
have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer.” He took a cup, gave thanks, and said, “Take this and share it among
yourselves.” Then He took the bread, said the blessing, broke it, and
gave it to them, saying, “This is My body, which will be
given for you; do this in memory of Me.” And likewise, the cup after they had
eaten, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood, which will be shed
for you.”
Notice
that People of God: immediately before His dreadful suffering, Jesus rejoiced
at being able to eat that supper with His Apostles, and taking
a celebratory (!) cup of wine He gave thanks! Then, He took some bread and said, “This is My
body, which will be given for you, do this in memory of Me”; and
finally, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood, which will be shed
for you.” All
expressions of Our Lord’s deep joy at loving beyond measure, and humbly
expressing that touchingly human desire that His love be both remembered and
returned by these unique Apostles of His own choosing.
Dear fellow
disciples of Jesus our Lord and Saviour, Saint Luke has left us a treasure
here! Where he got it, so to speak, is irrelevant,
for this is God’s Gospel truth and it is essential for our right understanding
of the saving Passion and Death of Him Who was sent by the Father as Saviour of mankind!
In life’s
sufferings we all are offered -- what SS. James and John so eagerly desired for
themselves (Mt. 20:22) -- a share in the chalice Jesus would drink, and St.
Luke shows us how Our Lord Himself prepared not only to accept but to
positively embrace His cup of most outrageous sufferings! And we, as Catholic
and Christian disciples of Jesus, can only fruitfully accept our God-given
share of life’s trials IF we try to embrace them with love as Our
Lord and Saviour embraced
His crucifixion, for Personal love of His Father and for love of us and our salvation!
The Father created
us and wanted us to be saved: our salvation originates in the Father’s saving will
for us. Jesus loved His Father totally, and, loving
His Father totally, He willed above all to carry out His Father’s desire for
our salvation (John 10:14–15):
I
am the good shepherd, and I know Mine and Mine know Me, just as the Father
knows Me and I know the Father; and consequently,
I will lay down My life for the sheep.
Jesus’ agony
in the garden before His Father showed most clearly that He knew what was going
to happen to Himself, but in preparing to undergo it He willed -- for Himself
and for His Apostles -- to face it resolutely, and He most earnestly urged His
Apostles to rejoice -- quite deliberately -- with Him. He said:
“I
have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer.” And
then, He took a cup, (a celebratory cup!) gave thanks, and said, “Take this and share it
among yourselves.”
Only after
having thus established the appropriate atmosphere, did He mention His body and
blood, to be sacrificed and become sacramental.
Dear friends
in Christ, deliberate joy and obedient love make a cross-conquering and a life-affirming
weapon for all who in Jesus aspire to become true children of the heavenly
Father, Who calls us, draws us, to Himself in Jesus by the Spirit of them both,
the Spirit of Truth and Love. Come,
Lord Jesus, come!
