What a great start to Holy Week, a triumphal entry into Jerusalem. Crowds waving palms, throwing their coats before him and shouting Hosanna in the highest. The people were excited because this great teacher and miracle worker was here in Jerusalem and they were probably expecting some wondrous things to happen. The Gospels tell us that before he was arrested ,numerous people begged Jesus not to go to Jerusalem, to be “reasonable “ and to think of his own interests. Even his own family did the same, bringing his mother with them to try and dissuade him. If he had given in to that temptation, he would have sacrificed his vision and ideal to save himself. He would not be the bedrock of our hope as he is today. If he had not been faithful right to the end – to death on the cross – we would, indeed, feel forsaken by God.
So, having come to Jerusalem he is being watched very closely and with hostility by the Jewish authorities. We hear that Judas is planning to betray him but he continues with his mission. The Triduum begins on the Thursday evening with the Mass of the Lords Supper and the amazing institution of the Eucharist that is our foundational Sacrament right up to today. The awful cruelty of his arrest, scourging, crowning with thorns, unjust condemnation and barbaric crucifixion is almost unbearable. Yet, we now talk of the Triumph of the Cross and realise that this incredible act of sacrificial love redeemed us of our sins and gave us a heavenly home. The Resurrection on the Sunday turned the world upside down and for believers makes sense of the world.