Daily Marriage Tip for April 13, 2014:
Hosanna to the King of Kings! The start of Holy Week – with its stark reading of Jesus’ Passion – is a great reminder to reexamine our hearts. Is Jesus the King of our marriage and our home? Pray to enter fully into Holy Week with your spouse and children.
Sc cripture Study Palm Sunday of the Lord’s Passion – Cycle A
Opening prayer
(Processional Gospel: Matthew 21:1-11) Is. 50:4-7 (Ps 22) Phil. 2:6-11 Matt. 26:14-27:66
Overview of the Gospel:
• The events related in this Sunday’s Processional Gospel reading takes place the Sunday before Holy Week. This 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, 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:
• The 1st Reading from the prophet Isaiah describes the Suffering Servant of the Lord and how he is faithful to his call. How are we called to imitate this servant in both attentiveness to God’s word, and in bearing our share in the hardships of spreading the Gospel?
• In the 2nd Reading, we hear St. Paul quote and early Christian hymn in praise of the divinity of Christ. How cognizant on a daily basis are we that Jesus Christ, Our Lord and Savior, is both fully man and fully God? What is the implication of each of these truths for our daily lives?
• In the Gospel, to what town has Jesus come? Why (Mt 23:27; Mark 10:32-33; Luke 13:33)?
• Jesus comes on a donkey rather than a stallion. What does this portray (Zech 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)?
• What difference does it make to you that Jesus is a gentle king, and not like the one described in Matthew 20:25? 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? Does Jesus’ humility “work” for you? Why or why not?
Catechism of the Catholic Church: §§ 557—560, 571—591, 595—618, 624—630
Closing Prayer
In all that 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