{"id":285084,"date":"2018-03-24T11:29:22","date_gmt":"2018-03-24T15:29:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/admin.patheos.com\/blogs\/deaconsbench\/?p=285084"},"modified":"2018-03-25T07:46:32","modified_gmt":"2018-03-25T11:46:32","slug":"he-did-it-for-us-homily-for-palm-sunday-march-25-2018","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/deaconsbench\/2018\/03\/he-did-it-for-us-homily-for-palm-sunday-march-25-2018\/","title":{"rendered":"He did it for us: Homily for Palm Sunday, March 25, 2018"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

\"\"<\/a>
Via PXHere\/Public Domain<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

We\u2019ve been hearing it again and again the last several days: \u201cI can\u2019t believe it\u2019s almost Easter.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

It seems like just last week we were singing carols and wrapping gifts and hearing once again the timeless story of how a newborn King came into the world and was forced to sleep in a manger because there was no room for him in the inn.<\/p>\n

But here we are. The story, the greatest story ever told, reaches a painful and heartbreaking turn. The newborn King has become a man.<\/p>\n

And we realize, with a stunning clarity, that the people of his own time still would not make room for him.<\/p>\n

On a Sunday, they cheered \u201cHosanna!\u201d On a Friday, they called \u201cCrucify him!\u201d<\/p>\n

On a Sunday, he was showered with palms. On a Friday, he was crowned with thorns.<\/p>\n

Those who loved him betrayed him.<\/p>\n

Those who followed him denied him.<\/p>\n

Those who praised him pierced him.<\/p>\n

The infant whose back rested on the wood of the manger became a man whose bruised and bloodied back bore the wood of the cross.<\/p>\n

When his life began, there was no room for him in the inn.<\/p>\n

Decades later, there was no room for him in the human heart.<\/p>\n

In some places today, that is still the case.<\/p>\n

But as we reflect on the events of this week, we can\u2019t lose sight of this humbling, consoling fact. This alone should bring us to our knees:<\/p>\n

In spite of all that betrayal, all that pain, all that denial, all that blood, sweat and tears\u2026Jesus did it anyway.<\/p>\n

He did it out of love, a trascendent and redeeming love, that would change the world.<\/p>\n

He did it for us. All of us.<\/strong><\/p>\n

He did it for all those who come into the world and face betrayal and denial and scourges and spit.<\/p>\n

He did it for all those the world doesn\u2019t make room for\u2014the ones, like him, who are neglected or pushed aside or abandoned.<\/p>\n

But we can\u2019t forget: he also did it for all those who even today betray and deny, the ones who pick up the whips and hurl the spit and weave the crown of thorns.<\/p>\n

He did it for the ones who crowd others out and keep them on the margins.<\/p>\n

He did it, incredibly, for all of us.<\/p>\n

We heard that familiar verse just two weeks ago:<\/p>\n

\u201cFor God so loved the world that he gave his only Son,\u00a0so that everyone who believes in him might not perish\u00a0but might have eternal life.\u201d<\/p>\n

How much does God love the world?<\/p>\n

He loves us enough to die for us.<\/p>\n

He loves us enough to forgive us.<\/p>\n

And he loves us enough to give himself to us again and again in the Eucharist we are about to receive.<\/p>\n

As I mentioned at the beginning, it is the greatest story ever told\u2014and also the greatest love<\/em> story ever told.<\/p>\n

But the great wonder\u2014and miracle\u2014is that it isn\u2019t over.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Let this week we are beginning, this week we call \u201cHoly,\u201d challenge us to remember that the Passion was just the beginning.<\/p>\n

There is still so much to tell.<\/p>\n

And it is up to each of us to tell it.<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

We\u2019ve been hearing it again and again the last several days: \u201cI can\u2019t believe it\u2019s almost Easter.\u201d It seems like just last week we were singing carols and wrapping gifts and hearing once again the timeless story of how a newborn King came into the world and was forced to sleep in a manger because […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":132,"featured_media":285087,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[11175],"class_list":["post-285084","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-homilies","tag-homilies"],"yoast_head":"\nHe did it for us: Homily for Palm Sunday, March 25, 2018<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"We\u2019ve been hearing it again and again the last several days: \u201cI can\u2019t believe it\u2019s almost Easter.\u201d It seems like just last week we were singing carols and\" 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