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Palm Sunday of the Lord’s Passion, 2 April 2023 (under construction) Note: Homilies & Angelus / Regina Caeli of Pope Saint John Paul II, Pope Benedict XVI & Pope Francis I had been compiled for you after the Mass Readings below. Happy Reading! Liturgical Colour: Red.
Mass Readings from ETWN, USCCB, Universalis (Christian Art). See our extracts with pictures in Encouragements-214 , 215, 216 or Encouragements-600. Procession Mass Readings: Matthew 21:1-11 (Year A, 2 April 2023). Mark 11:1-10 or John 12:12-16 (Year B, 28 March 2021). Saints’ Commentaries: Mark 11, John 12 from CATENA AUREA BY SAINT THOMAS AQUINAS. Luke 19:28-40 (Year A, 5 April 2020). Mass Readings: First Readings: Isaiah 50:4-7, Responsorial: Psalms 22:8-9, 17-20, 23-24, Second Reading: Philippians 2:6-11 & Gospel: Mark 14:1-15:47 or Mark 15:1-39 (see ETWN, USCCB for Year B, 28 March 2021) Saints’ Commentaries: Mark 14, Mark 15 from CATENA AUREA BY SAINT THOMAS AQUINAS. Matthew 26:14-27:66 or Matthew 27:11-54 (Year A, 2 April 2023) Gospel video: (Mark 14:1-15:47), (Matthew 26:14-27:66) Or Luke 22:14-23:56 or Luke 23:1-49.
Others Related to Palm Sunday: Luke Chapter 23 Video—The Passion of Christ. Abused! Crucified to death! Christ chose this path & did not run away from the Mission of being the Saviour! Did Christ sleep forever? Obviously no! See Luke Chapter 24 video , Matthew Chapter 28 video .
Please refer to https://twitter.com/Michael65413248 for some latest record. Take care, put on your facemask and stay healthy, because we love you! 8-)
1. Criminal Investigation Department, Singapore Police Force harassed Law-abiding Citizen. Latest! https://twitter.com/Michael65413248/status/1510086218851270658 (2 April 2022) #Singapore Police Force harassing the same law abiding business owner again from 92298844, 97397514, 83487591, 96645914, 63914706, 82825465, 97378102, 90360045, 92981234! They can’t perform to contain COVID, so they bully to appear busy? Shameless? You decide! 2. See another Police case to frame against the Innocent! Please spread the News to help them who commit no crime. Many Thanks. Till this day, the harassment continues and there is no apology from the Rulers and no compensation paid for damages inflicted. 3. See the Bloggers went MISSING before / after the Singapore General Election on 10 July 2020. Please pray for their safety as we search for them actively. Many Thanks. 5. Do you want this kind of “pastoral care”? Latest updates!
Homilies, Angelus / Regina Caeli
See our extracts with pictures in Encouragements-600. 8-)
See our extracts with pictures in Encouragements-600. 8-)
1. "Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord!" (Luke 19:38). Palm Sunday enables us to relive Jesus' entry into Jerusalem shortly before Passover. The Gospel passage presents him to us entering the city surrounded by a festive crowd. We can say that, on that day, Israel's expectations of the Messiah reached their peak. They were expectations fostered by the words of the ancient prophets and confirmed by Jesus of Nazareth through his teaching and, especially, through the signs he performed.
When the Pharisees asked him to silence the crowd, Jesus replied: "If these were silent, the very stones would cry out" (Luke 19:40). He was particularly referring to the walls of the temple in Jerusalem, built for the Messiah's coming and very carefully rebuilt after being destroyed at the time of the deportation to Babylon. Israel had a conscious and vivid memory of the destruction and rebuilding of the temple, and Jesus referred to this awareness when he said: "Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up" (John 2:19). As the ancient temple of Jerusalem was destroyed and rebuilt, so the new and perfect temple of Jesus' body was to die on the Cross and rise again on the third day (cf. ibid., 2:21-22).
2. However, as he enters Jerusalem, Jesus knows that the rejoicing by some in the crowd is leading him into the heart of the "mysterium" of salvation. He is aware that he is going to his death and will not receive a royal crown, but one of thorns.
The readings for today's celebration are marked by the Messiah's suffering and culminate in the Evangelist Luke's description of it in the Passion account. This unspeakable mystery of pain and love is presented by the prophet Isaiah, considered in a way as the evangelist of the Old Testament, as well as by the responsorial psalm and the refrain sung a few moments ago: "My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?". St Paul takes it up again in the Letter to the Philippians, which is the inspiration for the antiphon that will accompany us during the "Triduum Sacrum": "Christ became obedient for us unto death, even death on a cross" (cf. 2:8). At the Easter Vigil we will add: "Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name which is above every name" (Philippians 2:9).
Every day during the Eucharistic celebration the Church recalls the Lord's Passion, Death and Resurrection — the faithful say after the consecration: "Christ has died, Christ is risen, Christ will come again". Pope Saint John Paul II (Homily, 5 April 1998)
I greet with affection the young people present in St Peter’s Square today, and all those following this World Youth Day on radio and television. We have watched the Cross being passed from the young people of France to the young people of Italy, in preparation for the next World Youth Day, to be held here in Rome. The Cross of Christ speaks to the young people of today about the meaning of life and death, of time and eternity. Be witnesses before the world to the grace of Jesus Christ! Pope Saint John Paul II (Angelus, 5 April 1998)
1. "He humbled himself and became obedient unto death, even death on a cross" (Philippians 2:8).
The celebration of Holy Week begins with the "Hosanna!" of Palm Sunday and culminates in the "Crucify him!" of Good Friday. But this is not a contradiction; rather it is the heart of the mystery the liturgy wants to proclaim: Jesus willingly gave himself up to his passion; he did not find himself crushed by superior forces (cf. John 10:18). It was he himself who, in discerning the Father's will, understood that his hour had come and he accepted it with the free obedience of the Son and with infinite love for mankind.
Jesus brought our sins to the Cross and our sins brought Jesus to the Cross: he was crushed for our iniquities (cf. Isaiah 53:5). The prophet said in reply to David, who was seeking the one responsible for the deed Nathan had recounted to him: "You are the man!" (2 Samuel 12:7). The Word of God gives us the same answer as we wonder what caused Jesus' death: "You are the man!". Indeed, Jesus' trial and passion are repeated in the world today and renewed by every person who abandons himself to sin and can only prolong the cry: "Not this man, but Barabbas! Crucify him!".
2. Looking at Jesus in his passion, we see humanity's sufferings as well as our personal histories reflected as in a mirror. Although there was no sin in Christ, he took upon himself what man could not endure: injustice, evil, sin, hatred, suffering and finally death. In Christ, the humiliated and suffering Son of Man, God loves everyone, forgives everyone and confers the ultimate meaning on human life.
We are here this morning to receive this message from the Father who loves us. We can ask ourselves: what does he want of us? He wants us to look at Jesus and be willing to follow him in his passion in order to share in his Resurrection. At this moment we recall Jesus' words to his disciples: "The cup that I drink, you will drink; and with the baptism with which I am baptized, you will be baptized" (Mark 10:39). "If any man would come after me, let him ... take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it" (Matthew 16:24-25).
The "hosanna" and the "crucify him" thus become the way to measure how one conceives of life, faith and Christian witness: we must not be discouraged by defeat nor exalted by victory because, as with Christ, the only victory is fidelity to the mission received from the Father. "Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name which is above every name" (Philippians 2:9).
4. The young people of Jerusalem shouted: "Hosanna to the Son of David!". Young people, my friends, do you too want to acknowledge Jesus as the Messiah, the Saviour, the Teacher, the Leader, the Friend of your life, as your peers did on that day so long ago? Remember: he alone knows deeply what is in every human being (cf. John 2:25); he alone teaches us to be open to the mystery and to call God our Father, "Abba"; he alone makes us capable of selfless love for our fellow human beings, accepted and recognized as "brothers" and "sisters".
Dear young people, go joyfully to meet Christ, who gladdens your youth. See him and meet him by clinging to his word and his mysterious presence in the Church and the sacraments. Live with him in fidelity to his Gospel: demanding, it is true, but at the same time the only source of hope and true happiness. Love him in the face of your brother who needs justice, help, friendship and love.
On the eve of the third millennium, this is your hour. May the contemporary world open new paths before you and call you to be bearers of faith and joy, as expressed by the palm and olive branches you are holding today, symbols of a new springtime of grace, beauty, goodness and peace. The Lord Jesus is with you and is accompanying you!
5. Every year during Holy Week, the Church enters into the paschal mystery with trepidation, as she commemorates the Lord's Death and Resurrection.
It is precisely through the paschal mystery which gave her birth that she can proclaim to the world, in the words and deeds of her children: "Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father" (Philippians 2:11).
Yes! Jesus Christ is Lord! He is the Lord of time and history, the Redeemer and the Saviour of man. Blessed be he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna! Pope Saint John Paul II (Homily 28 March 1999)
See our extracts with pictures in Encouragements-600. 8-)
See our extracts with pictures in Encouragements-600. 8-)
See our extracts with pictures in Encouragements-216. 8-)
See our extracts with pictures in Encouragements-601. 8-)
See our extracts with pictures in Encouragements-601. 8-)
1. "Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord" (Luke 19: 38).
With these words, the population of Jerusalem welcomed Jesus at his entry into the holy city, acclaiming him as King of Israel. Yet a few days later, the same crowd was to reject him with hostile cries: "Crucify him! Crucify him!" (Luke 23: 21). The Palm Sunday liturgy helps us relive these two moments of the last week in Jesus' earthly life. It plunges us into that fickle crowd which in a few days veered from joyful enthusiasm to murderous contempt.
2. In the climate of joy veiled in sadness that is a feature of Palm Sunday, we are celebrating the 19th World Youth Day. Its theme this year is "We wish to see Jesus" (John 12: 21), the request made to the Apostles by "some Greeks" (John 12: 20) who had come to Jerusalem for the feast of the Passover.
Before the multitudes who had gathered to listen to him, Christ proclaimed: "And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself" (John 12: 32). Here, then, is his answer: all who seek the Son of man will see him in the Feast of Easter as a true Lamb, sacrificed for the world's salvation.
On the Cross, Jesus died for each one of us. The Cross, therefore, is the greatest and most eloquent sign of his merciful love, the one sign of salvation for every generation and for all humanity.
3. Twenty years ago at the end of the Holy Year of the Redemption, I presented the large wooden Cross of that Jubilee to the young people. On that occasion I urged them to be faithful disciples of Christ, the crucified King, whom we see "as the one who brings man freedom based on truth, frees man from what curtails, diminishes and as it were breaks off this freedom at its root, in man's soul, his heart and his conscience" (Redemptor Hominis, n. 12).
From that time the Cross continues travelling to many countries in preparation for the World Days of Youth. During its pilgrimages it has crossed continents: as a torch passed hand to hand, it was transported from country to country; it has become a luminous sign of the trust that animates the young generations of the third millennium. Today it is in Berlin!
4. Dear young people! As you celebrate the 20th anniversary of the beginning of this extraordinary spiritual adventure, may I renew for you the same recommendation I gave you back then: "I entrust the Cross of Christ to you! Take it through the world as a sign of Our Lord Jesus' love for humanity, and proclaim to one and all that only in the dead and risen Christ is there salvation and redemption" (Insegnamenti, VII, [1984], 1105).
Of course, the message that the Cross communicates is not easy to understand in our day and age in which material well-being and conveniences are offered and sought as priority values. But you, dear young people, do not be afraid to proclaim the Gospel of the Cross in every circumstance. Do not be afraid to swim against the tide!
5. "Christ Jesus... humbled himself and became obedient unto death... on a cross. Therefore, God has highly exalted him..." (Philippians 2: 6, 8-9). The wonderful hymn in the Letter of St Paul to the Philippians has just reminded us that the Cross has two inseparable dimensions: it is at the same time both sorrowful and glorious. The suffering and humiliation of Jesus' death are closely connected with the exaltation and glory of his Resurrection.
Dear brothers and sisters! Dear young people! May you always be conscious of this consoling truth! The passion and Resurrection of Christ constitute the core of our faith and our support in the inevitable daily trials.
May Mary, the Sorrowful Virgin and silent witness of the joy of the Resurrection, help you to follow the crucified Christ and to discover in the mystery of the Cross the full meaning of life. Pope Saint John Paul II (Homily, 4 April 2004)
See our extracts with pictures in Encouragements– 601. 8-)
See our extracts with pictures in Encouragements– 601. 8-)
Let us return to the liturgy and the procession of the Palms. In it the Liturgy has provided as the hymn Psalm 24[23]. In Israel this was also a processional hymn used in the ascent to the hill of the temple. The Psalm interprets the interior ascent, of which the exterior ascent is an image, and explains to us once again what it means to ascend with Christ. "Who can ascend the mountain of the Lord?" the Psalm asks and specifies two essential conditions. Those who ascend it and truly desire to reach the heights, to arrive at the true summit, must be people who question themselves about God. They must be people who scan their surroundings seeking God, seeking his Face.
Dear young friends, how important precisely this is today: not merely to let oneself be taken here and there in life; not to be satisfied with what everyone else thinks and says and does. To probe God and to seek God. Not letting the question about God dissolve in our souls; desiring what is greater, desiring to know him - his Face...
The other very concrete condition for the ascent is this: He "who has clean hands and a pure heart" can stand in the holy place. Clean hands are hands that are not used for acts of violence. They are hands that are not soiled with corruption, with bribery. A pure heart - when is the heart pure? A heart is pure when it does not pretend and is not stained with lies and hypocrisy: a heart that remains transparent like spring water because it is alien to duplicity. A heart is pure when it does not estrange itself with the drunkenness of pleasure, a heart in which love is true and is not only a momentary passion. Clean hands and a pure heart: if we walk with Jesus, we ascend and find the purification that truly brings us to that height to which man is destined: friendship with God himself.
Psalm 24[23], which speaks of the ascent, ends with an entrance liturgy in front of the temple gate: "Lift up your heads, O gates! and be lifted up, O ancient doors! That the King of glory may come in". In the old liturgy for Palm Sunday, the priest, arriving in front of the church, would knock loudly with the shaft of the processional cross on the door that was still closed; thereupon, it would be opened. This was a beautiful image of the mystery of Jesus Christ himself who, with the wood of his Cross, with the power of his love that is given, knocked from the side of the world at God's door; on the side of a world that was not able to find access to God. With his Cross, Jesus opened God's door, the door between God and men. Now it is open. But the Lord also knocks with his Cross from the other side: he knocks at the door of the world, at the doors of our hearts, so many of which are so frequently closed to God. And he says to us something like this: if the proof that God gives you of his existence in creation does not succeed in opening you to him, if the words of Scripture and the Church's message leave you indifferent, then look at me - the God who let himself suffer for you, who personally suffers with you - and open yourself to me, your Lord and your God.
It is this appeal that we allow to penetrate our hearts at this moment. May the Lord help us to open the door of our hearts, the door of the world, so that he, the living God, may arrive in his Son in our time, and reach our life. Amen. Pope Benedict XVI (Homily, 1 April 2007)
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Note: This webpage has many hyperlinks to the Vatican Webpage. The above extracts were compiled for your easy reading. This Publication is aimed to encourage all of Goodwill around the World. It is not for business or profit purposes but it is our way to thank our Creator for His continuous blessings!
Compiled on 7 April 2019 Last updated: 31 March 2023, 20:38 SGT
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