THE PARADOX OF THE KING AND THE CROSS

Homily for Palm Sunday (Year A)

Fr. Ugochukwu Ugwoke, ISch

Matthew 21:1-11; Isaiah 50:4-7; Philippians 2:6-11; Matthew 26:14-27:66

Today is Palm Sunday, the beginning of the Holy Week. The liturgy of today is very vast. It begins with the triumphant entry of Christ into Jerusalem. Jesus enters not on a war horse, but on a donkey, fulfilling prophecy and redefining kingship. He is a King, but not according to worldly categories. His authority is expressed in humility, not domination. Already, the paradox is clear: divine kingship revealed in meekness.

This paradox deepens in the First Reading from Book of Isaiah. The Suffering Servant speaks: “I gave my back to those who beat me… I did not shield my face from buffets and spitting.” This is not passive resignation, but active obedience. The Servant listens, receives, and responds in fidelity. Suffering here is not meaningless; it is redemptive, embraced in trust in God. Our own suffering too becomes redemptive when we unite it with the suffering of Christ.

The Christological center of the liturgy is found in Letter to the Philippians. St Paul presents a profound theological hymn: Christ, “though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God something to be grasped.” Instead, He “emptied himself” (kenosis), taking the form of a slave and becoming obedient unto death, even death on a cross. Here lies the logic of salvation: descent precedes exaltation. Humiliation becomes the path to glorification. What do we need to empty ourselves of?

This theology of today’s liturgy reaches its dramatic climax in the Passion narrative. Jesus is betrayed, denied, mocked, scourged, and crucified. Yet, throughout, He remains sovereign not by resisting suffering, but by freely embracing it. The Cross is not an accident; it is a mission. In it, Christ reveals the depth of divine love: a love that does not save from a distance, but enters into human suffering to redeem it from within.

Palm Sunday, therefore, confronts us with a decisive question: Which Christ do we accept? The triumphant Messiah of our expectations, or the suffering Servant who calls us to conversion? It is easy to wave palms; it is harder to carry the cross. It is easy to praise Christ in moments of comfort and consolation; it is harder to remain with Him in moments of trial and hardship.

Liturgically, we stand at the threshold of the Paschal Mystery - Suffering, Death, and Resurrection of Christ. The Church invites us not merely to observe these events, but to enter into them. The procession with palms is not a reenactment; it is a participation. The Passion is not a distant history; it is a present reality made sacramentally accessible. Thus, Palm Sunday is not simply about Christ’s journey, it is about ours. To follow Christ is to embrace the same path: suffering, humility, obedience, self-gift, and ultimately, trust in the Father. The Cross is not the end; it is the way.

As we begin Holy Week, let us move beyond superficial acclaim to authentic discipleship. Let our “Hosanna” not be a passing emotion, but a committed surrender. For the King we welcome today is the same Lord who invites us to die with Him so that we may also rise with Him. Amen.