|
|
|
Homilies for Palm Sunday St. Joseph Parish, Detroit
First Homily The Entrance of the King to Jerusalem: David and Jesus
Perhaps a thousand years before this day, when Jesus entered Jerusalem in triumph, David also processed around Israel in triumph. The women of the towns came out to greet him, for he brought the head of Goliath to Jerusalem. They sang, “Saul has slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands.”[1] And in the midst of the glory and praise, right then King Saul had become possessed with an evil spirit, whose seed had been planted in a previous disobedience he perpetrated against God,[2] and foreshadowed by an oppressive melancholy.[3] And so evil entered in when goodness shone most brightly, and the downfall of David the victor was plotted. Jesus Christ now enters into Jerusalem, and we praise him. Yet we are the ones who have crucified our Lord, deceived by evil spirits, by countless passions, and by the wicked wisdom of the world. Hence after the glorious entrance, we will read in a few moments the narration of the Passion and death of our Lord. As we proceed now, let us do so proclaiming Jesus the Messiah with true hearts and repentant sentiments, being lowly before God and at once rejoicing in the Mercy he showed us by spilling his own blood for our salvation. The Freedom of Jesus Christ
Come, let us adore Christ, the Son of God, who redeemed us by his blood. Jesus says, “The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life—only to take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down freely. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father.”[4] And in this way the Lord presents himself, precisely in his sacrifice on the Cross, as the most free of all men. He is so free, that he has never, never for an instance, known the slavery to sin. And he wants us to be free, set free by the truth, with the freedom of the sons of God. He gives us the power to be free, if only we would collaborate with his grace. No, Jesus was no “victim,” and the narration of the passion is no “tragedy.” It is a victory. There are many false versions of freedom in the world today. One version of freedom states that you are free to do whatever you want whenever you want. Another says that no law can ever subject you, except when you limit another’s freedom. Some claim that you are only as free as the government of your society says you are. There are superficial souls who say they are free because they are not owned as a slave. Freedom is none of these things. Freedom is laying down your life out of love for another. Love is what defines freedom, and choice is only an accident, albeit a necessary accident, of that love. Love God, love your neighbor, and you will be free. Jesus is the victor who sets us free. He is the flood that wipes out the sins of the world. He is the Joseph who feeds a starving nation. He is the Moses who leads us out of the slavery to sin to the promised Kingdom of Heaven. He is the David who slays the Goliath of our sins. He is the Suffering Servant of Isaiah, who freed us for his own sins. He is the voice of Jeremiah, reproaching us for loving sin. He is the Maccabees who fights to free us from the evil corruption which cleverly lures us from every side. For the entire Old Testament foretold him, who was the word, who redeemed us by his death, and conquered sin by his resurrection. Let this Holy Week, therefore, be a week of grace. Let’s put an end of sin and Satan in your life once and for all. Let’s not proclaim “Hosanna” and “Crucify him” with the same mouth, but instead, call upon the name of Jesus, invoking his Divine Mercy with infinite trust. Let us, finally, pray for one another, that we all be free from sin, and show our neighbor, even our enemy, the kindness of our spiritual support and intercession. Renouncing the false freedoms of the world, and bearing witness to the freedom Christ won for us, let us every day adore the Son of God, who spilled his blood out of love for sinful men. Amen. |