Palm Sunday of the Lord’s Passion – April 13, 2025

St. Paul – Lyons, KS

Isaiah 50:4-7; Psalm 22:8-9, 17-20, 23-24; Philippians 2:6-11; Luke 22:14-23:56

An Intentionality

As we enter into Holy Week, the most important piece, the most important part, the key is to live it, to enter into it, to participate. I’ll bet that for most of you, you have done the palm branches thing before, heard the story of the passion before. But the question is, have you truly lived it, entered into it, participated in it? Because the simple fact is this: what we celebrate this week, what we do this week—Holy Week is not just a story to retell, it is not a question to answer (you know, like, how does Jesus save us?), no, no. What we celebrate and do this week—Holy Week is a mystery to live, to enter into, a mystery in which we are called to participate. And not just this week! This week is just a miniature version of the entire Christian life.

I know it’s a dumb image, but an image of this is from the movie The Karate Kid—classic film from the 80’s. In the movie—we’ve all seen it—Daniel is getting bullied, really pushed around. And so he decides that, in order to fix the problem, well, he’s going to learn to fight, learn karate. But over and over he just gets beat up. One day, as he’s taking a beating, Mr. Miyagi intervenes. And Mr. Miyagi—this Japanese karate master—he decides that he will teach Daniel. Ok. And what happens? Well, when Daniel shows up, Mr. Miyagi just has him doing all of these chores: wax the cars, sand the floor, paint the fence, paint the house. “Wax on, wax off!” And Daniel—after days of doing all of these chores—after all of this, Daniel wants to quit, he’s angry, he doesn’t understand why he’s been wasting his time doing all of these tasks. But then, Mr. Miyagi shows him, he reveals to him what is really going on: by learning these motions, he has actually taught him the pattern, the motions of karate. And with those ingrained in him, Daniel actually just has to make a simple shift in perspective and an intentionality—and he knows karate!

Ok, like Daniel, it can seem like we’re just going through the motions. We’ve been to Mass, had many Palm Sundays, heard these stories from Scripture—on and on and on. But with a change in perspective and with a greater intentionality, I think we’ll discover that we can actually live the very reality, the very mystery we are celebrating.

So often it seems like we’re just going through the motions in doing all of this, all of the events and celebrations and so forth of Holy Week. But actually, when the Master comes alongside of us, when Jesus Christ himself comes alongside of us (when we come alongside him in his passion and death)—we discover that we are caught up in the same reality, the same mystery. And that’s what I mean: Holy Week is not just a story to retell, empty motions to go through—Holy Week is a mystery to live, to enter into, a mystery in which we are called to participate.

An Experience Transformed

In a very particular way this year—this year as we come to the close of our series called “Renewing…”, this series centered on the healing power of Jesus Christ in our lives—this year, hopefully, we have recognized our brokenness and woundedness in a new way—our need for a Savior, for salvation, a salve, a healing. And now, here in this Holy Week, we have just one final step to take: to unite our lives, our bodies, our minds and hearts, everything—to unite everything to Jesus, to live this week alongside of him, to enter into this mystery with him. Not just go through the motions because that’s what Catholics do, no; we cannot just be a passive bystander. We have to live it in union with him. Why? Why is that such a big deal? Because when we live it in union with him, that is when it is caught up in the same mystery and transformed. And not just in an imaginary or pious sort of way. In a real way. Mysteriously, in a real way, it is caught up.

One image that we use in the liturgy—not often, but more this week than usual—an image that captures this is the incense. Incense—incense is the blood of the tree, at least Frankincense and Myrrh are. There are a lot of different kinds of incense. But those two, that’s the blood of the tree, the sap of the tree. Because where does it come from? The incense we use—Wikipedia says, “by repeatedly wounding the trees” sap is brought forth that can then congeal and harden, and then we have these little pellets we use. So it’s a beautiful symbol of wounds, wounds that have been brought forth and hardened and are useless and dead. Wounds and brokenness which are then placed by the priest on the burning coal, which represents God’s love, Divine love. And this releases a sweet fragrance that is offered in worship. So the priest takes the offering of the people, particularly the wounds and imperfections of his people, and places them on the coal of divine love; Jesus himself—that’s the mystery at the center of this entire week—Jesus takes the wound of humanity, Sin and Death itself, and when they come in contact with him, with Divine Love incarnate, they are transformed. The Cross—this symbol of the power and domination of Sin and Death—the Cross becomes the symbol of worship, the great act of worship perpetuated every time we celebrate the Mass.

So this is the point: when we, in a very intentional way, unite our lives (wounds and all) to what is going on in the Mass, what is going on in this Holy Week—all of that is caught up in the Paschal Mystery and transformed, offered in worship. Paradoxically, it becomes the path through which Jesus decides to reach us.

Formulating An Intention

And so my simple invitation is this: take some time, maybe during Mass, maybe during Adoration today or this week, maybe when you get home today—but take some time to honestly and concretely formulate your intention for this week. What are you bringing to this week? Maybe it is something that came up in these past several weeks during “Renewing…”, maybe it is a brokenness or wound you have, maybe it is something you’ve been suffering with or are just beginning to suffer with, maybe it is an anxiety or worry or concern, maybe it is a family member or friend or situation. Whatever it is, just name it, be concrete. And as we journey through this week toward Easter, continue to hold that up to God, place it on the “coal” of Divine Love, unite it to Jesus’ own passion and death on the cross. Why? Because that is the source of transformation. Don’t just go through the motions, enter into the mystery.

And very concretely, I want to invite you to live this week to the full. In particular, I want to invite you to participate in this Holy Week like never before, to go through all of the motions—but go through the motions with an intentionality, living the very reality, the very mystery we are celebrating. In particular, three things. First, live Holy Thursday: come to the Mass of the Lord’s Supper, and then spend an hour with Jesus at the altar of repose, an hour in adoration on Thursday night. Second, live Good Friday: some of you have the luxury of taking Good Friday off, and if you do I highly encourage you to do that; but then come and walk the Way of the Cross with us on Friday morning; and then come and participate in the Passion Service that evening; fast that day, a good fast. And third, live Holy Saturday: Saturday should be a time of silence, anticipation, waiting; don’t get ahead of Jesus and celebrate Easter too soon! (We celebrate Christmas too soon, but we can still “Reclaim Easter”!) Maybe keep screens off on Saturday, try not to live it like a normal Saturday—remain in the mystery of these days. Three things: live Thursday, Friday, and Saturday; enter into the mystery of these three days; live these days with great intentionality—going through the motions, yes, but going through them with an intentionality, entering into the mystery.

Because when we do that, like Daniel experiencing a transformation, like incense placed on a coal being transformed, we too can experience a transformation that is possible only through living this mystery in union with Jesus Christ.