Palm Sunday of the Lord’s Passion (B)
Dear brothers and sisters,
As we enter into this holiest of weeks, we hear the great cry of “Hosanna” (Mark 11:9, 10)! Not only do we hear it, but we shout it ourselves. Though the Gloria and the Creed are sometimes omitted from the offering of the Holy Mass, the exclamation of “Hosanna!” is never omitted.
This word itself is not unknown to us; we sing or say it, as we said, every time we participate in the Holy Mass, but today “Hosanna!” takes on a special significance. Yet, what is this word? What does it mean and why we still shout it today?
“Hosanna” is a combination of two Hebrew words: hosa, meaning “save”, and na, meaning “now” or “please.” It began not as a command but a plea, a cry for salvation. It is not the imploring of salvation far off in some distant future, but the imploring of salvation immediately, right now. Today, we join the crowd in their shout of “Hosanna!” Save us, Lord, now! Save us, Lord, please!
The use of this word is recorded in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and John (cf. Matthew 21:9; Mark 11:9-10; and John 12:13). It is found in the Old Testament only in verse 25 of Psalm 118, a hymn of thanksgiving, where our English translation renders it, “Lord, grant salvation! Lord, grant good fortune,” a definite plea for help (Psalm 118:25)! Curiously, though, it very quickly took on a rather different meaning and became a shout of praise, a cry of jubilation and hope. In the very next verse, the Psalmist sang of the pilgrim entering the gates of the Temple, “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord,” a definite cry of gladness (Psalm 118:26).
With the shouting of these two verses by the crowds as Jesus rode into the royal city,
…we find an expression of the complex emotions of the pilgrims accompanying Jesus and of his disciples: joyful praise of God at the moment of the processional entry, hope that the hour of the Messiah, and at the same time a prayer that the Davidic kingship and hence God’s kingship over Israel would be reestablished.[1]
Because of this change in meaning over the course of time, Saint Augustine called the word “rather a state of mind than having any positive significance; just as in our own tongue we have what are called interjections, as when in our grief we say, ‘Alas!’ Or in our joy, ‘Ha!’ Or in our admiration, O how fine!’”[2] In short, it became an exclamation with multiple meanings, encompassing both a cry for deliverance and an expression of gladness.
We take up these same two verses at every Mass to raise of plea for salvation, for help, and to express the confident hope that our help and salvation has already come and is present among us in Jesus Christ, present in the Eucharist. It is as if every day were Palm Sunday.
Though at first filled with a fervent excitement at Jesus’ arrival, the crowd soon changed their opinion of him when it became clear he came not as a conquering king, but as a humble servant of love. They did not recognize him for whom they longed; they did not know him in whom they already rejoiced.
Just as Christ Jesus entered into the city of Jerusalem, so he wishes to enter into each one of our hearts.
In his hour, Jesus reveals that he is a Messiah who becomes weak because of love.
He does not eliminate frailty and weakness, but makes them the site of the greatest revelation of his love.
For all of us, inconstant and unable to let ourselves be loved in this way, Jesus enters Jerusalem, not turning back, just asking us to look up to see how far goes the love of the King who chose peace.[3]
In this Holy Week, let us welcome the Messiah into our hearts. May we look and see what love looks like. And may we both cry out for salvation and shout for joy, “Hosanna to the Son of David” (Matthew21:9). Amen.
[1] Joseph Ratzinger / Pope Benedict XVI, Jesus of Nazareth: Holy Week: From the Entrance into Jerusalem to the Resurrection (San Francisco: Ignatius Press, 2011), 7.
[2] Saint Augustine of Hippo, Tractates on the Gospel of John, 51.2.
[3] Pierbattista Cardinal Pizzaballa, Meditation, 24 March 2024.
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