Passion Sunday / Palm Sunday (Year C) - 10 April
10th April 2022
Passion Sunday / Palm Sunday (Year C) - 10 April
A short reflection on today's gospel reading by the Venerable Archbishop Fulton J Sheen:
"What is the extra ingredient in suffering - which when absent prompts a curse and when present becomes a joy?
"You must unite your sufferings and sorrows with Christ and see your Calvary as coming from the Hand of God. Our Lord saw the Cup of His Passion as given to Him, not by Judas or Pilate or Caiphas or the people but by His Father: 'Shall I not drink the Cup My Father Himself has appointed for Me?' Pain without Christ is suffering; pain with Christ is sacrifice.
"It is hard for us to see in the accidents and trials of life, in sickness, in bereavement, in financial loss, in cancerous bodies and leprous limbs, any Divine Purpose. That is why Our Blessed Lord had to take suffering upon Himself, in order to show us that it is the Father’s Cup.
“'It is the Lord that speaks...I, the Fashioner of darkness, the Creator of light, I the Maker of peace, the Author of calamity. I, the Lord, am the Doer of all this.' (Isaiah 45:7)
"Every tear, disappointment and grieved heart is a blank cheque. If we write our name on it, it is worthless. If we sign it with Christ’s Name, it is infinite in its value. In prosperity, Christ gives you His gifts; in suffering with faith, He gives you Himself.
"Never be discouraged. You do not have the power to relieve yourself of sorrow or grief or pain. But Our Lord did on the Cross. He could have turned the crown of thorns into a garland of rosebuds, and the nails into sceptres, and the tattered rags of His flesh into the robe of coronation. He was tempted to shorten His agony, as those at the foot of the Cross taunted: 'He saved others; let Him save Himself if He is the Christ of God, the Chosen One.' (Luke 23:35)
"But He did not come down. It is human to come down, but it is divine to hang there. The priest, once he begins the Mass, which is the Memorial of Calvary, is not permitted to interrupt it. He must finish it, as Our Lord finished His Redemption on the Cross. Your race is nearly run. Courage! Hope! Joy! Remember that He, Who has passed through Calvary and Gethsemane, is at your side, cheering you to victory." (Our Grounds for Hope)
Passion Sunday Prayer
Lord, give us the grace and the courage to follow You this Holy Week, from death to resurrection, from darkness to fullness of light. We need You, O Christ our Saviour. Hosanna! Amen! 🙏💖💐
Prayer After Communion by St Thomas Aquinas
Sweetest Jesus, Body and Blood most holy, be the delight and pleasure of my soul, my strength and salvation in all temptations, my joy and peace in every trial, my light and guide in every word and deed, and my final protection in death. Amen. 💖🙏
Prayer of Repentance
I beseech Thee, O Most Blessed Trinity, to shed the fire of Thy merciful love upon this most frigid heart, to let shine upon this most darkened mind, the light of the Son, in Whom alone is every grace and truth. Have pity on me, most Merciful God, and regard not my sins and offences, but in Thy mercy forgive me yet again, and grant me the graces to serve Thee now in fidelity and truth. Amen. 💖🙏💐