Lent: Do Catholics need to abstain from meat on Fridays when it's a feast day? Many families display their palms in their homes by fastening them to crucifixes or religious works of art, while others follow the custom of weaving the palms into crosses. To dispose of palms respectfully, they may be either burned or buried, but they must never be discarded in the trash, Rolfes said.
Jack Zavada is a writer who covers the Bible, theology, and other Christianity topics. Updated January 09, The first celebration of Palm Sunday in the Christian church is uncertain.
A palm processional was recorded as early as the 4th century in Jerusalem, but the ceremony was not introduced into Western Christianity until the 9th century. Cite this Article Format. Zavada, Jack. Jesus' Entry into Jerusalem Mark Christian Symbols Illustrated Glossary. Is Holy Thursday a Day of Obligation? Your Privacy Rights. To change or withdraw your consent choices for LearnReligions. At any time, you can update your settings through the "EU Privacy" link at the bottom of any page.
Victorious armies or leaders returning from the battlefield or a long military campaign were welcomed by the populace jubilantly waving palm branches. On Palm Sunday, we still go out to meet Him, carry the blessed palms, joyfully sing out our hosanna and join in His triumphant entrance into Jerusalem. We realize, once again, that His triumph, His true victory, will come through the cross. We know, as Jesus did, how Holy Week will end. We know that joy will turn to sorrow and back to joy.
We know that through the horror of His suffering, followed by the glory of His resurrection, good will trump evil and life will trump death. Mary Magdalen, O. But such activity would not be possible until the fourth century when Constantine became emperor of the Roman Empire and ended all religious persecution.
Later in that century, a Spanish pilgrim named Eigera visited Jerusalem. In her diary, she recorded how Christians re-created the events of Holy Week. Then they marched together through the city gates while carrying olive or palm branches.
Our Palm Sunday processions are akin to what Eigera witnessed 17 centuries ago. The palms should be taken home where they will serve as a reminder of the victory of Christ be given which they celebrated in the procession.
It is not necessary that palm branches be used in the procession. According to the Directory on Popular Piety and the Liturgy :. The procession, commemorating Christ's messianic entry into Jerusalem, is joyous and popular in character. The faithful usually keep palm or olive branches, or other greenery which have been blessed on Palm Sunday in their homes or in their work places.
The faithful, however, should be instructed as to the meaning of this celebration so that they might grasp its significance. They should be opportunely reminded that the important thing is participation at the procession and not only the obtaining of palm or olive branches. Palms or olive branches should not be kept as amulets, or for therapeutic or magical reasons to dispel evil spirits or to prevent the damage these cause in the fields or in the homes, all of which can assume a certain superstitious guise.
Palms and olive branches are kept in the home as a witness to faith in Jesus Christ, the messianic king, and in his Paschal Victory. The use of an animal on which no one had yet sat is a further pointer to the right of kings. Most striking, though, are the Old Testament allusions that give a deeper meaning to the whole episode. For now let us note this: Jesus is indeed making a royal claim.
He wants his path and his action to be understood in terms of Old Testament promises that are fulfilled in his person. The spreading out of garments likewise belongs to the tradition of Israelite kingship cf. What the disciples do is a gesture of enthronement in the tradition of the Davidic kingship, and it points to the Messianic hope that grew out of the Davidic tradition.
They now spread their garments on the street along which Jesus passes. Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!
Blessed is the kingdom of our father David that is coming! Hosanna in the highest! Ps
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