Every Knee Should Bend, Every Tongue Confess: Reflections on the Readings for Palm Sunday of the Lord’s Passion

Luke 19:28-40
Isaiah 50:4-7
Psalm 22
Philippians 2:6-11
Luke 22:14-23:56

“The Book of Exodus ordered that in this month [Nisan] the Paschal Lamb was to be selected, and four days later was to be taken to the place where it was to be sacrificed. On Palm Sunday, the Lamb was chosen by popular acclaim in Jerusalem; on Good Friday He was sacrificed.” (Fulton Sheen, Life of Christ.)

The Mass this week begins with the procession with the palms and a gospel reading pronouncing the exuberant entrance of Jesus into Jerusalem. His time had come. The prophecy of Zechariah and referred to in Matthew’s gospel (Matthew 21:5) will be fulfilled: “Behold: your king is coming to you, a just savior is he, Humble, and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.” (Zechariah 9:9) The Lamb of God was entering Jerusalem to fulfill His mission, in total obedience to the Father.

“... as he was approaching the slope of the Mount of Olives, the whole multitude of his disciples began to praise God aloud with joy for all the mighty deeds they had seen.
They proclaimed: ‘Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord.’” The raucous crowd incited the ire of the pharisees who demanded Jesus to rebuke His disciples, to which Jesus replied, "I tell you, if they keep silent, the stones will cry out!"

Note that the crowd here is described as Jesus’ disciples. People wonder how many of these were also in the crowd calling for His crucifixion. Considering that after His arrest, most of them scattered, I speculate that few, if any cried out for His death. The gospels imply that it was a separate rowdy crowd, led by Judas, who were there at His arrest. In John’s gospel, the ones calling for His death were led by the chief priests and the guards.

In the first reading Isaiah also includes a prophecy fulfillment describing the servant who willingly submits to the abuse heaped upon him, “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.”

However, the real message is there for all of us. “The Lord GOD is my help,
therefore I am not disgraced.” Those who speak the word of the Lord will be subject to ridicule and derision. This also makes one think of Jesus’ words in the gospel of Matthew: “And you will be hated by all for my name’s sake. But he who endures to the end will be saved.” (Mt 10:22)

The responsorial psalm includes those words by which people try to claim Jesus was in despair on the Cross: “My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?” Jesus was not in despair; He had willingly given Himself to be sacrificed. The Jewish people knew psalm 22. Jesus was barely able to breathe, so He could only get those few words out, but the Jews were familiar with that psalm and knew that it included descriptive phrases that related to what they were seeing: “They have pierced my hands and my feet; I can count all my bones. They divide my garments among them, and for my vesture they cast lots.”

They would also know the other words of the psalm: “For he has not spurned or disdained the misery of this poor wretch, Did not turn away from me, but heard me when I cried out.” They might, afterwards, even connect the Cross to the prophecy in this psalm: “All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the LORD; ... The generation to come will be told of the Lord, that they may proclaim to a people yet unborn the deliverance you have brought.”

Every aspect of the Roman torture of crucifixion is designed to be humiliating as well as extremely painful. But Jesus was humble. St. Paul mentions this when he notes that Jesus, by taking on human likeness, became humble as would be a slave. Despite His Divinity, He never performed miracles on His own behalf. They were all to testify to His Divinity and for the benefit of others, including sinners that we might learn from Him.

St. Paul talks of the humiliation by noting “he humbled himself, becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.” Even to the Romans crucifixion was tantamount to “cruel and unusual punishment,” and so was forbidden to be imposed on Roman citizens. This is why Paul was beheaded, rather than crucified (as Peter and some of the other Apostles were) because he was a Roman citizen. And it is because of this obedience to the extreme that “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.” Sadly, much of that reverence to Jesus’ name and His presence in the Eucharist is lacking these days.

The selection from Luke’s account of the Lord's Passion covers the events of the Last Supper through Jesus’ death on the Cross, including the initiation of the Eucharist. While it doesn’t describe the washing of the feet of the Apostles, Jesus admonishes them to be servants to each other. Jesus also points out that His betrayer is there with them, but Luke doesn’t identify Judas at this point.

Peter is singled out on two occasions and Jesus’ words are interconnected. First, He warns Peter that the devil has targeted them: “Simon, Simon, behold Satan has demanded to sift all of you like wheat.” He indicates Peter’s failure even before the prediction of Peter’s denial, “once you have turned back, you must strengthen your brothers.” This also appears to be a declaration of Peter’s leadership as the responsibility to strengthen the others is placed on Peter’s shoulders.

Then comes the prediction of Peter’s denial in response to Peter’s bold words that he would go to prison and die for Jesus. This denial would affect Peter greatly, but he would repent and with that still be left to lead the others (see John 21:15-19).

They go out to the Garden of Gethsemane and Jesus, taking Peter, James, and John (the sons of Zebedee) separates from the rest and, going a little further than His three companions, begins to pray. He asks the Father if there was another way to accomplish His mission but ends with total obedience, “still, not my will but yours be done." This was not an unanswered prayer as some might think as Luke notes “to strengthen him an angel from heaven appeared to him.”

Next we see Judas the betrayer approach with an armed mob to arrest Him. “The greatest betrayers are those who have been cradled in the sacred associations of Christ and His Church.” (Sheen, Life of Christ) We see that even today. “We might not like it, but the fact is that even individual men of the Church can deceive, and they do it with shrewdness, dressed in the appropriate clerical garb.” (Fr. Livio Fanzaga, The Deceiver.)

Next comes the denial of Jesus by Peter. At the crowing of the cock, following Peter’s third denial, Peter sees Jesus looking at him knowingly, and runs away weeping.

Two trials follow, one by the Sanhedrin and later Herod, the other by Pilate. The charges of the two trials differ based on who was doing the judging. The Sanhedrin (the council) and Herod were accusing Jesus of blasphemy, by which He should be put to death. But that charge would not hold water with Pilate, so for him they focused on the charge of treason and inciting revolt. Pilate could not find any guilt in Him and wanted to release Him but the crowds, incited by and led by the chief priests and guards, demanded He be crucified. Fearing a riot, Pilate relented and gave Him over to be crucified. Throughout this ordeal, Jesus suffered many humiliations by both the Romans and the Jews, mainly Herod, the chief priests, and the scribes, including verbal abuse, scourging, the Crown of Thorns, and so on.

The Sanhedrin ask Jesus pointedly if He is the Son of God. In Luke’s telling Jesus’ answer is, “you say that I am." The Gospel of Mark is more emphatic as he notes Jesus’ answer to be “I AM!” (Mark 14:62) Recall God’s interchange with Moses at the burning bush, “I AM who AM. Tell them I AM sent you to them.”

Several other events are described by Luke, some of them in fulfillment of prophecies (His burial, for example). There are two that I will mention here. First, Luke notes that: “Above him there was an inscription that read, ‘This is the King of the Jews.’" The Jews objected to this but Pilate, who just recently had Truth incarnate in front of him and questioned, “What is truth?” held firm and would not change, telling them, “What I have written, I have written.” (John 19:22)

The other significant event in Luke’s gospel is often referred to as “The Good Thief,” known as St. Dismas. Some try to claim that this incident proves the “faith alone” interpretation of Christianity. And while the declaration of faith is certainly critical the Good Thief’s actions are also important. First he took the action to rebuke the other thief. Then, by asking Jesus to “remember me when you come into your kingdom," he was acknowledging (repenting) his sin and asking for mercy. And as we know, when repentance is sincere, mercy will follow.

Following His last breath His innocence was finally recognized by the centurion (who glorified God) and the crowd who dispersed, beating their breasts.

St. John’s telling of the Passion will be read on Good Friday. It is worthwhile to take the time this week to read all of the Passion narratives and reflect on the focus and intersections of each so as to better welcome Jesus at His Resurrection on Easter.