Palm Sunday Thoughts

Palm Sunday. A day where the jovial words of Hosannah and Alleluia give away to the devastating truth and harrowing account of the Passion of our Lord. The Gospel of Luke says today:

‘He withdrew from them, about a stones throw away, and knelt down and prayed, saying, “Father if you are willing, take this cup away from me, Nethertheless, let your will be done not mine.” Then an angel appeaed to him coming from heaven to give him strength. In his anguish he prayed even more earnestly, and his sweat fell to the ground like great drops of blood”

Hematohidrosis is a medical condition where individuals sweat blood. It is caused under extreme stress and is thought to be triggered by the fight or flight response. I cannot imagine the fear He knew. As he asked this very human request, he ended humbly with ‘let your will be done not mine’. Mind blowing and eye opening to the humility of Christ.

Today in the homily our priest explored the notion of obedience being the touchstone of humility, I cannot remember the letters he referred to which he was reading, but I remember this quote from St Francis de Sales:

“Love alone leads to perfection, but the three chief means for acquiring it are obedience, chastity, and poverty. Obedience is a consecration of the heart, chastity of the body, and poverty of all worldly goods to the Love and Service of God. These are the three members of the Spiritual Cross, and all three must be raised upon the fourth, which is humility.”

The humility of Christ on the Cross, as he was removed from physical pleasure, tortured. From love and affection, reviled. From possessions, stripped naked. He still until the end, commended his life into the hands of his Father in heaven.

We have a lot to think about, a lot to work on, a lot to live up to, to be humble, to allow our lives to be lived to the fullest through him. This week is a time to empty ourselves in humility, to make room, for his joyous love and mercy at Easter. Attend to the needs of others with small gestures, go without something important, confess and pray. None of these things cost money, yet all are of more value and more healing than anything money could buy.