On Palm Sunday we commemorate the triumphal entrance of Jesus into Jerusalem, where the Messiah will appear faithful to the end of the mission entrusted to him by the Father. Luke narrates the last moments of the life and passion of Jesus. At the Last Supper, the Lord celebrates his life of total surrender to the Father and his brothers. He says it very clearly: "this is my body," that is, this is me giving myself for you, then He says: "this is my blood," that is my life, which I shed for all of you. And he ends up saying: "do this in memory of me." At this supper, Jesus celebrates his life of total surrender, that will reach plenitude with his death and resurrection, and at the same time, He wants us to remember and to make it present by living and acting as He did. This is what we celebrate and remember in the Eucharist, and at the same time, we feel called to live as He did.
We know that Jesus did not remain nailed to the cross, thus, at Easter we celebrate his triumph. The Father gives testimony and confirms the mission of the Son. The path He chose to make present the Kingdom of God among us is the path entrusted to Him by the Father. Jesus remains faithful to the end, in spite of the pain, suffering, humiliation and the crucifixion He had to endure. In the end, love, life and truth overcome hatred, death and lies because God is the Lord of life and history.
With Jesus’ resurrection, a new creation is established, a new man, modeled after Jesus. It is the Spirit who gives us this new life and many blessings: "my peace I leave you, my peace I give you, receive the Spirit, as the Father has sent me, so I have sent you," Jesus says when he appeared live to his disciples. There starts our task of making present the Kingdom of God as Jesus did, his style, so that our catch is abundant. To be able to do this we have to trust in God fully. Thomas doubts, but in his journey through life he finds out that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and this faith is what gives us eternal life.
This community of Jesus has to make present the Kingdom of God; has to be the instrument of the salvation offered by God to everyone in His Son Jesus, through the Spirit. In this community there will be different gifts and charismas to enrich the Church, and one of those gifts is the charisma of shepherding the community of Jesus. Peter, in spite of his weakness, is chosen to lead this community.
These days we are celebrating our salvation, we are enjoying the great love of God manifested through Jesus. May we know how to accept this unconditional love, and start living as children of God.
Salgado is a migrant minister for the Diocese of Rochester.
