Set Your Hope on the Living God

Gospel
Palm Sunday of the Lord’s Passion - At the Mass
05 April 2009
Mk 15:1-39

As soon as morning came,
the chief priests with the elders and the scribes,
that is, the whole Sanhedrin held a council.
They bound Jesus, led him away, and handed him over to Pilate.
Pilate questioned him,
“Are you the king of the Jews?”
He said to him in reply, “You say so.”
The chief priests accused him of many things.
Again Pilate questioned him,
“Have you no answer?
See how many things they accuse you of.”
Jesus gave him no further answer, so that Pilate was amazed.

Now on the occasion of the feast he used to release to them
one prisoner whom they requested.
A man called Barabbas was then in prison
along with the rebels who had committed murder in a rebellion.
The crowd came forward and began to ask him
to do for them as he was accustomed.
Pilate answered,
“Do you want me to release to you the king of the Jews?”
For he knew that it was out of envy
that the chief priests had handed him over.
But the chief priests stirred up the crowd
to have him release Barabbas for them instead.
Pilate again said to them in reply,
“Then what do you want me to do
with the man you call the king of the Jews?”
They shouted again, “Crucify him.”
Pilate said to them, “Why? What evil has he done?”
They only shouted the louder, “Crucify him.”
So Pilate, wishing to satisfy the crowd,
released Barabbas to them and, after he had Jesus scourged,
handed him over to be crucified.

The soldiers led him away inside the palace,
that is, the praetorium, and assembled the whole cohort.
They clothed him in purple and,
weaving a crown of thorns, placed it on him.
They began to salute him with, “Hail, King of the Jews!”
and kept striking his head with a reed and spitting upon him.
They knelt before him in homage.
And when they had mocked him,
they stripped him of the purple cloak,
dressed him in his own clothes,
and led him out to crucify him.

They pressed into service a passer-by, Simon,
a Cyrenian, who was coming in from the country,
the father of Alexander and Rufus,
to carry his cross.

They brought him to the place of Golgotha
—which is translated Place of the Skull—
They gave him wine drugged with myrrh,
but he did not take it.
Then they crucified him and divided his garments
by casting lots for them to see what each should take.
It was nine o’clock in the morning when they crucified him.
The inscription of the charge against him read,
“The King of the Jews.”
With him they crucified two revolutionaries,
one on his right and one on his left.
Those passing by reviled him,
shaking their heads and saying,
“Aha! You who would destroy the temple
and rebuild it in three days,
save yourself by coming down from the cross.”
Likewise the chief priests, with the scribes,
mocked him among themselves and said,
“He saved others; he cannot save himself.
Let the Christ, the King of Israel,
come down now from the cross
that we may see and believe.”
Those who were crucified with him also kept abusing him.

At noon darkness came over the whole land
until three in the afternoon.
And at three o’clock Jesus cried out in a loud voice,
“Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?”
which is translated,
“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”
Some of the bystanders who heard it said,
“Look, he is calling Elijah.”
One of them ran, soaked a sponge with wine, put it on a reed
and gave it to him to drink saying,
“Wait, let us see if Elijah comes to take him down.”
Jesus gave a loud cry and breathed his last.

Here all kneel and pause for a short time.

The veil of the sanctuary was torn in two from top to bottom.
When the centurion who stood facing him
saw how he breathed his last he said,
“Truly this man was the Son of God!”

***

by Charles Edric T. Co

Perhaps many are unaware of the fact that diocesan celebrations of the 24th World Youth Day are being held in different parts of the world today with one common theme, “We have set our hope on the living God” (1 Tm 4:10). This very day, we also celebrate Passion Sunday, more popularly known as Palm Sunday, when Jesus was welcomed warmly to Jerusalem with the people setting their hopes on Him as the Messiah.

Nevertheless, the Gospel read during the Liturgy of the Word speaks not of this triumphant entry to Jerusalem but of the passion and death of Jesus. We see people shift from being welcoming and trusting to being distrustful and mocking. We see in the Gospel that the people who had set their hope on Jesus during His entry to Jerusalem had turned against Him and had asked for His death. As if this is not enough, they mocked and teased Him to show them that He is indeed the Messiah.

These two seemingly contradicting themes urge us to think of our attitudes. Are we good friends through thick and thin? Or are we just foul-weather friends who are only there when we need him/her? More important are our attitudes towards God: Do we have enough faith to set our hope on God no matter what happens? Are we strong enough to stand for our faith or are we there for Jesus only when the society thinks highly of the Church?

Today’s readings show us the attitude of a true servant of God—hopeful and not despairing as in the First Reading, and humble and obedient as in the Second Reading. It is with these attitudes that Christ who humbled himself by death on the cross was exalted by God with a Name at which “all knees should bend in heaven, on earth and among the dead” (Phil. 2:10).

Do not despair; rather, set your hopes on the God who saves.

Charles is a candidate for Ten Outstanding Students of the Philippines, graduating with a Master’s Degree in Chemical Engineering from De La Salle University. He is also a lector with FCCY, serving during 10am mass slots.

Reference:
www.vatican.va