MY KINGDOM IS NOT OF THIS WORLD

A MESSAGE FOR PALM SUNDAY

Palm Sunday is a day of conflicting emotions.  Our Mass begins with the recreation of that triumphal scene when our Lord was welcomed into his holy city of Jerusalem by a crowd brimming with excitement and enthusiasm, waving palms and shouting Hosanna.  We sing the hymn of praise “All glory, laud, and honor to thee, Redeemer King!”

But after these scenes of triumph, we are abruptly thrown into the solemn recollection of our Lord’s bitter Passion and Death.  There could be no greater chasm between the cries of “Hosanna!” on that first Palm Sunday, and the cries of “Crucify him!” on the first Good Friday.  That dark and deep contrast is encapsulated for us in today’s liturgy, and we would do well to ponder on its significance.

The emotions of the crowd are so very fickle, moving within just a few days from one extreme to another.  The ostensible reason for their change of mood lies in the expectation that Jesus will enter Jerusalem and make himself king, overthrowing perhaps the occupation of the Romans by means of his miracles, and restoring the kingdom of Israel to her former glory.  When our Lord is arrested on the eve of Good Friday, and receives not a crown of triumph but a crown of thorns, it becomes evident that no such political upheaval is going to take place.  In their disappointment at our Lord’s “failure” to fulfill their human dreams, they abandon him, even going so far as to call for his death.

But as our Lord patiently explained to Pontius Pilate, “My kingdom is not of this world.”  The mob has failed throughout our Lord’s three-year ministry to understand this simple fact, and when it becomes clear that they have misunderstood the divine plan of Redemption, they react viciously.  The idea of adjusting their misconceptions did not occur to them—instead they adjust the objective truth to fit their error, no longer hailing our Lord as a king, but as the betrayer of their ill-conceived dreams.

Today, our own faith in the one, holy, Catholic and apostolic Church is similarly challenged.  Since Vatican II, many Catholics have abandoned their Church and their faith, seeking solace in false religions or no religion at all.  They may as well call out with their predecessors “Crucify him.”  Our urgent reminder from our Lord today is that his kingdom, his Church, is not of this world, and that we must remain faithful to her in spite of her apparent failure.  If Christ could die, then so can his Church.  We must hold fast to our faith, and pray for her glorious Resurrection that will surely come.