Catholic Caucus: Sunday Mass Readings, 03-29-15, Palm Sunday of the Lord’s Passion

USCCB.org/RNAB ^ | 03-29-15 | Revised New American Bible

[Salvation]

March 29, 2015

Palm Sunday of the Lord’s Passion

 

 

At the Procession with Palms - Gospel Mk 11:1-10

When Jesus and his disciples drew near to Jerusalem,
to Bethphage and Bethany at the Mount of Olives,
he sent two of his disciples and said to them,
“Go into the village opposite you,
and immediately on entering it,
you will find a colt tethered on which no one has ever sat.
Untie it and bring it here.
If anyone should say to you,
‘Why are you doing this?’ reply,
‘The Master has need of it
and will send it back here at once.’”
So they went off
and found a colt tethered at a gate outside on the street,
and they untied it.
Some of the bystanders said to them,
“What are you doing, untying the colt?”
They answered them just as Jesus had told them to,
and they permitted them to do it.
So they brought the colt to Jesus
and put their cloaks over it.
And he sat on it.
Many people spread their cloaks on the road,
and others spread leafy branches
that they had cut from the fields.
Those preceding him as well as those following kept crying out:
“Hosanna!
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!
Blessed is the kingdom of our father David that is to come!
Hosanna in the highest!”

Or Jn 12:12-16

When the great crowd that had come to the feast heard
that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem,
they took palm branches and went out to meet him, and cried out:
“Hosanna!
“Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord,
the king of Israel.”
Jesus found an ass and sat upon it, as is written:
Fear no more, O daughter Zion;
see, your king comes, seated upon an ass’s colt.
His disciples did not understand this at first,
but when Jesus had been glorified
they remembered that these things were written about him
and that they had done this for him.

At the Mass - Reading 1 Is 50:4-7

The Lord GOD has given me
a well-trained tongue,
that I might know how to speak to the weary
a word that will rouse them.
Morning after morning
he opens my ear that I may hear;
and I have not rebelled,
have not turned back.
I gave my back to those who beat me,
my cheeks to those who plucked my beard;
my face I did not shield
from buffets and spitting.

The Lord GOD is my help,
therefore I am not disgraced;
I have set my face like flint,
knowing that I shall not be put to shame.

Responsorial Psalm Ps 22:8-9, 17-18, 19-20, 23-24

R. (2a) My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?
All who see me scoff at me;
they mock me with parted lips, they wag their heads:
“He relied on the LORD; let him deliver him,
let him rescue him, if he loves him.”
R. My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?
Indeed, many dogs surround me,
a pack of evildoers closes in upon me;
They have pierced my hands and my feet;
I can count all my bones.
R. My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?
They divide my garments among them,
and for my vesture they cast lots.
But you, O LORD, be not far from me;
O my help, hasten to aid me.
R. My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?
I will proclaim your name to my brethren;
in the midst of the assembly I will praise you:
“You who fear the LORD, praise him;
all you descendants of Jacob, give glory to him;
revere him, all you descendants of Israel!”
R. My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?

Reading 2 Phil 2:6-11

Christ Jesus, though he was in the form of God,
did not regard equality with God
something to be grasped.
Rather, he emptied himself,
taking the form of a slave,
coming in human likeness;
and found human in appearance,
he humbled himself,
becoming obedient to the point of death,
even death on a cross.
Because of this, God greatly exalted him
and bestowed on him the name
which is above every name,
that at the name of Jesus
every knee should bend,
of those in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
and every tongue confess that
Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.

Verse Before the Gospel Phil 2:8-9

Christ became obedient to the point of death,
even death on a cross.
Because of this, God greatly exalted him
and bestowed on him the name which is above every name.

Gospel Mk 14:1—15:47

The Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread
were to take place in two days’ time.
So the chief priests and the scribes were seeking a way
to arrest him by treachery and put him to death.
They said, “Not during the festival,
for fear that there may be a riot among the people.”

When he was in Bethany reclining at table
in the house of Simon the leper,
a woman came with an alabaster jar of perfumed oil,
costly genuine spikenard.
She broke the alabaster jar and poured it on his head.
There were some who were indignant.
“Why has there been this waste of perfumed oil?
It could have been sold for more than three hundred days’ wages
and the money given to the poor.”
They were infuriated with her.
Jesus said, “Let her alone.
Why do you make trouble for her?
She has done a good thing for me.
The poor you will always have with you,
and whenever you wish you can do good to them,
but you will not always have me.
She has done what she could.
She has anticipated anointing my body for burial.
Amen, I say to you,
wherever the gospel is proclaimed to the whole world,
what she has done will be told in memory of her.”

Then Judas Iscariot, one of the Twelve,
went off to the chief priests to hand him over to them.
When they heard him they were pleased and promised to pay him money.
Then he looked for an opportunity to hand him over.

On the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread,
when they sacrificed the Passover lamb,
his disciples said to him,
“Where do you want us to go
and prepare for you to eat the Passover?”
He sent two of his disciples and said to them,
“Go into the city and a man will meet you,
carrying a jar of water.
Follow him.
Wherever he enters, say to the master of the house,
‘The Teacher says, “Where is my guest room
where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?”’
Then he will show you a large upper room furnished and ready.
Make the preparations for us there.”
The disciples then went off, entered the city,
and found it just as he had told them;
and they prepared the Passover.

When it was evening, he came with the Twelve.
And as they reclined at table and were eating, Jesus said,
“Amen, I say to you, one of you will betray me,
one who is eating with me.”
They began to be distressed and to say to him, one by one,
“Surely it is not I?”
He said to them,
“One of the Twelve, the one who dips with me into the dish.
For the Son of Man indeed goes, as it is written of him,
but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed.
It would be better for that man if he had never been born.”

While they were eating,
he took bread, said the blessing,
broke it, and gave it to them, and said,
“Take it; this is my body.”
Then he took a cup, gave thanks, and gave it to them,
and they all drank from it.
He said to them,
“This is my blood of the covenant,
which will be shed for many.
Amen, I say to you,
I shall not drink again the fruit of the vine
until the day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God.”
Then, after singing a hymn,
they went out to the Mount of Olives.

Then Jesus said to them,
“All of you will have your faith shaken, for it is written:
I will strike the shepherd,
and the sheep will be dispersed.
But after I have been raised up,
I shall go before you to Galilee.”
Peter said to him,
“Even though all should have their faith shaken,
mine will not be.”
Then Jesus said to him,
“Amen, I say to you,
this very night before the cock crows twice
you will deny me three times.”
But he vehemently replied,
“Even though I should have to die with you,
I will not deny you.”
And they all spoke similarly.
Then they came to a place named Gethsemane,
and he said to his disciples,
“Sit here while I pray.”
He took with him Peter, James, and John,
and began to be troubled and distressed.
Then he said to them, “My soul is sorrowful even to death.
Remain here and keep watch.”
He advanced a little and fell to the ground and prayed
that if it were possible the hour might pass by him;
he said, “Abba, Father, all things are possible to you.
Take this cup away from me,
but not what I will but what you will.”
When he returned he found them asleep.
He said to Peter, “Simon, are you asleep?
Could you not keep watch for one hour?
Watch and pray that you may not undergo the test.
The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak.”
Withdrawing again, he prayed, saying the same thing.
Then he returned once more and found them asleep,
for they could not keep their eyes open
and did not know what to answer him.
He returned a third time and said to them,
“Are you still sleeping and taking your rest?
It is enough. The hour has come.
Behold, the Son of Man is to be handed over to sinners.
Get up, let us go.
See, my betrayer is at hand.”

Then, while he was still speaking,
Judas, one of the Twelve, arrived,
accompanied by a crowd with swords and clubs
who had come from the chief priests,
the scribes, and the elders.
His betrayer had arranged a signal with them, saying,
“The man I shall kiss is the one;
arrest him and lead him away securely.”
He came and immediately went over to him and said,
“Rabbi.” And he kissed him.
At this they laid hands on him and arrested him.
One of the bystanders drew his sword,
struck the high priest’s servant, and cut off his ear.
Jesus said to them in reply,
“Have you come out as against a robber,
with swords and clubs, to seize me?
Day after day I was with you teaching in the temple area,
yet you did not arrest me;
but that the Scriptures may be fulfilled.”
And they all left him and fled.
Now a young man followed him
wearing nothing but a linen cloth about his body.
They seized him,
but he left the cloth behind and ran off naked.

They led Jesus away to the high priest,
and all the chief priests and the elders and the scribes came together.
Peter followed him at a distance into the high priest’s courtyard
and was seated with the guards, warming himself at the fire.
The chief priests and the entire Sanhedrin
kept trying to obtain testimony against Jesus
in order to put him to death, but they found none.
Many gave false witness against him,
but their testimony did not agree.
Some took the stand and testified falsely against him,
alleging, “We heard him say,
‘I will destroy this temple made with hands
and within three days I will build another
not made with hands.’”
Even so their testimony did not agree.
The high priest rose before the assembly and questioned Jesus,
saying, “Have you no answer?
What are these men testifying against you?”
But he was silent and answered nothing.
Again the high priest asked him and said to him,
“Are you the Christ, the son of the Blessed One?”
Then Jesus answered, “I am;
and ‘you will see the Son of Man
seated at the right hand of the Power
and coming with the clouds of heaven.’”
At that the high priest tore his garments and said,
“hat further need have we of witnesses?
You have heard the blasphemy.
What do you think?”
They all condemned him as deserving to die.
Some began to spit on him.
They blindfolded him and struck him and said to him, “Prophesy!”
And the guards greeted him with blows.

While Peter was below in the courtyard,
one of the high priest’s maids came along.
Seeing Peter warming himself,
she looked intently at him and said,
“You too were with the Nazarene, Jesus.”
But he denied it saying,
“I neither know nor understand what you are talking about.”
So he went out into the outer court.
Then the cock crowed.
The maid saw him and began again to say to the bystanders,
“This man is one of them.”
Once again he denied it.
A little later the bystanders said to Peter once more,
“Surely you are one of them; for you too are a Galilean.”
He began to curse and to swear,
“I do not know this man about whom you are talking.”
And immediately a cock crowed a second time.
Then Peter remembered the word that Jesus had said to him,
“Before the cock crows twice you will deny me three times.”
He broke down and wept.

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, AHail, 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!”
There were also women looking on from a distance.
Among them were Mary Magdalene,
Mary the mother of the younger James and of Joses, and Salome.
These women had followed him when he was in Galilee
and ministered to him.
There were also many other women
who had come up with him to Jerusalem.

When it was already evening,
since it was the day of preparation,
the day before the sabbath, Joseph of Arimathea,
a distinguished member of the council,
who was himself awaiting the kingdom of God,
came and courageously went to Pilate
and asked for the body of Jesus.
Pilate was amazed that he was already dead.
He summoned the centurion
and asked him if Jesus had already died.
And when he learned of it from the centurion,
he gave the body to Joseph.
Having bought a linen cloth, he took him down,
wrapped him in the linen cloth,
and laid him in a tomb that had been hewn out of the rock.
Then he rolled a stone against the entrance to the tomb.
Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses
watched where he was laid.

Or 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!”

[annalex]

Mark
	English: Douay-Rheims	Latin: Vulgata Clementina	Greek NT: Byzantine/Majority Text (2000)
	Mark 15
1.	AND straightway in the morning, the chief priests holding a consultation with the ancients and the scribes and the whole council, binding Jesus, led him away, and delivered him to Pilate.	Et confestim, mane consilium facientes summi sacerdotes cum senioribus, et scribis, et universo concilio, vincientes Jesum, duxerunt, et tradiderunt Pilato.	και ευθεως επι το πρωι συμβουλιον ποιησαντες οι αρχιερεις μετα των πρεσβυτερων και γραμματεων και ολον το συνεδριον δησαντες τον ιησουν απηνεγκαν και παρεδωκαν τω πιλατω
2.	And Pilate asked him: Art thou the king of the Jews? But he answering, saith to him: Thou sayest it.	Et interrogavit eum Pilatus : Tu es rex Judæorum ? At ille respondens, ait illi : Tu dicis.	και επηρωτησεν αυτον ο πιλατος συ ει ο βασιλευς των ιουδαιων ο δε αποκριθεις ειπεν αυτω συ λεγεις
3.	And the chief priests accused him in many things.	Et accusabant eum summi sacerdotes in multis.	και κατηγορουν αυτου οι αρχιερεις πολλα
4.	And Pilate again asked him, saying: Answerest thou nothing? behold in how many things they accuse thee.	Pilatus autem rursum interrogavit eum, dicens : Non respondes quidquam ? vide in quantis te accusant.	ο δε πιλατος παλιν επηρωτησεν αυτον λεγων ουκ αποκρινη ουδεν ιδε ποσα σου καταμαρτυρουσιν
5.	But Jesus still answered nothing; so that Pilate wondered.	Jesus autem amplius nihil respondit, ita ut miraretur Pilatus.	ο δε ιησους ουκετι ουδεν απεκριθη ωστε θαυμαζειν τον πιλατον
6.	Now on the festival day he was wont to release unto them one of the prisoners, whomsoever they demanded.	Per diem autem festum solebat dimittere illis unum ex vinctis, quemcumque petissent.	κατα δε εορτην απελυεν αυτοις ενα δεσμιον ονπερ ητουντο
7.	And there was one called Barabbas, who was put in prison with some seditious men, who in the sedition had committed murder.	Erat autem qui dicebatur Barrabas, qui cum seditiosis erat vinctus, qui in seditione fecerat homicidium.	ην δε ο λεγομενος βαραββας μετα των συστασιαστων δεδεμενος οιτινες εν τη στασει φονον πεποιηκεισαν
8.	And when the multitude was come up, they began to desire that he would do, as he had ever done unto them.	Et cum ascendisset turba, cœpit rogare, sicut semper faciebat illis.	και αναβοησας ο οχλος ηρξατο αιτεισθαι καθως αει εποιει αυτοις
9.	And Pilate answered them, and said: Will you that I release to you the king of the Jews?	Pilatus autem respondit eis, et dixit : Vultis dimittam vobis regem Judæorum ?	ο δε πιλατος απεκριθη αυτοις λεγων θελετε απολυσω υμιν τον βασιλεα των ιουδαιων
10.	For he knew that the chief priests had delivered him up out of envy.	Sciebat enim quod per invidiam tradidissent eum summi sacerdotes.	εγινωσκεν γαρ οτι δια φθονον παραδεδωκεισαν αυτον οι αρχιερεις
11.	But the chief priests moved the people, that he should rather release Barabbas to them.	Pontifices autem concitaverunt turbam, ut magis Barabbam dimitteret eis.	οι δε αρχιερεις ανεσεισαν τον οχλον ινα μαλλον τον βαραββαν απολυση αυτοις
12.	And Pilate again answering, saith to them: What will you then that I do to the king of the Jews?	Pilatus autem iterum respondens, ait illis : Quid ergo vultis faciam regi Judæorum ?	ο δε πιλατος αποκριθεις παλιν ειπεν αυτοις τι ουν θελετε ποιησω ον λεγετε βασιλεα των ιουδαιων
13.	But they again cried out: Crucify him.	At illi iterum clamaverunt : Crucifige eum.	οι δε παλιν εκραξαν σταυρωσον αυτον
14.	And Pilate saith to them: Why, what evil hath he done? But they cried out the more: Crucify him.	Pilatus vero dicebat illis : Quid enim mali fecit ? At illi magis clamabant : Crucifige eum.	ο δε πιλατος ελεγεν αυτοις τι γαρ κακον εποιησεν οι δε περισσοτερως εκραξαν σταυρωσον αυτον
15.	And so Pilate being willing to satisfy the people, released to them Barabbas, and delivered up Jesus, when he had scourged him, to be crucified.	Pilatus autem volens populo satisfacere, dimisit illis Barabbam, et tradidit Jesum flagellis cæsum, ut crucifigeretur.	ο δε πιλατος βουλομενος τω οχλω το ικανον ποιησαι απελυσεν αυτοις τον βαραββαν και παρεδωκεν τον ιησουν φραγελλωσας ινα σταυρωθη
16.	And the soldiers led him away into the court of the palace, and they called together the whole band:	Milites autem duxerunt eum in atrium prætorii, et convocant totam cohortem,	οι δε στρατιωται απηγαγον αυτον εσω της αυλης ο εστιν πραιτωριον και συγκαλουσιν ολην την σπειραν
17.	And they clothe him with purple, and platting a crown of thorns, they put it upon him.	et induunt eum purpura, et imponunt ei plectentes spineam coronam.	και ενδυουσιν αυτον πορφυραν και περιτιθεασιν αυτω πλεξαντες ακανθινον στεφανον
18.	And they began to salute him: Hail, king of the Jews.	Et cœperunt salutare eum : Ave rex Judæorum.	και ηρξαντο ασπαζεσθαι αυτον χαιρε ο βασιλευς των ιουδαιων
19.	And they struck his head with a reed: and they did spit on him. And bowing their knees, they adored him.	Et percutiebant caput ejus arundine : et conspuebant eum, et ponentes genua, adorabant eum.	και ετυπτον αυτου την κεφαλην καλαμω και ενεπτυον αυτω και τιθεντες τα γονατα προσεκυνουν αυτω
20.	And after they had mocked him, they took off the purple from him, and put his own garments on him, and they led him out to crucify him.	Et postquam illuserunt ei, exuerunt illum purpura, et induerunt eum vestimentis suis : et educunt illum ut crucifigerent eum.	και οτε ενεπαιξαν αυτω εξεδυσαν αυτον την πορφυραν και ενεδυσαν αυτον τα ιματια τα ιδια και εξαγουσιν αυτον ινα σταυρωσωσιν αυτον
21.	And they forced one Simon a Cyrenian who passed by, coming out of the country, the father of Alexander and of Rufus, to take up his cross.	Et angariaverunt prætereuntem quempiam, Simonem Cyrenæum venientem de villa, patrem Alexandri et Rufi, ut tolleret crucem ejus.	και αγγαρευουσιν παραγοντα τινα σιμωνα κυρηναιον ερχομενον απ αγρου τον πατερα αλεξανδρου και ρουφου ινα αρη τον σταυρον αυτου
22.	And they bring him into the place called Golgotha, which being interpreted is, The place of Calvary.	Et perducunt illum in Golgotha locum : quod est interpretatum Calvariæ locus.	και φερουσιν αυτον επι γολγοθα τοπον ο εστιν μεθερμηνευομενον κρανιου τοπος
23.	And they gave him to drink wine mingled with myrrh; but he took it not.	Et dabant ei bibere myrrhatum vinum : et non accepit.	και εδιδουν αυτω πιειν εσμυρνισμενον οινον ο δε ουκ ελαβεν
24.	And crucifying him, they divided his garments, casting lots upon them, what every man should take.	Et crucifigentes eum, diviserunt vestimenta ejus, mittentes sortem super eis, quis quid tolleret.	και σταυρωσαντες αυτον διαμεριζονται τα ιματια αυτου βαλλοντες κληρον επ αυτα τις τι αρη
25.	And it was the third hour, and they crucified him.	Erat autem hora tertia : et crucifixerunt eum.	ην δε ωρα τριτη και εσταυρωσαν αυτον
26.	And the inscription of his cause was written over: THE KING OF THE JEWS.	Et erat titulus causæ ejus inscriptus : Rex Judæorum.	και ην η επιγραφη της αιτιας αυτου επιγεγραμμενη ο βασιλευς των ιουδαιων
27.	And with him they crucify two thieves; the one on his right hand, and the other on his left.	Et cum eo crucifigunt duos latrones : unum a dextris, et alium a sinistris ejus.	και συν αυτω σταυρουσιν δυο ληστας ενα εκ δεξιων και ενα εξ ευωνυμων αυτου
28.	And the scripture was fulfilled, which saith: And with the wicked he was reputed.	Et impleta est Scriptura, quæ dicit : Et cum iniquis reputatus est.	και επληρωθη η γραφη η λεγουσα και μετα ανομων ελογισθη
29.	And they that passed by blasphemed him, wagging their heads, and saying: Vah, thou that destroyest the temple of God, and in three days buildest it up again;	Et prætereuntes blasphemabant eum, moventes capita sua, et dicentes : Vah qui destruis templum Dei, et in tribus diebus reædificas :	και οι παραπορευομενοι εβλασφημουν αυτον κινουντες τας κεφαλας αυτων και λεγοντες ουα ο καταλυων τον ναον και εν τρισιν ημεραις οικοδομων
30.	Save thyself, coming down from the cross.	salvum fac temetipsum descendens de cruce.	σωσον σεαυτον και καταβα απο του σταυρου
31.	In like manner also the chief priests mocking, said with the scribes one to another: He saved others; himself he cannot save.	Similiter et summi sacerdotes illudentes, ad alterutrum cum scribis dicebant : Alios salvos fecit, seipsum non potest salvum facere.	ομοιως και οι αρχιερεις εμπαιζοντες προς αλληλους μετα των γραμματεων ελεγον αλλους εσωσεν εαυτον ου δυναται σωσαι
32.	Let Christ the king of Israel come down now from the cross, that we may see and believe. And they that were crucified with him reviled him.	Christus rex Israël descendat nunc de cruce, ut videamus, et credamus. Et qui cum eo crucifixi erant, convitiabantur ei.	ο χριστος ο βασιλευς του ισραηλ καταβατω νυν απο του σταυρου ινα ιδωμεν και πιστευσωμεν [αυτω] και οι συνεσταυρωμενοι αυτω ωνειδιζον αυτον
33.	And when the sixth hour was come, there was darkness over the whole earth until the ninth hour.	Et facta hora sexta, tenebræ factæ sunt per totam terram usque in horam nonam.	γενομενης δε ωρας εκτης σκοτος εγενετο εφ ολην την γην εως ωρας ενατης
34.	And at the ninth hour, Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying: Eloi, Eloi, lamma sabacthani? Which is, being interpreted, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?	Et hora nona exclamavit Jesus voce magna, dicens : Eloi, eloi, lamma sabacthani ? quod est interpretatum : Deus meus, Deus meus, ut quid dereliquisti me ?	και τη ωρα τη ενατη εβοησεν ο ιησους φωνη μεγαλη λεγων ελωι ελωι λιμα σαβαχθανι ο εστιν μεθερμηνευομενον ο θεος μου ο θεος μου εις τι με εγκατελιπες
35.	And some of the standers by hearing, said: Behold he calleth Elias.	Et quidam de circumstantibus audientes, dicebant : Ecce Eliam vocat.	και τινες των παρεστηκοτων ακουσαντες ελεγον ιδου ηλιαν φωνει
36.	And one running and filling a sponge with vinegar, and putting it upon a reed, gave him to drink, saying: Stay, let us see if Elias come to take him down.	Currens autem unus, et implens spongiam aceto, circumponensque calamo, potum dabat ei, dicens : Sinite, videamus si veniat Elias ad deponendum eum.	δραμων δε εις και γεμισας σπογγον οξους περιθεις τε καλαμω εποτιζεν αυτον λεγων αφετε ιδωμεν ει ερχεται ηλιας καθελειν αυτον
37.	And Jesus having cried out with a loud voice, gave up the ghost.	Jesus autem emissa voce magna expiravit.	ο δε ιησους αφεις φωνην μεγαλην εξεπνευσεν
38.	And the veil of the temple was rent in two, from the top to the bottom.	Et velum templi scissum est in duo, a summo usque deorsum.	και το καταπετασμα του ναου εσχισθη εις δυο απο ανωθεν εως κατω
39.	And the centurion who stood over against him, seeing that crying out in this manner he had given up the ghost, said: Indeed this man was the son of God.	Videns autem centurio, qui ex adverso stabat, quia sic clamans expirasset, ait : Vere hic homo Filius Dei erat.	ιδων δε ο κεντυριων ο παρεστηκως εξ εναντιας αυτου οτι ουτως κραξας εξεπνευσεν ειπεν αληθως ο ανθρωπος ουτος υιος ην θεου
40.	And there were also women looking on afar off: among whom was Mary Magdalen, and Mary the mother of James the less and of Joseph, and Salome:	Erant autem et mulieres de longe aspicientes : inter quas erat Maria Magdalene, et Maria Jacobi minoris, et Joseph mater, et Salome :	ησαν δε και γυναικες απο μακροθεν θεωρουσαι εν αις ην και μαρια η μαγδαληνη και μαρια η του ιακωβου του μικρου και ιωση μητηρ και σαλωμη
41.	Who also when he was in Galilee followed him, and ministered to him, and many other women that came up with him to Jerusalem.	et cum esset in Galilæa, sequebantur eum, et ministrabant ei, et aliæ multæ, quæ simul cum eo ascenderant Jerosolymam.	αι και οτε ην εν τη γαλιλαια ηκολουθουν αυτω και διηκονουν αυτω και αλλαι πολλαι αι συναναβασαι αυτω εις ιεροσολυμα
42.	And when evening was now come, (because it was the Parasceve, that is, the day before the sabbath,)	Et cum jam sero esset factum (quia erat parasceve, quod est ante sabbatum),	και ηδη οψιας γενομενης επει ην παρασκευη ο εστιν προσαββατον
43.	Joseph of Arimathea, a noble counsellor, who was also himself looking for the kingdom of God, came and went in boldly to Pilate, and begged the body of Jesus.	venit Joseph ab Arimathæa nobilis decurio, qui et ipse erat exspectans regnum Dei, et audacter introivit ad Pilatum, et petiit corpus Jesu.	ηλθεν ιωσηφ ο απο αριμαθαιας ευσχημων βουλευτης ος και αυτος ην προσδεχομενος την βασιλειαν του θεου τολμησας εισηλθεν προς πιλατον και ητησατο το σωμα του ιησου
44.	But Pilate wondered that he should be already dead. And sending for the centurion, he asked him if he were already dead.	Pilatus autem mirabatur si jam obiisset. Et accersito centurione, interrogavit eum si jam mortuus esset.	ο δε πιλατος εθαυμασεν ει ηδη τεθνηκεν και προσκαλεσαμενος τον κεντυριωνα επηρωτησεν αυτον ει παλαι απεθανεν
45.	And when he had understood it by the centurion, he gave the body to Joseph.	Et cum cognovisset a centurione, donavit corpus Joseph.	και γνους απο του κεντυριωνος εδωρησατο το σωμα τω ιωσηφ
46.	And Joseph buying fine linen, and taking him down, wrapped him up in the fine linen, and laid him in a sepulchre which was hewed out of a rock. And he rolled a stone to the door of the sepulchre.	Joseph autem mercatus sindonem, et deponens eum involvit sindone, et posuit eum in monumento quod erat excisum de petra, et advolvit lapidem ad ostium monumenti.	και αγορασας σινδονα και καθελων αυτον ενειλησεν τη σινδονι και κατεθηκεν αυτον εν μνημειω ο ην λελατομημενον εκ πετρας και προσεκυλισεν λιθον επι την θυραν του μνημειου
47.	And Mary Magdalen, and Mary the mother of Joseph, beheld where he was laid.	Maria autem Magdalene et Maria Joseph aspiciebant ubi poneretur.	η δε μαρια η μαγδαληνη και μαρια ιωση εθεωρουν που τιθεται

[annalex]

1. And straightway in the morning the Chief Priests held a consultation with the elders and Scribes and the whole council, and bound Jesus, and carried him away, and delivered him to Pilate.
2. And Pilate asked him, Art thou the King of the Jews? And he answering said to him, You say it.
3. And the Chief Priests accused him of many things: but he answered nothing.
4. And Pilate asked him again, saying, Answer you nothing? Behold how many things they witness against you.
5. But Jesus yet answered nothing; so that Pilate marveled.

BEDE; The Jews had a custom of delivering him whom they had condemned to death, bound to the judge. Wherefore after the condemnation of Christ, the Evangelist adds: And straightway in the morning the Chief Priests held a consultation with the elders and Scribes and the whole council, and bound Jesus, and carried him away, and delivered him to Pilate. But it must be observed, that they did not then first bind Him, but they bound Him on first taking Him in the garden by night, as John declares.

THEOPHYL. They then gave Jesus up to the Romans, but were themselves given up by God into the hands of the Romans, that the Scriptures might be fulfilled, which say, Recompense them after the work of their hands.

It goes on: And Pilate asked him, Are you the King of the Jews?

BEDE; By Pilate's asking Him about no other accusation, except whether He was King of the Jews, they are convicted of impiety, for they could not even find a false accusation against our Savior. It goes on: And he answering said to him, You say. He answers in this way so as both to speak the truth, and yet not to be open to cavil.

THEOPHYL. For His answer is doubtful, since it may mean, You say, but I do say not so. And observe that He does somewhere answer Pilate, who condemned Him unwillingly, but does not choose to answer the priests and great men, and judges them unworthy of a reply. It goes on: And the Chief Priests accused him of many things.

AUG. Luke has also laid open the false charges which they brought against Him; for he thus relates it: And they began to accuse him, saying, We found this fellow perverting the nation, and forbidding to give tribute to Caesar, saying that he himself is Christ a King.

There follows: And Pilate asked him, saying, Answer you nothing? Behold how many things they witness against you.

BEDE; He indeed who condemns Jesus is a heathen, but he refers it to the people of the Jews as the cause. There follows: But Jesus yet answered nothing; so that Pilate marveled. He was unwilling to give an answer, lest He should clear Himself of the charge, and be acquitted by the Judge, and so the gain resulting from the Cross should be done away.

THEOPHYL. But Pilate wondered, because, though He was a teacher of the law, and eloquent, and able by His answer to destroy their accusations, He did not answer any thing, but rather bore their accusations courageously.

6. Now at that feast he released to them one prisoner, whomever they desired.
7. And there was one named Barabbas, which lay bound with them that had made insurrection with him, who had committed murder in the insurrection.
8. And the multitude crying aloud began to desire him to do as he had ever done to them.
9. But Pilate answered them, saying, Will you that I release to you the King of the Jews?
10. For he knew that the Chief Priests had delivered him for envy.
11. But the Chief Priests moved the people, that he should rather release Barabbas to them.
12. And Pilate answered and said again to them, What will you then that I shall do to him whom you call the King of the Jews?
13. And they cried out again, Crucify him.
14. Then Pilate said to them, Why, what evil has he done? And they cried out the more exceedingly, Crucify him.
15. And so Pilate, willing to content the people, released Barabbas to them, and delivered Jesus, when he had scourged him, to be crucified.

BEDE; Pilate furnished many opportunities of releasing Jesus, in the first place contrasting a robber with the Just One. Wherefore it is said, Now at that feast he released to them one prisoner, whomsoever they desired.

GLOSS. Which indeed he was accustomed to do, to obtain favor with the people, and above all, on the feast day, when the people of the whole province of the Jews flocked to Jerusalem. And that the wickedness of the Jews might appear the greater, the enormity of the sin of the robber, whom they preferred to Christ, is next described. Wherefore there follows: And there was one Barabbas, who lay bound with them that had made insurrection with him, who had committed murder in the insurrection. In which words their wickedness is shown both from the heinousness of his signal crime, in that he had committed murder, and from the way in which he did it, because he had in doing it raised a sedition and disturbed the city, and also because his crime was notorious, for he was bound with seditious persons.

It goes on: And the multitude, when it had come up, began to desire him to do as he had ever done to them.

AUG. No one can feel it a difficulty that Matthew is silent as to their asking some one to be released to them, which Mark here mentions, for it is a thing of no consequence that one should mention a thing which another leaves out. There follows: But Pilate answered them, saying, Will you that I release to you the King of the Jews?

For he knew that the Chief Priests had delivered him for envy. Some one may ask, which were the words of which Pilate made use, those which are related by Matthew, or those which Mark relates; for there seems to be a difference between, Whom will you that I release to you? Barabbas, or Jesus which is called Christ? as Matthew has it; and, Will you that I release to you the King of the Jews. as is here said. But since they gave to kings the name of Christs, he who said this man or that must have asked whether they wished the King of the Jews to be released to them, that is, Christ. It makes no difference to the sense that Mark has said nothing of Barabbas, wishing only to mention what belonged to the Lord, since by their answer he sufficiently showed whom they wished to have released to them.

For there follows, But the Chief Priests moved the people that he should rather release to them Barabbas.

BEDE; This demand which the Jews made with such toil to themselves still sticks to them. Because, when the choice was given to them they chose a robber instead of Christ, a murderer instead of the Savior, they deservedly lost their salvation and their life, and they subjected themselves to such a degree to robbery and sedition, that they lost their country and their kingdom which they preferred to Christ, and never regained their liberty, body or soul.

Then Pilate gives another opportunity of releasing the Savor, when there follows, And Pilate answered, and said again to them, What will you then that I should do to the King of the Jews?

AUG. It now is clear enough that Mark means by King of the Jews what Matthew means by the word Christ; for no kings but those of the Jews were called Christs. For in this place according to Matthew it is said, What then shall I do with Jesus which is called Christ? There follows, And they cried out again, Crucify him,

THEOPHYL. Now see the wickedness of the Jews, and the moderation of Pilate, though he too was worthy of condemnation for not resisting the people Fol they cried out, Crucify; he faintly tries to save Jesus from t their determined sentence, and again puts a question to them. Wherefore there follows, Then Pilate said to them, Why, what evil has he done? For he wished in this way to find an opportunity for releasing Christ, who was innocent.

BEDE; But the Jews giving loose to their madness do not answer the question of the judge. Wherefore it goes on, And they cried out the more exceedingly, Crucify him, that those words of the Prophet Jeremiah might be fulfilled, Mine heritage is to me as a lion in the forest, it cries out against me.

There follows, And so Pilate, willing to content the people, released Barabbas to them, and delivered Jesus, when he had scourged him, to be crucified.

THEOPHYL. He wished indeed to satisfy the people, that is, to do their will, not what was agreeable to justice and to God.

PSEUDO-JEROME; Here are two goats; one is the scape goat, that is, one loosed and sent out into the wilderness of hell with the sin of the people; the other is slain, as a lamb, for the sins of those who are forgiven. The Lord's portion is always slain; the devil's part, (for he is the master of those men, which is the meaning of Barabbas,) when freed, is cast headlong into hell.

BEDE; We must understand that Jesus was scourged by no other than Pilate himself. For John writes, Pilate took Jesus, and scourged him, which we must suppose that he did, that the Jews might be satisfied with His pains and insults, and cease from thirsting for His blood.

16. And the soldiers led him away into the hall, called Praetorium; and they call together the whole band.
17. And they clothed him with purple, and platted a crown of thorns, and put it about his head,
18. And began to salute him, Hail, King of the Jews!
19. And they smote him on the head with a reed, and did spit upon him, and bowing their knees worshipped him.
20. And when they had mocked him, they took off the purple from him, and put his own clothes on him.

THEOPHYL. The vainglory of soldiers, ever rejoicing in disorder and in insult, here displayed what properly belonged to them. Wherefore it is said, And the soldiers led him away into the hall called Praetorium, and they call together the whole band, that is, the whole company of the soldiers, and they clothed him with purple as a king.

BEDE; For since He had been called King of the Jews, and the scribes and priests had objected to Him as a crime that He usurped rule over the Jewish people, they in derision strip Him of His former garments, and put on Him a purple robe, which ancient kings used to wear.

AUG. But we must understand that the words of Matthew, they put on him a scarlet robe, Mark expresses by clothed him in purple; for that scarlet robe was used by them in derision for the royal purple, and there is a sort of red purple, very dike scarlet. It may also be that Mark mentions some purple which the robe had about it, though it was of a scarlet color.

BEDE; But instead of the diadem, they put on Him a crown of thorns, wherefore it goes on, And platted a crown of thorns, and put it about his head. And for a royal scepter they give Him a reed, as Matthew writes, and they bow before Him as a king, wherefore there follows, And began to salute him, Hail, King of the Jews!

And that the soldiers worshipped Him as one who falsely called Himself God, is clear from what is added: And bowing their knees, worshipped him, as though He pretended to be God.

PSEUDO-JEROME; His shame took away our shame; His bonds made us free; by the thorny crown of His head, we have obtained the crown of the kingdom; by His wounds we are healed.

AUG. It appears that Matthew and Mark here relate things which took place previously, not that they happened when Pilate had already delivered Him to be crucified. For John says that these things took place at Pilate's house; but that which follows, And when they had mocked him, they took off the purple from him, and put on him his own clothes, must be understood to have taken place last of all, when He was already being led to be crucified.

PSEUDO-JEROME; But in a mystic sense, Jesus was stripped of His clothes, that is, of the Jews, and is clothed in a purple robe, that is, in the Gentile church, which is gathered together out of the rocks. Again, putting it off in the end, as offending, He again is clothed with the Jewish people, for when the fullness of the Gentiles is come in, then shall all Israel be saved.

BEDE; Or else, by the purple robe, with which the Lord is clothed, is meant His flesh itself, which He gave up to suffering, and by the thorny crown which He carried is meant, the taking upon Him of our sins.

THEOPHYL. Let us also put on the purple and royal robe, because we must walk as kings treading on serpents and scorpions, and having sin under our feet. For we are called Christians, that is, anointed ones, just as kings were then called anointed. Let us also take upon ourselves the crown of thorns, that is, let us make haste to be crowned with a strict life, with self-denials and purity.

BEDE; But they smite the head of Christ, who deny that He is very God. And because men are wont to use a reed to write with, they, as it were, smite the head of Christ with a reed, who speak against His divinity, and endeavor to confirm their error by the authority of Holy Writ. They spit in His face, who spit from them by their accursed words the presence of His grace. There are some also in this day, who adore Him, with a sure faith, as very God, but by their perverse actions, despise His words as though they were fabulous, and think the promises of that word inferior to worldly allurements. But just as Caiaphas said, though he knew not what it meant, It is expedient for us that one man should die for the people, so also the soldiers do these things in ignorance.

20. - And led him out to crucify him.
21. And they compel one Simon a Cyrenian, who passed by, coming out of the country, the father of Alexander and Rufus, to bear his cross.
22. And they bring him to the place Golgotha, which is, being interpreted, The place of a skull.
23. And they gave him to drink wine mingled with myrrh: but he received it not.
24. And when they had crucified him, they parted his garments, casting lots upon them, what every man should take.
25. And it was the third hour, and they crucified him.
26. And the superscription of his accusation was written over, THE KING OF THE JEWS.
27. And with him they crucify two thieves; the one on his right hand, and the other on his left.
28. And the Scripture was fulfilled, which said, And he was numbered with the transgressors.
GLOSS. After the condemnation of Christ, and the insults heaped upon Him when He was condemned, the Evangelist proceeds to relate His crucifixion, saying, And led him out to crucify him.

PSEUDO-JEROME; Here Abel is brought out into the field by his brother, to be slain by him. Here Isaac comes forth with the wood, and Abraham with the ram caught in the thicket. Here also Joseph with the sheaf of which he dreamed, and the long robe steeped in blood. Here is Moses with the rod, and the serpent hanging on the wood. Here is the cluster of grapes, carried on a staff. Here is Elisha with the piece of wood sent to seek for the ax, which had sunk, and which swam to the wood; that is, mankind, which by the forbidden tree, fell down to hell, but by the wood of the cross of Christ, and by the baptism of water, swims to paradise. Here is Jonah out of the wood of the ship sent down into the sea and into the whale's belly for three days.

There follows: And they compel Simon a Cyrenian, who passed by, coming out of the country, the father of Alexander and Rufus, to bear his cross.

THEOPHYL Now John says that He Himself bare His cross, for both took place; for He first bore the cross Himself, until some one passed, whom they compelled, and who then carried it. But he mentioned the name of his sons, to make it more credible and the affirmation stronger, for the man still lived to relate all that had happened about the cross.

PSEUDO-JEROME; Now since some men are known by the merits of their fathers, and some by those of their sons, this Simon, who was compelled to carry the cross, is made known by the merits of his sons, who were disciples. By this we are reminded, that in this life, parents are assisted by the wisdom and the merits of their children, wherefore the Jewish people is always held worthy of being remembered on account of the merits of the Patriarchs, Prophets, and Apostles. But this Simon who carries the cross, because he is compelled, is the man who labors for human praise. For men compel him to work, when the fear and love of God could not compel him.

BEDE; Or, since this Simon is not called Be a man of Jerusalem, but a Cyrenian, (for Cyrene is a city of Libya,) fitly is he taken to mean the nations of the Gentiles, which were once foreigners and strangers to the covenants, but now by obedience are heirs of God, and joint heirs with Christ. Whence also Simon is fitly interpreted 'obedient,' and Cyrene 'an heir.' But he is said to come from a country place, for a country place is called 'pagos' in Greek, wherefore those whom we see to be aliens from the city of God, we call pagans. Simon then coming out from the country carries the cross after Jesus, when the Gentile nations leaving pagan rites embrace obediently the footsteps of our Lord's Passion.

There follows: And they bring him to the place Golgotha, which is being interpreted, the place of Calvary. There are places without the city and the gate, in which the heads of condemned persons are cut off, and which receive the name of Calvary, that is, of the beheaded. But the Lord was crucified there, that where once was the field of the condemned, there the standards of martyrdom might be lifted up.

PSEUDO-JEROME; But the Jews relate, that in this spot of the mountain the ram was sacrificed for Isaac, and there Christ is made bald, that is, separated from His flesh, that is, from the carnal Jews. There follows: And they gave him to drink wine mingled with myrrh.

AUG. This we must understand to be what Matthew expresses by, mixed with gall; for he put gall for any thing bitter, and wine mingled with myrrh is most bitter; although there may have been both gall and myrrh to make the wine most bitter.

THEOPHYL Or, they may have brought different things, in order, some vinegar and gall, and others wine mixed with myrrh.

PSEUDO-JEROME; Or else, wine mingled with myrrh, that is, vinegar; by it the juice of the deadly apple is wiped away.

BEDE; Bitter the vine which bore the bitter wine, set before the Lord Jesus, that the Scripture might be fulfilled which said, They gave me gall to eat, and when I was thirsty, they gave me vinegar to drink.

AUG. That which follows, But he received it not, must mean, He received it not to drink, but only tasted it, as Matthew witnesses. And what the same Matthew relates, he would not drink, Mark expresses by, he received it not, but was silent as to His tasting it.

PSEUDO-JEROME; He also refused to take sin for which He suffered, wherefore it is said of Him, I then paid the things that I never took. There follows: And when they had crucified him, they parted his garments, casting lots upon them, what every man should take. In this place salvation is figured by the wood; the first wood was that of the tree of knowledge of good and evil; the second wood is one of unmixed good for us, and is the wood of life. The first hand stretched out to the wood caught hold of death; the second found again the life which had been lost. By this wood we are carried through a stormy sea to the land of the living, for by His cross Christ has taken away our torment, and by His death has killed our death.

With the form of a serpent He kills the serpent, for the serpent made out of the rod swallowed up the other serpents. But what means the shape itself of the cross, save the four quarters of the world; the East shines from the top, the North is on the right, the South on the left, the West is firmly fixed under the feet. Wherefore the Apostle says: That we may know what is the height, and breadth, and length, and depth. Birds, when they fly in the air, take the shape of a cross; a man swimming in the waters is borne up by the form of a cross. A ship is blown along by its yards, which are in the shape of the cross. The letter Tau is written as the sign of salvation and of the cross.

BEDE; Or else, in the transverse beam of the cross, where the hands are fixed, the joy of hope is set forth; for by the hands we understand good works, by its expansion the joy of him who does them, because sadness puts us in straits. By the height to which the head is joined, we understand the expectation of reward from the lofty righteousness of God; by the length, over which the whole body is stretched, patience, wherefore patient men are called long-suffering; by the depth, which is fixed in the ground, the hidden Sacrament itself. As long therefore as our bodies work here to the destruction of the body of sin, it is the time of the cross for us.

THEOPHYL. But their casting lots for His garments was also meant as an insult, as though they were dividing the clothes of a king; for they were coarse and of no great value. And John's Gospel shows this more clearly, for the soldiers, though they divided every thing else into four parts, according to their number, cast lots for the coat, which was without seam, woven form the top throughout.

PSEUDO-JEROME; Now the garments of the Lord are His commandments, by which His body, that is, the Church, is covered, which the soldiers of the Gentiles divide amongst themselves, that there may be four classes with one faith, the married, and the widowed, those who bear rule, and those who are separate. They cast lots for the undivided garment, which is peace and unity. It goes on: And it was the third hour, and they crucified him. Mark has introduced this truly and rightly, for at the sixth hour darkness overspread the earth, so that no one could move his head.

AUG. If Jesus was given up to the Jews' to be crucified, when Pilate sat down at his tribunal about the sixth hour, as John relates, how could He be crucified at the third hour, as many persons have thought from not understanding the words of Mark? First then let us see at what hour He might have been crucified, then we shall see why Mark said that He was crucified at the third hour. It was about the sixth hour when He was given up to be crucified by Pilate sitting on his judgment seat, as has been said, for it was not yet fully the sixth hour, but about the sixth, that is, the fifth was over, and some of the sixth had begun, so that those things which are related of the crucifixion of our Lord took place after the finishing of the fifth, and at the commencement of the sixth, until, when the sixth was completed and He was hanging on the cross, the darkness which is spoken of took place.

Let us now consider, why Mark has said, It was the third hour. He had already said positively, And when they had crucified him, they parted his garments; as also the others declare, that when He was crucified His garments were divided. Now if Mark had wished to fix the time of what was done, it would have been enough to say, And it was the third hour why did He add, and they crucified him, unless it was that he wished to point to something which had gone before, and which if inquired into would be explained, since that same Scripture was to be read at a time, when it was known to the whole Church at what hour our Lord was crucified, by which means any error might be taken away, and any falsehood be refuted. But because he knew that the Lord was fixed to the cross not by the Jews but by the soldiers, as John very plainly shows, he wished to intimate that the Jews had crucified Him, since they cried out, Crucify Him, rather than those who executed the orders of their chief according to their duty. It is therefore implied, that it took place at the third hour when the Jews cried out, Crucify Him, and it is most truly shown that they crucified Him, when they so cried out. But in the attempt of Pilate to save the Lord, and the tumultuous opposition of the Jews, we understand that a space of two hours was consumed, and that the sixth hour had begun, before the end of which, those things occurred which are related to have taken place from the time when Pilate gave up the Lord, and the darkness overspread the earth. Now he who will apply himself to these things, without the hard-heartedness of impiety, will see that Mark has fitly placed it at the third hour, in the same place as the deed of the soldiers who were the executors of it is related. Therefore lest any one should transfer in his thoughts so great a crime from the Jews to the soldiers, he says it was as the third hour, and they crucified him, that the fault might rather by a careful inquirer be charged to them, who, as he would find, had at the third hour cried out for His crucifixion, whilst at the same time it would be seen that what was done by the soldiers was done at the sixth hour.

PSEUDO-AUG. Therefore he wishes to imply that it was the Jews who passed sentence, concerning the crucifixion of Christ at the third hour; for every condemned person is considered as dead, from the moment that sentence is passed upon him. Mark therefore showed that our Savior was not crucified by the sentence of the judge, because it is difficult to prove the innocence of a man so condemned.

AUG. Still there are not wanting persons who assert that the preparation, mentioned by John, Now it was the preparation about the sixth hour, was really the third hour of the day. For they say that on the day before the sabbath day, there was a preparation of the passover of the Jews, because on that sabbath, they began the unleavened bread; but however that the true passover, which is now celebrated on the day of our Lord's Passion, that is, the Christian not the Jewish passover, began to be prepared, or to have its parasceue, from that ninth hour of the night, when His death began to be prepared by the Jews; for parasceue means preparation. Between that hour therefore of the night and His crucifixion occurs the sixth hour of preparation, according to John, and the third hour of the day, according to Mark.

What Christian would not give in to this solution of the question, provided that we could find some circumstance, from which we might gather that this preparation of our Passover, that is, of the death of Christ, began at the ninth hour of the night,? For if we say that it began when our Lord was taken by the Jews, it was still early in the night, but if when our Lord was carried away to the house of the father in law of Caiaphas, where also He was heard by the chief priests, the cock had not crowed; but if when He was given up to Pilate, it is very plain that it was morning.

It remains therefore that we must understand the preparation of our Lord's death to have commenced when all the Chief Priests pronounced, He is guilty of death. For there is nothing absurd in supposing that that was the ninth hour of the night so that we may understand that Peter's denial is put out of its order after it really happened. It goes on: And the superscription of his accusation was written over, THE KING OF THE JEWS.

THEOPHYL. They wrote this superscription, as the reason why He was crucified, thus wishing to reprove His vainglory in making Himself a king, that so the passers by might not pity Him, but rather hate Him as a tyrant.

PSEUDO-JEROME; He wrote it in three languages, in Hebrew, Melech Jeudim; in Greek, in Latin, Rex confessorum. These three languages were consecrated to be the chief, in the superscription on the cross, that every tongue might record the treachery of the Jews.

BEDE; But this superscription on the cross shows, that they could not even in killing Him take away the kingdom over them from Him who was about to render to them according to their works. There follows: And with him they crucify two thieves, the one on his right hand, the other on his left.

THEOPHYL. They did this that men might have a bad opinion of Him, as though He also were a robber and a malefactor. But it was done by Providence to fulfill the Scriptures. There follows: And the Scripture was fulfilled which said, And he was numbered with the transgressors.

PSEUDO-JEROME; Truth was numbered with the wicked; He left one on His left hand, the other He takes on the right, as He will do at the last day. With a similar crime they are allotted different paths; one precedes Peter into Paradise, the other Judas into hell. A short confession won for him a long life, and a blasphemy which soon ended is punished with endless pain.

BEDE; Mystically, however, the thieves crucified with Christ signify those, who by their faith and confession of Christ undergo either the struggle of martyrdom, or some rules of a stricter discipline. But those who do these deeds for the sake of endless glory, are signified by the faith of the right hand robber; those again who do them for worldly praise copy the mind and the acts of the left hand robber.

THEOPHYL Or else; the two robbers were meant to point out the two people, that is, the Jews and the Gentiles, for both were evil, the Gentile as transgressing natural law, but the Jew by breaking the written law, which the Lord had delivered to them; but the Gentile was penitent, the Jew a blasphemer to the end. Between whom our Lord is crucified, for He is the corner stone, which binds us together.

29. And they that passed by railed on him, wagging their heads, and saying, Ah, you that destroys the temple, and builds it in three days,
30. Save yourself, and come down from the cross.
31. Likewise also the Chief Priests mocking said among themselves with the Scribes, He saved others; himself he cannot save.
32. Let Christ, the King of Israel descend now from the cross, that we may see and believe. And they that were crucified with him reviled him.

PSEUDO-JEROME; The foal of Judah has been tied to the vine, and his clothes dyed in the blood of the grape, and the kids tear the vine, blaspheming Christ, and wagging their heads. Wherefore it is said: And they that passed by railed on him, wagging their heads, and saying, Ah, you that destroys the temple.

THEOPHYL. For the passers by blasphemed Christ, reproaching Him as a seducer. But the devil moved them to bid Him come down from the Cross; for he knew that salvation was being won by the Cross, therefore he again proceeded to tempt Christ, so that if He came down from the Cross, he might be certain that He is not truly the Son of God, and so the salvation, which is by the Cross, might be done away. But He being truly the Son of God, did not come down; for if He ought to have come down, He would not have ascended there at all; but since He saw that in this way salvation must be effected, He underwent the crucifixion, and many other sufferings, to the finishing of His work.

It goes on: Likewise also the Chief Priests mocking said among themselves with the Scribes, He saved others, himself he cannot save. They said this, to do away with His miracles, as though those which He had done were but the semblance of them, for by working miracles He saved many.

BEDE; Thus also they confess, though against their will, that He saved many. Therefore your words condemn you, for He who saved others could have saved Himself. It goes on: Let Christ the King of Israel descend now from the cross, that we may see and believe.

PSEUDO-JEROME; Afterwards they saw Him arise from the grave, though they would not believe that He could come down from the tree of the Cross. Where, O Jews, is your lack of faith? Your own selves I appeal to; your own selves I bring as judges. How much more wonderful is it that a dead man should arise, than that one yet living should choose to come down from the cross. you asked but small things, till greater should have come to pass; but your want of faith could not be healed by signs much greater than those for which you sought. Here all have gone out of the way, all are become abominable. Wherefore it goes on: And they that were crucified with him reviled.

AUG. How can this be, when according to Luke one only reviled Him, but was rebuked by the other who believed on God; unless we understand that Matthew and Mark, who touched but slightly on this place, put the plural for the singular number?

THEOPHYL. Or else, both at first reviled Him, then one recognizing Him as innocent, rebukes the other for blaspheming Him.

33. And when the sixth hour was come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour.
34. And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eloi, Eloi, lame sabachthani? which is, being interpreted, My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?
35. And some of them that stood by, when they heard it, said, Behold, he calls Elias.
36. And one ran and filled a sponge full of vinegar, and put it on a reed, and gave him to drink, saying, Let alone; let us see whether Elias will come to take him down.
37. And Jesus cried with a loud voice, and gave up the ghost.

BEDE; This most glorious light took away its rays from the world, lest it should see the Lord hanging, and lest the blasphemers should have the benefit of its light. Wherefore it goes on: And when the sixth hour was come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour.

AUG. Luke added to this account the cause of the darkness, that is, the darkening of the sun.

THEOPHYL. If this had been the time for an eclipse, some one might have said that this that happened was natural, but it was the fourteenth moon, when no eclipse can take place. There follows: And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani.

PSEUDO-JEROME; At the ninth hour, the tenth piece of money which had been lost is found, by the overturning of the house.

BEDE; For when Adam sinned, it is also written that he heard the voice of the Lord, walking in paradise, in the cool after mid-day; and in that hour when the first Adam by sinning brought death into the world, in that same hour the second Adam by dying destroyed death. And we must observe, that our Lord was crucified, when the sun was going away from the center of the world; but at sunrise He celebrated the mysteries of His resurrection; because He died for our sins, but rose again for our justification. Nor need you wonder at the lowliness of His words, at the complaints as of one forsakes, when you look on the offense of the cross, knowing the form of a servant. For as hunger, and thirst, and fatigue were not things proper to the Divinity, but bodily affections; so His saying, Why have you forsaken me? was proper to a bodily voice, for the body is never naturally wont to wish to be separated from the life which is joined to it. For although our Savior Himself said this, He really showed the weakness of His body; He spoke therefore as man, bearing about with Him my feelings, for when placed in danger we fancy that we are deserted by God.

THEOPHYL. Or, He speaks this as man crucified by God for me, for we men have been forsaken by the Father, but He never has. For hear what He says; I am not alone, because the Father is with me. Though He may also have said this as being a Jew, according to the flesh, as though He had said, Why have you forsaken the Jewish people, so that they have crucified Your Son? For as we sometimes say, God has put on me, that is, my human nature, so here also we must understand you have forsaken me, to mean my nature, or the Jewish people.

It goes on: And some of them that stood by, when they heard it, said, Behold, he called Elias.

BEDE; These however I suppose were Roman soldiers who did not understand the peculiarity of the Hebrew tongue, but, from His calling Eloi, thought that Elias was called by Him. But if the Jews are understood to have said this, they must be supposed to do this, as accusing Him of folly in calling for the aid of Elias.

It goes on: And one ran and filled a sponge full of vinegar, and put it on a reed: and gave him to drink saying, let alone: let us see whether Elias will come to take him down. John shows more fully the reason why the vinegar was given to the Lord to drink, saying, that Jesus said, I thirst, that the Scriptures might be fulfilled. They however applied a sponge full of vinegar to His mouth.

PSEUDO-JEROME; Here he points out a similitude for the Jews; a sponge on a reed, weak, dry, fit for burning; they fill it with vinegar, that is, with wickedness and guile.

AUG. Matthew has not related, that the man who brought the sponge filled with vinegar, but that the others spoke about Elias; from whence we gather that both said it.

PSEUDO-JEROME; Though the flesh was weak, yet the heavenly voice, which said, Open me the gates of righteousness, waxed strong. Wherefore there follows: And Jesus cried with a loud voice, and gave up the ghost. We who are of the earth die with a very low voice, or with no voice at all; but He who descended from heaven breathed His last with a loud voice.

THEOPHYL. He who both rules over death and commands it dies with power, as its Lord. But what this voice was is declared by Luke: Father, into your hands I commend my spirit. For Christ would have us understand by this, that from that time the souls of the saints go up into the hands of God. For at first the souls of all were held in hell, till He came, who preached the opening of the prison to the captives.

38. And the veil of the temple was rent in two from the top to the bottom.
39. And when the centurion, which stood over against him, saw that he so cried out, and gave up the ghost, he said, Truly this man was the Son of God.
40. There were also women looking on afar off among whom was Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James the less and of Joses, and Salome;
41. (Who also, when he was in Galilee, followed him, and ministered to him;) and many other women which came up with him to Jerusalem.

GLOSS. After the Evangelist has related the Passion and the death of Christ, he now goes on to mention those things which followed after the death of our Lord. Wherefore it is said: And the veil of the temple was rent in two from the top to the bottom.

PSEUDO-JEROME; The veil of the temple is rent, that is, the heaven is opened.

THEOPHYL. Again, God by the rending of the veil implied that the grace of the Holy Spirit goes away and is rent from the temple, so that the Holy of Holies might be seen by all; also that the temple will mourn amongst the Jews, when they shall deplore their calamities, and rend their clothes. This also is a figure of the living temple, that is, the body of Christ, in whose Passion His garment is torn, that is, His flesh. Again, it means another thing; for the flesh is the veil of our temple, that is, of our mind. But the power of the flesh is torn in the Passion of Christ, from the top to the bottom, that is, from Adam even down to the latest man; for also Adam was made whole by the Passion of Christ, and his flesh does not remain under the curse, nor does it deserve corruption, but we all are gifted with incorruption.

And when the centurion who stood, over against him saw. He who commands a hundred soldiers is called a centurion. But seeing that He died with such power as the Lord, he wondered and confessed.

BEDE; Now the cause of the centurion's wonder is clear, that seeing that the Lord died in that way, that is, sent forth His spirit, he said, Truly this man was the Son of God. For no one can send forth his own spirit, but He who is the Creator of souls.

AUG. This also he most of all wondered at, that after that voice which He sent forth as a figure of our sin, He immediately gave up His spirit. For the spirit of the Mediator showed that no penalty of sin could have had power to cause the death of His flesh; for it did not leave the flesh unwillingly, but as it willed, for it was joined to the Word of God in the unity of person.

PSEUDO-JEROME; But the last are now made the first. The Gentile people confesses. The blinded Jew denies, so that their error is worse than the first.

THEOPHYL. And so the order is inverted, for the Jew kills, and the Gentile confesses; the disciples fly, and the women remain. For there follows: There were also women looking on afar off, amongst whom was Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James the less and of Joses, and Salome.

ORIGEN; But it seems to me, that here three women are chiefly named, by Matthew and Mark. Two indeed are set down by each Evangelist, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James; the third is called by Matthew, the mother of the sons of Zebedee, but by Mark she is called Salome.

BEDE; He means by James the Less, the son of Alphaeus, who was also called the brother of our Lord, because he was the son of Mary, our Lord's mother's sister, whom John mentions, saying, Now there stood by the cross of Jesus his mother and his mother's sister, Mary of Cleophas, and Mary Magdalene. And he seems to call her Mary of Cleophas, from her father or some relation. But he was called James the Less, to distinguish him from James the Great, that is, the son of Zebedee, who was called amongst the first of the Apostles by our Lord. Further, it was a Jewish custom, nor was it thought blamable after the manners of an ancient people, that women should furnish to teachers food and clothing out of their substance. Wherefore there follows: Who also when he was in Galilee followed him, and ministered to him. They ministered to the Lord of their substance, that He might reap their carnal things whose spiritual things they reaped, and that He might show forth a type for all masters, who ought to be content with food and clothing from their disciples. But let us see what companions He had with Him, for it goes on: And many other women which came up with him into Jerusalem.

PSEUDO-JEROME; As the female sex through the virgin Mary is not shut out from salvation, so it is not thrust away from the knowledge of the mystery of the cross, and of the resurrection, through the widow Mary Magdalene, and the ethers, who were mothers.

42. And now when the even was come, because it was the preparation, that is, the day before the sabbath,
43. Joseph of Arimathea, an honorable counselor, which also waited for the kingdom of God, came, and went in boldly to Pilate, and craved the body of Jesus.
44. And Pilate marveled if he were already dead: and calling to him the centurion, he asked him whether he had been any while dead.
45. And when he knew it of the centurion, he gave the body to Joseph.
46. And he bought fine linen, and took him down, and wrapped him in the linen, and laid him in a sepulcher which was hewn out of a rock, and rolled a stone to the door of the sepulcher.
47. And Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses beheld where he was laid.

GLOSS. After the passion and death of Christ, the Evangelist relates His burial, saying, And now when the even was come, because it was the preparation, that is, the day before the sabbath, Joseph of Arimathaea.

BEDE; What is called, parasceue in Greek, is in Latin praeparatio; by which name those Jews, who lived amongst Greeks, used to call the sixth day of the week, because on that day they used to prepare what was necessary for the rest of the sabbath day. Because then man was made on the sixth day, but on the seventh the Creator rested from all His work, fitly was our Savior crucified on the sixth day, and thus fulfilled the mystery of man's restoration. But on the sabbath, resting in the tomb, He was waiting for the event of the resurrection, which was to come on the eighth day. So we must also in this age of time be crucified to the world; but in the seventh day, that is, when a man has paid the debt to death, our bodies indeed must rest in the grave, but our souls after good works in hidden peace with God; till in the eighth period, even our bodies themselves, glorified in the resurrection, receive incorruption together with our souls.

But the man who buried the body of the Lord must needs by his righteous merits have been worthy, and by the nobility of worldly power able to perform this service. Therefore it is said, An honorable counselor, which also waited for the kingdom of God. He is called in Latin, decurio, because he is of the order of the curia, and served the office of a provincial magistracy; this officer was also called curialis, from his care of civic duties. Arimathaea is the same as Ramathain, the city of Elkanah and Samuel.

PSEUDO-JEROME; It is interpreted, taking down, of which was Joseph, who came to take down the body of Christ from the cross. There follows: Came and went in boldly to Pilate, and craved the body of Jesus.

THEOPHYL. He was bold with a praiseworthy boldness; for he did not consider within himself, I shall fall from my rich estate, and I shall be expelled by the Jews, if I beg for the body of Him, who was condemned as a blasphemer. It goes on: And Pilate marveled if he were already dead. For he thought that He should continue long alive upon the cross, as also the thieves used to live long, upon the instrument of their execution. It goes on: And calling to him the centurion, he asked him if he had been any while dead; that is, before the time when other executed persons usually died.

There follows: And when he knew it of the centurion, (that is, that He was dead,) he gave the body to Joseph.

BEDE; But it was not an obscure person, nor a man of mean rank, who could come to the governor and obtain the body. There follows: And he bought fine linen, and took him down, and wrapped him in the linen.

THEOPHYL. Burying the precious body preciously; for being a disciple of our Lord, he knew how greatly the Lord's body ought to be honored.

BEDE; By this however, according to a spiritual meaning, we may understand that the body of the Lord should not be wrapped in gold or gems, or silk, but in a clean linen cloth. Hence it became a custom in the Church that the sacrifice of the altar should not be celebrated in silk, or in a dyed cloth, but in linen produced from the earth just as the body of the Lord was wrapped in clean linen; as, we read in the Pontifical acts, it was ordered by the blessed Sylvester. Though it has also another meaning, that he who receives Jesus in a pure mind wraps Him in clean linen. There follows: And laid him in a sepulcher which was hewn out of a rock, and rolled a stone to the door of the sepulcher. It is said that the sepulcher of the Lord is a round cell, hewn out of the rock which was around it, so high, that a man standing upright could scarcely touch the roof with his outstretched hand; and it has an entrance to the east, to which the great stone was rolled, and placed upon it. In the northern part of it is the tomb itself, that is, the place where our Lord's body lay, made of the same rock, seven feet in length, raised three palms higher than the floor. It is not open from above, but on the south side, the whole of which is open, and through which the body was brought in. The color of the sepulcher and of the recess is said to be a mixed white and red.

PSEUDO-JEROME; By the burial of Christ we rise again, by His going down into hell we mount up into heaven; here is found the honey in the mouth of the dead lion.

THEOPHYL. Let us too imitate Joseph, taking to ourselves the body of Christ by Unity, and let us place it in a sepulcher, hewn out of the rock, that is, in a soul recollected, never forgetful of God; for this is a soul hewn out of the rock, that is, out of Christ, for He is our rock, who holds together our strength. We ought also to wrap Him in linen, that is, to receive Him in a pure body; for the linen is the body which is the clothing of the soul. We must, however, not throw open, but wrap Him up; for He is secret, closed and hidden.

There follows: And Mary Magadalene and Mary the mother of Joses beheld where he was laid.

BEDE; We read in Luke, that His acquaintances and the women who had followed Him stood afar off. When these then who were known to Jesus returned home after the burial of His body, the women alone, who were bound to Him with a closer love, after following the funeral, took care to see how He was laid, that they might be able at a fitting season to offer Him the sacrifice of their devotion. But on the day of the parasceue, that is, of the preparation, the holy women, that is, humble souls, do the same, when they burn with love for the Savior, and diligently follow the steps of His Passion in this life, where their future rest is to be prepared; and they weigh with a pious minuteness the order in which His passion was accomplished, if perchance they be able to imitate it.

PSEUDO-JEROME; These things also fit the Jewish people, which finally is believing, which is ennobled by faith to become the child of Abraham. It lays aside its despair, it waits for the kingdom of God, it goes in to the Christians, that it may be baptized; which is implied by the name of Pilate, which is interpreted, 'One who works with a hammer,' that is, he who subdues the iron nations, that he may rule them with a rod of iron. It seeks for the sacrifice, that is, the viaticum, which is given to penitents at their last end, and wraps it up in a heart clean and dead to sin; it makes it firm in the safeguard of faith, and shuts it up with the covering of hope, through works of charity; (for the end of the commandment is charity;) whilst the elect, who are the stars of the sea, are looking on from afar, for, if it be possible, the very elect shall be offended.

Catena Aurea Mark 15

[annalex]

Deposition

Bacchiacca

c. 1518
Oil on wood, 93 x 71 cm
Galleria degli Uffizi, Florence

[Salvation]

The Sunday liturgy always supersedes a saint's day.

Information: St. Barachisius and Jonas

Feast Day: March 29

[Salvation]

Interactive Saints for Kids

St. Jonas and St. Barachisius

Feast Day: March 29
Born/Died: (Third / Fourth Century)

King Sapor II of Persia who reigned in the fourth century hated Christians and was very cruel to them. He destroyed their churches and monasteries. Two Persian brothers named Jonas and Barachisius who were monks heard about this and found that many Christians had been put to death.

They decided to go to Hubaham and help encourage them to remain faithful to Jesus. Jonas and Barachisius knew that they, too, might be captured. But that did not stop them. Their hearts were too full of love of others to worry about themselves.

At last the two brothers were caught and taken prisoner. They were told that if they did not worship the sun, the moon, the fire and water, they would be tortured and put to death. Of course, they refused to worship anything or anyone except the one true God.

They had to suffer much, but they prayed and thought about how Jesus had suffered for them. The two brothers were tortured terribly but would not give up their faith. They were finally condemned to death and joyfully gave up their lives for Jesus.

Jonas and Barachisius were killed in horrible ways in 327.

Reflection: Is there an area in my life where I am being selfish? Is there anything I can do to help someone in need?

[Salvation]

CATHOLIC ALMANAC

Sunday, March 29

Liturgical Color: Violet

In 1537, Pope Paul III published
Pastorale Officium where he condemned
slavery as sin leading to
excommunication. He stated that all men,
even non-Christians, couldn’t be deprived
of their property or freedom, because all
can be brought to salvation.

[Salvation]

Day 88 - Barabbas or Jesus // Pilate Delivers Jesus to Be Crucified // The Soldiers Mock Jesus

 

Today's Reading: Matthew 27:15-31

15 Now at the feast the governor was accustomed to release for the crowd any one prisoner whom they wanted. 16 And they had then a notorious prisoner, called Barabbas. 17 So when they had gathered, Pilate said to them, "Whom do you want me to release for you, Barabbas or Jesus who is called Christ?" 18 For he knew that it was out of envy that they had delivered him up. 19 Besides, while he was sitting on the judgment seat, his wife sent word to him, "Have nothing to do with that righteous man, for I have suffered much over him today in a dream." 20 Now the chief priests and the elders persuaded the people to ask for Barabbas and destroy Jesus. 21 The governor again said to them, "Which of the two do you want me to release for you?" And they said, "Barabbas." 22 Pilate said to them, "Then what shall I do with Jesus who is called Christ?" They all said, "Let him be crucified." 23 And he said, "Why, what evil has he done?" But they shouted all the more, "Let him be crucified."

24 So when Pilate saw that he was gaining nothing, but rather that a riot was beginning, he took water and washed his hands before the crowd, saying, "I am innocent of this righteous man's blood; see to it yourselves." 25 And all the people answered, "His blood be on us and on our children!" 26 Then he released for them Barabas, and having scourged Jesus, delivered him to be crucified.

27 Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the praetorium, and they gathered the whole battalion before him. 28 And they stripped him and put a scarlet robe upon him, 29 and plaiting a crown of thorns they put it on his head, and put a reed in his right hand. And kneeling before him they mocked him, saying, "Hail, King of the Jews!" 30 And they spat upon him, and took the reed and struck him on the head. 31 And when they had mocked him, they stripped him of the robe, and put his own clothes on him, and led him away to crucify him.

Today's Commentary:

King of the Jews!: A title suggested by the Sanhedrin and used mockingly by the soldiers (Lk 23:2). It is also the transcription on Jesus' Cross (27:37). The wise men are the only figures in Matthew to use the title in a positive and honorable way (2:2).

-- Allegorically: the title and articles used to slander Jesus signify his kingship and triumph over sin. The scarlet robe (27:28) represents Jesus' defeat ofSatan through his shed blood; the crown of thorns (27:29) points to the crown of glory that adorns Jesus at his Ascension; the reed (27:29) signifies the scepter of his heavenly kingdom. Through these images, Christ's victory is paradoxically announced in the midst of his apparent defeat.

[Salvation]

Palm Sunday

Palm Sunday – Bearing Christ to the World

by Fr. Robert Barron

On this Palm Sunday, I should like to reflect on the Lord Jesus’ entrance to Jerusalem. A donkey, an ass, was in Jesus time much what it is today: a humble, simple, unassuming little animal, used by very ordinary people to do their work. The wealthy and powerful might own horses or a team of oxen and a political leader might ride a stately steed, but none of them would have anything to do with donkeys.

All of his public career, Jesus had resisted when people called him the Messiah. He sternly ordered them to be silent. When they came to carry him off and make him King, he slipped away. But he is willing to accept these titles precisely at the moment when he rides into Jerusalem on an ass. The Gospel is clear: this is not only an ass; it is a colt, the foal of an ass, on whom no one had ever previously sat. This is a young, inexperienced, unimpressive donkey. And this is the animal upon whom Jesus rides into town in triumph.

This is no ordinary King; this is not the Messiah that they expected.

Now let us look even more closely at the ass. Jesus tells two of his disciples to go into a neighboring town and to find this beast of burden. “If anyone asks, respond, ‘the Master has need of it.’” The humble donkey, pressed into service, is a model of discipleship. Our purpose in life is not to draw attention to ourselves, to have a brilliant career, to aggrandize our egos; rather our purpose is to serve the Master’s need, to cooperate, as he sees fit, with his work.

What was the donkey’s task? He was a Christopher, a Christ-bearer. He carried the Lord into Jerusalem, paving the way for the passion and the redemption of the world. Would anyone have particularly noticed him? Probably not, except perhaps to laugh at this ludicrous animal.

The task of every disciple is just the same: to be a Christopher, a bearer of Christ to the world. Might we be unnoticed in this? Yes. Might we be laughed at? Of course. But the Master has need of us and so we perform our essential task.

[Salvation]

Catholic Spiritual Direction.com

The Triumph of Jesus

March 29, 2015 by Dan Burke  

The Triumph of Jesus

Passion Sunday
(Palm Sunday)

Presence of God: O Jesus, I want to follow You in Your triumph, so that I may follow You later to Calvary.

MEDITATION

Holy Week begins with the description of the triumphal entrance of Jesus into Jerusalem on the Sunday before His Passion. Jesus, who had always been opposed to any public manifestation and who had fled when the people wanted to make Him their king (cf. Jn 6:15), allows Himself to be borne in triumph today. Not until now, when He is about to die, does He submit to being publicly acclaimed as the Messiah, because by dying on the Cross, He will be in the most complete manner Messiah, Redeemer, King, and Victor. He allows Himself to be recognized as King, but a King who will reign from the Cross, who will triumph and conquer by dying on the Cross. The same exultant crowd that acclaims Him today will curse Him in a few days and lead Him to Calvary; today’s triumph will be the vivid prelude to tomorrow’s Passion.

Jesus enters the holy city in triumph, but only in order to suffer and die there. Hence, the twofold meaning of the Procession of the Palms: it is not enough to accompany Jesus in His triumph; we must follow Him in His Passion, prepared to share in it by stirring up in ourselves, according to St. Paul’s exhortation (Phil 2:5-11), His sentiments of humility and total immolation, which will bring us, like Him and with Him, “unto death, even to the death of the Cross.” The palms which the priest blesses today have not only a festive significance; they also “represent the victory which Jesus is about to win over the prince of death” (Roman Missal). For us too, they must be symbols of triumph, indicative of the victory to be won in our battle against the evil in ourselves and against the evil which roams about us. As we receive the blessed palm, let us renew our pledge to conquer with Jesus, but let us not forget that it was on the Cross that He conquered.

COLLOQUY

“O Jesus, I contemplate You in Your triumphant entrance into Jerusalem. Anticipating the crowd which would come to meet You, You mounted an ass and gave an admirable example of humility in the midst of the acclamations of the crowd who cut branches of trees and spread their garments along the way. While the people were singing hymns of praise, You were filled with pity and wept over Jerusalem. Rise now, my soul, handmaid of the Savior, join the procession of the daughters of Sion and go out to meet your King. Accompany the Lord of heaven and earth, seated on an ass; follow Him with olive and palm branches, with works of piety and with victorious virtues” (cf. St. Bonaventure).

O Jesus, what bitter tears You shed over the city which refused to recognize You! And how many souls, like Jerusalem, go to perdition on account of their obstinate resistance to grace! For them I pray with all my strength. “My God, this is where Your power and mercy should be shown. Oh! what a lofty grace I ask for, O true God, when I conjure You to love those who do not love You, to answer those who do not call to You, to give health to those who take pleasure in remaining sick!… You say, O my Lord, that You have come to seek sinners. Here, Lord, are the real sinners. But, instead of seeing our blindness, O God, consider the precious Blood which Your Son shed for us. Let Your mercy shine out in the midst of such great malice. Do not forget, Lord, that we are Your creatures, and pour out on us Your goodness and mercy” (Teresa of Jesus, Exclamations of the Soul to God, 8).

Even if we resist grace, O Jesus, You are still the Victor; Your triumph over the prince of darkness is accomplished, and humanity has been saved and redeemed by You. You are the Good Shepherd who knows and loves each one of His sheep and would lead them all to safety. Your loving heart is not satisfied with having merited salvation for the whole flock; it ardently desires each sheep to profit by this salvation….O Lord, give us then, this good will; enable us to accept Your gift, Your grace, and grant that Your Passion may not have been in vain.

[Salvation]

Catholic Culture

 

Daily Readings for:March 29, 2015
(Readings on USCCB website)

Collect: Almighty ever-living God, who as an example of humility for the human race to follow caused our Savior to take flesh and submit to the Cross, graciously grant that we may heed his lesson of patient suffering and so merit a share in his Resurrection. Who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

RECIPES

o    Almond Milk

o    Almond Milk Frumenty

o    Fig Pudding

o    Fig Swirl

o    Frumenty

o    Pea Soup

o    Pease Porridge

o    Yellow Split Pea Soup

ACTIVITIES

o    A Jonas (Jonah) Project

o    Blessed Palms in the Home

o    Carling or Passion Sunday

o    Fun Pretzel Project

o    Holy Week in the Catholic Tradition

o    Hymn: Gloria Laus et Honor (All Glory, Laud and Honor)

o    Jonas and Holy Week

o    Lent Hymn: O Head All Scarred and Bleeding

o    Lent Hymn: Open, O Hard and Sinful Heart!

o    Lenten Customs of the Russian Germans

o    Music for Lent and Easter: St. Matthew Passion by Bach

o    Palm Sunday

o    Palm Sunday and Holy Week in the Home

o    Palm Sunday Festivities

o    Palm Sunday Procession

o    Palm Sunday Procession

o    Purple Shrouds

o    Shrouding of Statues and Crucifixes

o    Traditions related to Palm Sunday

PRAYERS

o    Prayer Before a Crucifix

o    Prayer for Palm Sunday and Holy Week

o    Sacrifice Beads

o    Way of the Cross

o    To Keep A True Lent

o    Book of Blessings: Blessing Before and After Meals: Lent (1st Plan)

LIBRARY

o    From Palm Branches to the Wood of the Cross | Fr. Roger J. Landry

o    Hymn for Palm Sunday | Bishop Theodulf

o    Palm Sundays | Dom H. Philibert Feasey O.S.B.

o    We hail you, O Cross of Christ! | Pope John Paul II

·         Lent: March 29th

·         Palm Sunday of the Passion of the Lord

Old Calendar: Palm Sunday ; Other Titles: Palm Sunday; Hosanna Sunday; Fig Sunday; Flowery Festival;

So they took branches of palm trees and went out to meet him, crying, "Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!" And Jesus found a young ass and sat upon it; as it is written, "Fear not, daughter of Zion; behold, your king is coming, sitting on an ass's colt (Jn 12:13-15)!"

Today we commemorate Christ's entry into Jerusalem for the completion of the Paschal Mystery. In the old calendar before Vatican II, the Church celebrated Passion Sunday two Sundays before Easter, and then Palm Sunday was the beginning of Holy Week. The Church has combined the two to reinforce the solemnity of Holy Week.

The Palm Sunday procession is formed of Christians who, in the "fullness of faith," make their own the gesture of the Jews and endow it with its full significance. Following the Jews' example we proclaim Christ as a Victor... Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is He who comes in the Name of the Lord. But by our faith we know, as they did not, all that His triumph stands for. He is the Messiah, the Son of David and the Son of God. He is the sign of contradiction, acclaimed by some and reviled by others. Sent into this world to wrest us from sin and the power of Satan, He underwent His Passion, the punishment for our sins, but issues forth triumphant from the tomb, the victor over death, making our peace with God and taking us with Him into the kingdom of His Father in heaven.

Click here for commentary on the readings in the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite.

Stational Church

---

Liturgy for Palm Sunday
The priests and deacons wear red vestments for Mass. There is a special entrance at the beginning of each Mass, either simple or solemn. This includes a blessing of the palms and the gospel reading of the entrance into Jerusalem (Matt 21:1-11; Mark 11:1-10; John 12:12-16; Luke 19:28-40). The introduction by the priest explains the solemnity of Holy Week, and invites the faithful to take full part in the celebration:

Dear friends in Christ, for five weeks of Lent we have been preparing, by works of charity and self-sacrifice, for the celebration of our Lord's paschal mystery. Today we come together to begin this solemn celebration in union with the whole Church throughout the world. Christ entered in triumph into his own city, to complete his work as our Messiah: to suffer, to die, and to rise again. Let us remember with devotion this entry which began his saving work and follow him with a lively faith. United with him in his suffering on the cross, may we share his resurrection and new life.

The palms are blessed with the following prayer:

Almighty God, we pray you bless these branches and make them holy. Today we joyfully acclaim Jesus our Messiah and King. May we reach one day the happiness of the new and everlasting Jerusalem by faithfully following him who lives and reigns for ever and ever. Amen.

As the faithful, we remember and dramatize Christ's triumphal entrance into Jerusalem on a donkey. In Jesus' time, a huge crowd assembled, put their cloaks or branches on the ground, and waved palm branches, acclaiming Christ as the King of Israel, the Son of David. We now wave our palm branches and sing as the priest enters the church:

Hosanna to the Son of David, the King of Israel.
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
Hosanna in the highest.

These words of praise are echoed every day at the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass at the Sanctus (Holy, Holy).

Our joy is quickly subdued. We are jolted to reality and see the purpose of Christ coming to Jerusalem by the reading of the Passion at the Gospel. (Written by Jennifer Gregory Miller)

Things to Do:

• The palms distributed at Mass are blessed, so are sacramentals. Read Blessed Palms in the Home.
• Read Pope Francis' Homily for Palm Sunday 2014. Also read the History of Palm Sunday by Fr. Francis X. Weiser
• This is also known as "Carling Sunday" after carling peas. Peas porridge would be an appropriate dish for today. See recipes for suggestions and history behind this tradition.
• This is also known as "Fig Sunday" due to the tradition that Christ ate figs after his entry into Jerusalem. Adding some type of figs to your meal would be a nice touch.
• Read the short passages from Directory on Popular Piety concerning Holy Week and Palm Sunday.

---

The Station at Rome is in the church of St. John Lateran which represents the Holy City Jerusalem which Christ and we, His disciples, have just entered. It is the first cathedral of Rome, where Emperor Constantine allowed the Pope to set up the episcopal chair after 312.

[Salvation]

The Word Among Us

Meditation: Mark 11:1-10

Palm Sunday of the Passion of the Lord

Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! (Mark 11:9)

When artists talk about contrast, they’re referring to the arrangement of opposite elements—light versus dark, small versus large, rough versus smooth. It’s a technique they use to add a dramatic effect to their work. If we thought of God as an artist, we would definitely say that Palm Sunday is a study in contrasts. God created the universe out of nothing, fashioned the stars and planets, sustains every living thing, and knows every hair on our heads. Yet this same awesome, all-powerful God chose to enter Jerusalem riding on a donkey. You can’t have a more dramatic contrast than that. Or can you?

That Jesus, our King, came to his people riding a lowly pack animal is a huge contrast. But even more dramatic is the fact that he was crowned with thorns and not with gold, and beaten rather than worshipped. Or that he, who would judge heaven and earth, was judged and condemned the very people he created.

Jesus went through all the pain and humiliation of the cross so that we could be reconciled with God. He who is Life itself embraced death so that we could receive eternal life.

Keep this in mind during Mass today. During the Holy, Holy, remember the citizens of Jerusalem who spread out their cloaks and waved palm branches at Jesus. Like you, they called out, “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.” But just a few days later, they joined the Sanhedrin in calling out, “Crucify him!” (Mark 15:14). And through it all, through all the contrasts and ups and downs that he faced, Jesus continued to love. He continued to forgive. He never forgot his mission to save us all.

So when you say these words, do it with all the conviction you can muster. Praise the Lord for coming so humbly. And tell him you don’t want any more contrasts in your life!

“Lord, thank you for coming to us so humbly! Teach me to follow your example of self-sacrifice and compassion.”

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

Questions for Reflection or Group Discussion

Mass Readings: Isaiah 50:4-7; Psalm 22:8-9, 17-20, 23-24; Philippians 2:6-11; Mark 14:1–15:47

1. Passion or Palm Sunday begins Holy Week, when we are all called to relive and to celebrate the events, which went before and surrounded Christ's death and resurrection, the inexhaustible source of our salvation. We begin by recalling Jesus' triumphant entry into Jerusalem. He is a sign of contradiction, acclaimed by some and reviled by others. In what ways can Jesus be a sign of contradiction in your own lives: acclaimed at times, ignored at other times, and even doubted during times of suffering?

2. In the first reading and the responsorial Psalm, we begin to get a vivid glimpse of what Jesus suffered for us. Don't let the words slip by because they are so familiar to you. Try to visualize what it must have been like for the Son of God to have been beaten, scoffed at, mocked, and pierced for YOU. What are some steps you can take to enter more deeply into the Church’s Holy Week events? In what ways can you “keep watch” with Jesus through his Holy Week of suffering and death on the cross?

3. In the second reading we learn that Christ "emptied" himself and humbled himself when he became man. St. Augustine called humility the "royal road". It is the road Christ took when he became man and it is the only way we can get back to God. How about you? How do you react when you have been humbled or criticized or even rejected? Does your sense of self and pride in your own worth and talents ever interfere in your relations with others? In what ways?

4. It is said that St. Mark wrote his Gospel for the Gentile's whom he desired to bring to believe in Jesus' divinity. The gentile Roman centurion at the cross professes: "Truly this man was the Son of God." In what ways do you see Jesus’ divinity in his passion, death, and resurrection?

5. The meditation describes the many “contrasts” we see in the Gospel’s description of Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem and his passion and death on the Cross. How would you describe these contrasts? How would you describe the contrasts in your life? Which ones need more of the Lord’s grace to overcome them?

6. Take some time now to pray and ask Jesus for the grace to overcome the “contrasts” in your life so you can follow, in a deeper way, his example of self-sacrifice and compassion. Use the prayer at the end of the meditation as the starting point.

[Salvation]

A Christian Pilgrim

THE TONGUE OF THOSE WHO ARE TAUGHT

(A biblical reflection on PALM SUNDAY [Year B], 29 March 2015)

The Procession: Mark 11:1-10 or John 12:12-16 

First Reading: Isaiah 50:4-7

Psalms: Psalm 22:8-9,17-20,23-24; Second Reading: Philippians 2:6-11; Gospel Reading: 14:1-15:47

The Scripture Text

The Lord GOD has given me the tongue of those who are taught, that I may know how to sustain with a word him that is weary. Morning by morning He wakens, He wakens my ear to hear as those who are taught. The Lord GOD has opened my ear, and I was not rebellious, I turned not backward. I gave my back to the smiters, and my cheeks to those who pulled out the beard; I hid not my face from shame and spitting. For the Lord GOD helps me; therefore I have not been confounded; therefore I have set my face like a flint, and I know that I shall not be put to shame. (Isaiah 50:4-7 RSV). 

The use of words is no small skill. St. Augustine of Hippo [354-430] once held the chair of rhetoric. In time, he came to see this position as his “chair of lies”. Of course words also function to inspire, instruct and challenge people to do great deeds of heroism. In our age we have made “talk” a very profitable industry. It is hard to find a station or network which does not carry one or more talk-shows. From talk-radio to talk-shows on TV, we search for those with well-trained tongues.

Our first reading from Isaiah is the third of the Servant Songs. God’s Servant has been given “a well-trained tongue”. However, the benefits are not what we might expect. There is no celebrity status, no audience offering approval. The crowd is not hanging on the Servant’s every word. Far from it. “I gave my back to the smiters, and my cheeks to those who pulled out the beard; I hid not my face from shame and spitting” (Isaiah 50:6). Talk about a tough audience!

Why does the Lord’s Servant receive such rough treatment? His well-trained tongue is not to be used to impress and draw attention to himself. The Servant of the Lord is to “speak to the weary a word that will rouse them.” The Lord’s Servant is to be found among the victims, the rejected, the marginalized, the outcasts of history. All those who are weary from the heavy yoke of slavery will find a word of support and renewal. All those who are burdened with the daily concerns of survival and making ends meet will find a voice of consolation. The Lord’s Servant is found among the powerless. The reaction of the so-called victors is one of hatred and violence.  The Lord’s will must be silenced. Disgrace must come to the Lord’s mouthpiece.

However, the Servant of the Lord will never abandon his vocation. High ratings and celebrity acceptance are unimportant. “For the Lord GOD helps me; therefore I have not been confounded; therefore I have set my face like a flint, and I know that I shall not be put to shame” (Isaiah 50:7). Jesus is the Servant of the Lord who empties Himself of glory and takes on our human condition. He is nailed to the cross and is numbered among the criminals and the despised. Jesus is one with our human condition. He is found among all those who are denied basic dignity and respect. Jesus’ vindication is not to be found in human respect. Rather, the fidelity of Jesus is such that “God has highly exalted Him and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that JESUS CHRIST IS LORD, to the glory of God the Father” (Philippians 2:9-11). God never forgets His own. Fidelity to one’s calling is true success.

On the Passion Sunday we turn our faces to Jerusalem. We must be in solidarity with the Man of Sorrows, the Servant of the Lord. We too must be in fellowship with all the victims of oppression, injustice, hatred and neglect. The world tells us that it is the victors who write history. However, the example of Jesus shows us how we come to recognize the real victors. The real victors speak words that comfort the troubled and trouble the comfortable. The real victors are humbled so as to be exalted by God. The cross of defeat become the symbol of real victory.

The life and death of Jesus speaks to us with eloquences beyond words. The cross is the ultimate testimony of God’s love. It is the only answer to sin and death. Does such a testimony find its way into our hearts?

Short Prayer: Heavenly Father, You have given the human race Jesus Christ – our Lord and Savior – as a model of humility. He fulfilled Your will by becoming man and giving His life on the cross. Help us to bear witness to You by following His example in suffering and make us worthy to share in His resurrection. Amen. 

[Salvation]

A Christian Pilgrim

[Salvation]

Marriage=One Man and One Woman 'Til Death Do Us Part

Daily Marriage Tip for March 29, 2015:

“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Mk 15:34) Have there been times when you have felt forsaken by God? Has he later proved his presence and love to you? Praise God for his love and presence in your life and marriage.

[Salvation]

Sunday Scripture Study

Palm Sunday of the Lord's Passion - B

March 29, 2015

here for USCCB readings

Processional Gospel: Mark 11:1-10

Opening Prayer  

First Reading: Isaiah 50:4-7

Psalm: 22

Second Reading: Phil 2:6-11

Gospel Reading: Mark 14:1—15:47

• The events of this Sunday’s Processional Gospel reading (Mark 11:1-10) take place the Sunday before Holy Week. The following Thursday, Jesus will institute the Holy Eucharist and the priesthood. On Friday he will be unjustly tried, tortured, and die upon the Cross for the sins of mankind. In exactly a week from today, he will rise gloriously from the grave, defeating Satan and death.

• Jesus now enters Jerusalem in triumph. Whereas he had previously entered the city quietly, he now does so publicly since his mission is almost completed.

• Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem recalls that of another king—King Solomon (see 1 Kings 1:32-49). Both are called “Son of David;” both ride a donkey (or mule); both were celebrated by a great crowd; both entries caused a commotion in the city.

• The crowd greets Jesus as a victorious king, sure that he will liberate Roman-occupied Israel in the manner foretold by the prophets (Zechariah 14:3-21). Their shouts of praise will turn into cries of condemnation, however, when Jesus turns out to be a different kind of king than the one they expect (Zechariah 9:9-10).

 

QUESTIONS:

• How is the 1st reading from Isaiah a prophecy relating to Jesus? In what ways are we to imitate our Lord as he is described here? In Psalm 22?

• At the beginning of the 2nd reading, we see that Jesus has had equality of God from all eternity. At the end of the reading, we again read about his exaltation and glory. What do we read about him in the middle of the reading? What significance does that have?

• In the Gospel, to what town has Jesus come? Why (Matthew 23:27; Mark 10:32-33; Luke 13:33)

• Jesus comes on a donkey rather than a stallion. What does this portray (Zechariah 9:9-10)? What kind of king were the people expecting? How do their wishes compare with the reality of Jesus? How might that discrepancy account for the same crowd jeering and shouting later, “Crucify him!” (Mark 15:12-15)?

• How would you have reacted if you had been there to greet Jesus riding into town? Do you jump on political or religious bandwagons today? Why or why not?

• What difference does it make to you that Jesus is a gentle king, and not like the one described in Matthew 20:25? Does Jesus’ humility “work” for you? Why or why not?

• What does Good Friday and Easter mean to you? What will you do this week to prepare yourself spiritually for these most holy of Christian observances?

Closing Prayer

Catechism of the Catholic Church:  §§ 449, 557-560, 571-572, 606-614, 713, 2605-2606

 

In all He did from the Incarnation to the Cross, the end Jesus Christ had in mind was the gift of the Eucharist, his personal and corporal union with each Christian through Communion. He saw in It the means of communicating to us all the treasures of His Passion, all the virtues of His Sacred Humanity, and all the merits of His Life.      -St. Peter Julian Eymard

[Salvation]

Slander, Calumny, Detraction and Jesus

Pastor’s Column

Palm Sunday, 2015 

As we approach Palm Sunday, the Scriptures present to us a growing hatred of Jesus among the crowd.  Why do so many people come to hate Jesus so much that they wish his death?  Note also that the religious authorities desired as well that Jesus not just die, but that he be tortured to death.  They want him to suffer as much as possible and then they later even go so far as to let him know how much they are enjoying it!  We know this because of the comments they made (in the Scriptures) as they passed by the cross.  They accomplish their purpose primarily by means of spreading calumny, detraction and slander against Jesus in order to destroy him with their words and deeds, whether what they say be true or untrue.        

         Jesus’ cross was placed right outside the main city gate on the busiest few days of the year—Passover.  Throngs of religious pilgrims passed by and saw Jesus, nailed to a cross and completely naked.  All that many of these pilgrims knew was what had been written about him and placed over his head, that he had claimed to be their king.  Many hurled insults on him and spat on him as they passed.  This was exactly what the authorities desired.  Jesus was slandered and calumniated: deliberate untruths were used to put him to death, and those who did this to Jesus enjoyed every minute of their victory.        

         To slander someone is to make false statements about them for the express purpose of damaging their reputation.  To calumniate another is to deliberately fabricate false statements about them in order to damage them as much as possible.  Detraction refers to spreading stories about someone that are true, but are damaging and should not be revealed.  All of these sins are in the same category as murder, for they can destroy someone just as surely as killing them, and often the damage cannot be undone.  These are grave sins! 

         Most of us have had the experience of being spoken ill of by others, or conversely, being the ones who have hurt the reputation of another by our words and actions. Those who do these things often feel enjoyment when they hurt us.  If you have ever been on the receiving end of this kind of treatment, know that your Savior has also been treated like this.  In going through an experience of being slandered, calumniated or detracted, we receive an insight as to what Christ has gone through for love of us.

 

       Lord, teach us to be careful about hurting the reputation of someone else, whether they deserve it or not, knowing that whatever we say about others falsely or by being deliberately hurtful is the same as if we were doing it to you.  Amen.

                                                                               Father Gary

[Salvation]

Reflections from Scott Hahn

Darkness at Noon: Scott Hahn Reflects on Passion Sunday

Posted by Dr. Scott Hahn on 03.28.15 |

Crowned with thorns, our Lord is lifted up on the cross, where He dies as “King of the Jews.” Notice how many times He is called “king” in today’s Gospel - mostly in scorn and mockery.

As we hear the long accounts of His passion, at every turn we must remind ourselves - He suffered this cruel and unusual violence, for us.

He is the Suffering Servant foretold by Isaiah in today’s First Reading. He reenacts the agony described in today’s Psalm, and even dies with the first words of that Psalm on His lips (see Psalm 22:1).

Listen carefully for the echoes of this Psalm throughout today’s Gospel - as Jesus is beaten, His hands and feet are pierced; as His enemies gamble for His clothes, wagging their heads, mocking His faith in God’s love, His faith that God will deliver Him.

Are we that much different from our Lord’s tormenters? Often, don’t we deny that He is king, refusing to obey His only commands that we love Him and one another? Don’t we render Him mock tribute, pay Him lip-service with our half-hearted devotions?

In the dark noon of Calvary, the veil in Jerusalem’s temple was torn. It was a sign that by His death Jesus destroyed forever the barrier separating us from the presence of God.

He was God and yet humbled himself to come among us, we’re reminded in today’s Epistle. And despite our repeated failures, our frailty, Jesus still humbles himself to come to us, offering us His body and blood in the Eucharist.

His enemies never understood: His kingship isn’t of this world (see John 18:36). He wants to write His law, His rule of life on our hearts and minds.

As we enter Holy Week, let us once more resolve to give Him dominion in our lives. Let us take up the cross He gives to us - and confess with all our hearts, minds, and strength, that truly this is the Son of God.

[Salvation]

A Week Made Holy

 

With the celebration of Passion (Palm) Sunday this weekend we begin the holiest week of the Church liturgical year.  It's a week of great drama and a time when the liturgy speaks powerfully to us through symbol, word, and sacramental sign.  If there was ever a time of year for the Church to mix theatrical drama with dignified liturgy this is the time. 

The ancient rites of this coming week begin with Hosanna's but turn rather quickly to cries for Jesus' death and crucifixion as we hear in the reading of the Passion according to Mark 14: 1 - 15: 47. What made the adoring crowds who welcomed Jesus as king turn so quickly against him?  Well, as the drama unfolds we see that Jesus' arrest, false charges, presentation before the Roman power in Pontius Pilate, and eventual tortuous crucifixion was done by an entirely different group, at night undercover lest the adoring crowds riot.  At some point as the Gospels imply, Jesus caught the attention of the Roman occupiers but it was the Jewish leaders who presented Jesus for elimination for they could not impose a death penalty.

So, it begs the age old question who was responsible for Jesus' death?  Well, history and careful biblical study has confirmed that the Jewish people as a whole cannot be blamed for Jesus' death.  Sadly, though, the Jews have been targeted for centuries yet the official stand of the Church is that they are not of fault. The Jews are our brothers and sisters of the Covenant.

So who did?  The simplest answer I've heard is that it was Pontius Pilate and a handful of corrupt Jewish leaders who were directly responsible.  The mass crowds who followed Jesus were powerless and to prevent their uprising, these corrupt officials were stealth about their plot.  Yet, all was in the mysterious plan of God and Jesus' absolute obedience to his Father's will is the rest of the story we know well. Only God could have made the terror of the cross transform to become the sign of salvation - thus we have "Good" Friday.

So, as we begin this holiest of weeks it is good that we enter these timeless events through prayer, word, reflection, sacrifice and participation: the Lord's triumphant entry to Jerusalem, his Passover Supper, his passion, death, burial and concluding with the glorious and mysterious resurrection and the 50 days of the Easter season.  Plan on attending all of the Holy Week liturgies for they are not disjointed from each other; it is one grand and impressive event beginning with our remembrance this weekend. 

May the Lord of glory and mercy guide our hearts and lives. 

Phil 2: 6-11

 

Christ Jesus, though he was in the form of God,
did not regard equality with God
something to be grasped.
Rather, he emptied himself,
taking the form of a slave,
coming in human likeness;
and found human in appearance,
he humbled himself,
becoming obedient to the point of death,
even death on a cross.
Because of this, God greatly exalted him
and bestowed on him the name
which is above every name,
that at the name of Jesus
every knee should bend,
of those in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
and every tongue confess that
Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.

[Salvation]

Insight Scoop

Palm Sunday: Glory flows from the obedience of selfless love

"Crucified Christ with Saint John the Evangelist" by Fra Angelico (1410-52) [WikiArt.org]

Palm Sunday: Glory flows from the obedience of selfless love | Carl E. Olson

A Scriptural Reflection on the Readings for March 29, 2015 | Palm Sunday of the Lord's Passion

Readings:
• Mk 11:1-10 or Jn 12:12-16
• Psa 22:8-9, 17-18, 19-20, 23-24
• Phil 2:6-11
• Mk 14:1—15:47

The readings for Palm Sunday, or Passion Sunday, are dramatic and demanding. They are excruciating in their raw depictions of violence and suffering. They also, as in the case of the great Christological hymn in St. Paul’s letter to the Philippians, are marked by exultation in the glory streaming forth from the pain and sacrifice of the Suffering Servant. Glory comes not from the power to suppress and enslave, but from the freely chosen obedience of selfless love.

St. Mark’s account of the Passion is terse and vivid; it is replete with unsparing descriptions of sort of sin, viciousness, and evil. “The behavior of men in the Passion account,” noted Fr. Hans Urs von Balthasar, “is portrayed with a realism bordering on gruesomeness. Any and all sins are committed against God himself in the person of Jesus.” And that inescapable fact, of course, is true today, for us.

The bloody drama of what happened two thousand years ago in Jerusalem is not safely stored in the basement of history, but confronts us in the course of our ordinary, daily lives. For we, too, have sinned. We also have been tempted and have failed. And we, at the foot of the Cross, are invited to admit our part in the death of Jesus Christ and to confess his name, his identity, his place in history and in our lives.

St. Mark’s account is also a marvel of literary economy and theological implication. Here I will just highlight some statements made within it, with the invitation to contemplate, for a few moments, the love, humility, suffering, and glory of the Son of God.

“Amen, I say to you, wherever the gospel is proclaimed to the whole world, what she has done will be told in memory of her.” The woman with the alabaster jar of perfumed oil is not named, but she is remembered. More than remembered, she is redeemed. More than redeemed, she becomes, through Jesus’ declaration, a sign of redemption. Why? Because she emptied herself of all she had to express her love for—and faith in—the One who emptied himself and took the form of a slave on her behalf. She did what she could. Will I? Will you?

“Amen, I say to you, one of you will betray me, one who is eating with me.” Judas walked and lived with Jesus for three years. And then he betrayed his apparent master. Yet Jesus was patient; he gave Judas every chance to come to his senses and repent. His love for the sinner endured the proximity of the sin, even while his respect for man’s free will allowed the damnation freely chosen.

“This is my blood of the covenant, which will be shed for many.” Fully aware of his approaching death, the God-man made clear he was freely giving his life and establishing a new and everlasting covenant between God and mankind. This “stream of gladness”, as St. Clement of Alexandria called it, is the Eucharist—not a symbol, but the true body, blood, soul, and divinity of the Savior.

“Amen, I say to you, this very night before the cock crows twice you will deny me three times.” How have I denied Christ in the dark hours of my life? When have I chosen the acceptance of strangers over being identified as a follower of Christ? Why?

When asked, “Are you the Christ, the son of the Blessed One?”, Jesus answered: “I am; and ‘you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of the Power and coming with the clouds of heaven.’” These are either the words of a lunatic who has lost touch with reality, or words from the Lord of reality. There is no alternative. Pilate, gazing into the eyes of the living God, turned away.

“Truly this man was the Son of God!” The Roman centurion—surely a witness of many gruesome executions—recognized deity in death. Gazing into the eyes of the dying God, he did not turn away.

[Salvation]

Regnum Christi

The Messiah Finally Reveals Himself

U. S. A. | SPIRITUAL LIFE | SPIRITUALITY

By Father James Swanson, LC

Mark 11:1 – 10

When they drew near to Jerusalem, to Bethphage and Bethany at the Mount of Olives, he sent two of his disciples and said to them, "Go into the village opposite you, and immediately on entering it, you will find a colt tethered on which no one has ever sat. Untie it and bring it here. If anyone should say to you, ´Why are you doing this?´ reply, ´The Master has need of it and will send it back here at once.´" So they went off and found a colt tethered at a gate outside on the street, and they untied it. Some of the bystanders said to them, "What are you doing, untying the colt?" They answered them just as Jesus had told them to, and they permitted them to do it. So they brought the colt to Jesus and put their cloaks over it. And he sat on it. Many people spread their cloaks on the road, and others spread leafy branches that they had cut from the fields. Those preceding him as well as those following kept crying out:

"Hosanna!

Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!

Blessed is the kingdom of our father David that is to come!

Hosanna in the highest!"

Introductory Prayer: Lord Jesus, I wish to accompany you closely on the road to Calvary. If I were to contemplate you more often as you hang scourged and bloody upon the cross, I’m certain I would be able to rest in your love and base my actions on that one truth. I know that you have loved me with an eternal love: you have proven it there on the wood of the cross. So I long to respond with gratitude, peace and the firm determination to spread your love to everyone.

Petition: Lord, Jesus, grant me the grace to proclaim you as Messiah and Savior.

1. A Different Kind of Messiah: Up until now, Jesus has never publicly accepted the title of Messiah. He had confirmed privately to his apostles that he is the Messiah, but he had commanded them to tell no one. When people had called him the Messiah, he had never accepted the title and most often tried to get away from them as quickly as possible. He had reasoned that the Jews don’t understand what the Messiah is really about. Knowing the Messiah is to be a great descendent of King David, they expect the Messiah to appear, raise an army and lead an uprising against the Romans that will drive them from the country and re-establish David’s kingdom. Several times we read of Jesus having to slip away because the people intend to make him king. He is not going to be what they expect and he cannot let their expectations get in the way of his mission.

2. A Suffering, Not a Political, Messiah: His entry into Jerusalem is exactly what the prophet predicted for the Messiah. He enters riding a donkey, for the Hebrews the traditional mount of royalty. Another thing that was supposed to happen when the Messiah entered Jerusalem, was that boys were supposed to be the first to begin to shout, “Hosanna, son of David.” This is exactly what happens. People were supposed to throw down branches and cloaks to pave his way into Jerusalem and this happens too. The Pharisees see all this and complain to him because they see that it is a fulfillment of the prophecy. They want him to tell people he is not the Messiah. Jesus refuses to do so. He will be the Messiah that was prophesied – the Suffering Servant of Yahweh. God can fulfill our deepest desires and needs in a way we least expect. Can I read the events in my life as his answer to my prayers?

3. The Messiah Rejected by the Experts: The chief priests, scribes and Pharisees are angry. They have already decided they don’t want to accept Jesus as the Messiah. Why do they wish to reject him? Is it because he doesn’t show the signs that the Messiah should show? No, he has fulfilled all the prophecies. Instead, they see that Jesus as Messiah will threaten their social and political positions. Jesus will be more important than they. They don’t want that to happen. They don’t want to lose power. In the end they allow themselves to be convinced that he cannot be the Messiah. Rather than consider all the evidence in his favor, they reject him because they don’t want a Messiah like that. Is there any way in which I, in my own life, reject something that God wishes of me or permits me to suffer because I don’t want God acting in that way in my life?

Conversation with Christ: Jesus, fill my heart with a love that knows no limits, the love that drew you from heaven to die on the cross for me. Fill also the hearts of all those who feel threatened by the modern Pharisees who reject you and want to erase your name from the world, so that they will witness bravely to you and to your sacrifice for us.

Resolution: Today, with the courage of my conviction that Jesus is the savior of the world, I will proclaim in some way that he is my Lord and God, especially through charity towards everyone I meet.