PASSION (PALM) SUNDAY
Passion Sunday is particularly meaningful this year. As we listen to the passion narrative from the Gospel of Mark proclaimed in our churches we can imagine the streets of Holy Land, the crowds, the violence and the despair. Here we are in 2024, witnessing horrific violence once again. The same streets and paths that Jesus walked in pain and anguish are tense with the reality of war.
As Christians, we know that this narrative does not end with Jesus breathing his last. And yet, how do we resolve listening again to the torture to which Jesus was subjected? How do we resolve what is happening in our world today?
In his suffering and death, Jesus presents to us as humble, quiet and resigned to his end. Here we read about the darkest side of our humanity. Jesus faces ridicule, torture, betrayal, hurt, mocking and jealousy. Where were his followers? The same Jesus who fed five thousand stands rejected and alone. This is the beauty and hard lesson of the ministry of Jesus. Our human condition is frail and continues to erupt in violence, poverty and division. Jesus spoke to these realities and addressed them through his miracles. In the same way, his death is a reminder of the power of resistance and forgiveness. When he was spat upon, he did not retaliate. He knew that there was a larger reality to which he had been called.
We are called to be Easter people. We know that the narrative does not end with the cross, but continues to the empty grave, the stone rolled away. Jesus’ walk to Calvary empowers us to never give up hope for peace in our homes and in our world, for equality at work and in our faith communities and for restorative justice wherever it can bring balance. We can stand strong in the face of injustice. Jesus’ captors were amazed that he did not fight back or defend himself. As Easter people, may we continue to find hope in the example of Jesus, even in despair.
During this Holy Week, let us hold all those who are in the midst of conflict in our hearts. When faced with the darker side of our humanity, let us always remember the example of Jesus facing his tormentors. We know that Jesus walked this walk so that we may walk our own more confident in God’s love which restores all of humanity.
Jan Bentham is a retired Religion Coordinator with the Ottawa Catholic School Board. She is a musician, serving in music ministry at St. Ignatius Parish in Ottawa. She currently works at St. Paul’s University with the Catholic Women’s Leadership Program.
