“Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord”
Background:
The procession gospels of Mark and John offer material for a short homily and are in keeping with the event we celebrate on this Sunday of Holy Week. Jesus’ entrance into Jerusalem is not all that unlike the adulation some have shown for various people competing in primary elections.
Those who supported the losers will, more often than not, easily give their enthusiastic support to the winning party candidate.
Following almost immediately after the procession gospel, we will hear the story of how quickly the people, including the Lord’s own disciples, forget their “Hosannas” and instead deny or abandon Jesus or even get caught up in the fervor of “Crucify him. Obviously this quick change of heart, even among his own disciples, had an impact on the writers of the early Church.
Story:
Once upon a time, not so very long ago, Jenny was the most popular girl in the senior class at the local high school. As a result, many of the other girls wanted to be in her circle of friends, hoping that some of Jenny’s popularity (especially with the boys) would transfer to them.
Everywhere that Jenny went a crowd of girls and guys were not far behind. Jenny, who was popular not just because she was smart and pretty but also because she was very nice, was not even aware of the adulation she inspired. Along with the adulation, she also inspired jealously. A small group of girls, angered by all the attention Jenny received, started a vicious rumor that Jenny had cheated on a big test and that she had become involved with an older crowd of boys who were not very admirable.
As a result, the administration began an investigation of the cheating charges. Rumor upon rumor spread throughout the school about all kinds of bizarre things Jenny supposedly had done. Since the administration was pretty inept, it did not clear up the suspicions about Jenny until nearly the end of the year, by which time, Jenny had become an outcast with only one or two loyal friends.