CLICK HERE for the Audio recording of the Readings of
April 5th, 2020. Palm Sunday of the Lord's Passion
CLICK HERE for the Readings of April 5th, 2020. Palm Sunday of the Lord's Passion
SELECT HERE to print or view the Paim Sunday program so you can follow along during the Saint Boniface Mass.
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April 5th, 2020. Palm Sunday of the Lord's Passion
Dr. Anthony Fauci ? Who of us does not know that name by now? His name is now kind of a household name: short diminutive man from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID). He is ‘the expert’. He is the focus of every press briefing. People look and listen to his every word and detail with full attention. The other day he went missing for a couple of briefings and it was the buzz of the news. Is he sick? Did he get it?
Dr Fauci represents more than himself. He stands in for all the doctors, nurses, healthcare workers, clinicians, EMT. These people and professionals, who often times are invisible or we take for granted, dedicate their lives workin to keep us safe and healthy. So... yes when he speaks, we listen.
Today, Palm Sunday, as Holy week begins, what is the focus of our full attention? Who do we listen to? Holy week, for us as Christians, is the most important week in the Christian calendar. The focus of our full attention is 'Jesus Christ'. We watch what he does. We watch and listen to his words. We watch the events of the last week of His life: His entry into Jerusalem, the last supper and washing of the feet, His passion, suffering and death of the Cross. We wait for His Resurrection and, as we do all this, we ask: what does this all teach us, especially at these 'trying times'. Jesus Christ is our focus!
How many of us in this moment are so ‘hungry’ for somebody to tell us 'something’? Somebody to tell me what to do? Somebody to ‘lift me up’? Somebody to give me some courage? These are our honest and fervent questions; can Jesus say ‘something’? The Answer is ‘yes’ if we are willing to listen (to ‘watch and pray’). God is not and never silent to us.
In the First reading, the prophet Isaiah identifies himself as a servant, the best in the community. This servant is sent of a mission. Isaiah is speaking to a community in crisis of a faith. This servant has been given the gift of speech, to speak to the weary, a word that will rouse them. His ears and heart will not miss anything. He will suffer with those who suffer. He will be a loser. He will speak against exploitation of the poor and for this be tortured. Yet he is confident that he will complete the mission. He knows that ignominy and shame do not have the last word.
If this suffering servant foretold the coming Jesus (which it did), then Jesus is who we want to be close to now. God who is dedicated to us. God who is with us 'all the way'. There is more than an expert here!
Saint Paul in the Letter to the Philippians says,
“Christ Jesus, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God something to be grasped. Rather, he emptied himself, taking the form of a slave” (Phillipians 2: 6-7),
meaning he disregards every honor and privilege as Son of God, to be one with us, even becoming a slave. A God, who is willing to do this, is a God we want by our side. He must be our focus.
What happens when we turn our attention or focus to ‘other things’: the loud dark noises of emptiness or our human skills, competency and formulas? Watch what happens in the Gospel.
A little detail: Matthew’s Gospel is the only Passion narrative where Jesus is muted. He is silenced. The Focus and attention is on the drama around him. When God is pulled out of the equation, what happens? Right from the start we hear conspiracy: Judas Iscariot went to the chief priests and said, “What are you willing to give me if I hand him over to you?” They paid him thirty pieces of silver.” (Matthew 26: 14-15)
and then it goes downhill from this point on: betrayal, arrest, violence, false accusation, mockery, abuse, ridicule, innocent suffering, and death. When God is muted or silenced, we risk being ‘prey’ to ourselves. We become a ‘field of blood’.
This Palm Sunday we are given the model of a Self emptying savior. He is the one we need. A God who is with us, to lead us through our every trial. And we know how the story ends: The victory of the Resurrection. This is our true hope.
Does this mean that we surrender or do nothing and wait for our fate? No. We are also challenged to imitate this self emptying style of Jesus in the way we live...to give hope to others in the way we reach out, we console, we act, we care and live for one another...But always in the mind of Christ.
The following Gospel text is what Pope Francis used in moment of his
Prayer: Urbis et Orbi, ("To the City and to the World”)
On that day, as evening drew on, he said to them, “Let us cross to the other side."
Leaving the crowd, they took him with them in the boat just as he was. And other boats were with him.
A violent squall came up and waves were breaking over the boat, so that it was already filling up. Jesus was in the stern, asleep on a cushion.
They woke him and said to him, “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?” He woke up, rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Quiet! Be still!”
The wind ceased and there was great calm. Then he asked them, “Why are you terrified? Do you not yet have faith?”
They were filled with great awe and said to one another, “Who then is this whom even wind and sea obey?”
Lord, teach us to put our faith and trust in you.
Have a Blessed Palm Sunday,
Fr. Anthony
Dear Friends,
In an effort to continue the practice of our faith in these trying times due to the restrictions around the coronavirus, we invite you to join us online for Palm Sunday and Holy Week Masses.
Palm Sunday and Holy Week Mass Schedule:
April 5: Palm Sunday of the Passion of the Lord:
WATCH HERE: 8:00AM Saint Boniface with Fr. Anthony as the celebrant.
April 9: Holy Thursday of the Lord’s Supper:
WATCH HERE: 7:00PM Saint Boniface with Fr. Anthony as the celebrant.
April 10: Good Friday of the Lord's Passion:
WATCH HERE: 7:00PM Saint Boniface with Fr. Anthony as the celebrant.
April 11: Holy Saturday, Easter Vigil of the Holy Night :
WATCH LIVE: 3:00PM Rome with Pope Francis as the celebrant.
WATCH HERE: 7:30PM Saint Boniface with Fr. Anthony as the celebrant.
April 12: Easter Sunday of the Resurrection of the Lord:
WATCH LIVE: 5:00AM Rome with Pope Francis as the celebrant.
WATCH LIVE: 10:00AM Diocese of Worcester with Bishop Robert McManus as the celebrant.
WATCH HERE: 12:30PM Los Angeles with Bishop Robert Barron, Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, as the celebrant.
VIEW HERE Saint Boniface's YouTube channel.