Alone

Sunday of the Passion/ Palm Sunday, March 29, 2026: The Liturgy of the Palms: Matthew 21:1-11; Psalm 118:1-2, 19-29. The Liturgy of the Word: Psalm 31:9-16; Isaiah 50:4-9a; Philippians 2:5-11; Matthew 26:14- 27:66

The readings for today span many emotions, and place us in difficult places. After all, we know that sometimes we are cheering Jesus on the donkey, sometimes shouting, “crucify him”.

For Jesus, our reading from Matthew shows him at his most profoundly human. First he has a triumphant entry into Jerusalem. Then he is celebrating the Passover seder with his closest companions. When he goes to pray, his disciples fall asleep. And then Peter denies him. How profoundly alone he must have felt!

Sometimes I am comforted by the failures of the disciples. It reminds me how hard it can be to follow Jesus. But this year, reading it, I’m aware of how alone Jesus was. Even on the cross, Matthew tells us, the women from Galilee “who had provided for him” stand at a distance. He is taunted not just by the soldiers, but those who were crucified with him.

The week ahead is a hard week for Christians because it was a hard week for Jesus, and we try to follow him. For us, the questions might be about how we follow Jesus, how we place ourselves with the marginal against the powerful.Do we stand at a distance? Are we afraid of what might happen if we are too visible? This is the challenge of Holy Week.