Jesus makes his entry into Jerusalem as the Messiah upon a donkey, just as had been prophesied many centuries before. The people, also, acclaim him in clearly messianic fashion. The Pharisees knew these prophecies very well, but so also did the common people, and they were visibly overjoyed.
The triumph of Jesus is a simple affair, he makes do with a poor animal for a throne. “I don’t know about you; but I am not humiliated to acknowledge that in the Lord’s eyes I am a beast of burden: ‘I am like a donkey in your presence, but I am continually with you. You hold my right hand,’ you take me by the bridle" (St. Josemaría).
Jesus also wants to enter triumphantly into the lives of men today, riding upon a humble animal; he would like us to bear witness to him in the simplicity of our work done well, showing forth our cheerfulness, our serenity, and our sincere concern for others.
The story of each man is the story of God’s continual watchfulness over him. Each man is the object of the Lord’s special love. Jesus was ready to do everything for Jerusalem, but the city was not willing to open up her gates to his mercy. This is the deep mystery of human freedom which always retains that sad possibility of rejecting the grace of God. “Free man, subject yourself to a voluntary servitude, so that Jesus won’t have to say of you what He is said to have told Saint Teresa about others: ‘Teresa, I was willing. But men were not’."
How indeed are we responding to the countless promptings of the Holy Spirit, who seeks to make us holy in the midst of our ordinary duties and surroundings? Each day how often do we say ‘yes’ to God and ‘no’ to our selfishness, to our laziness and to everything that amounts to a lack of love, even if it is only something small.
St Bernard comments, “How different the cries, ‘Away with him, away with him, crucify him,’ and then ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, hosanna in the highest!’ How different the cries are that now are calling him ‘King of Israel’ and then, in a few days’ time, will be saying, ‘We have no king but Caesar!’ What a contrast between the green branches, and the cross, between the flowers and the thorns! Before they were offering their own clothes for him to walk upon, and so soon afterwards they are stripping him of his, and casting lots upon them."
The triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem asks for loyalty and perseverance from each one of us; it calls us to deepen in our faithfulness, and for our resolutions to be more than just bright lights that sparkle for a moment and then fade away. Thus, we will be following Our Lord unto the Cross.
Excerpts from In Conversation with God, F. Fernández Carvajal
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