PALM SUNDAY: IN THE SPIRIT OF PASSION SUNDAY.

In the poem, The Road Not Taken, the American poet Robert Frost writes, “Two roads diverged in a yellow wood. And sorry, I could not travel both and be one traveler. Long I stood and looked down one as far as I could to where it bent in the undergrowth…”

The passion narrative has several themes that speak to the crisis of choices. Divergent roads, contrasting interests, conflicting opinions, opposing viewpoints, and authorities reconciling for the wrong reasons. Conspiracies, betrayals, desertion, denials, abandonment, etc. In the end, the Roman authorities take advantage of the opportunity to carry out their evil intention. Jesus is crucified.

In the last stanza of that poem, Frost writes,

I shall be telling this with a sigh. Somewhere ages and ages hence:

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I— I took the one less traveled by,

And that has made all the difference.

The Christian life is not that easy, though never boring, especially when lived well. It ends in victory for believers through the cross. The Lord remains glorious.

Fulton Sheen states in his book, The Life of Christ, “The story of every human life begins with birth and ends with death. In the person of Christ, however, it was his death that was first and his life that was last.”

The story was told of two good friends. Both lived in their 90s with mutual interests in playing baseball. These men were good Catholics. Sometime before their death, they discussed a concern, which was whether there would be baseball in heaven. So, they agreed that whoever would die first should come back and tell the surviving player if there was baseball in heaven. The first guy died at 98. A few days later, he appeared to his friend and said, “I have good news and bad news for you. The good news first! There is baseball in heaven. But the bad news is that you are pitching tonight!” The friend did not want to pitch yet.

Christianity demands that we participate as active players in the journey of life. But the real Christian fights with Christ. We appear willing or even excited, but are not ready to pitch yet. Either we are on the side of Christ, or with the crowd. Peter’s experience with the servant girl tells us that faith is not half-and-half. The messiah willingly accepts to die for our sake.

The passion narrative exposes humanity’s weakness in several ways – quickness to drift, deny, betray, conspire with the enemy, and fall for material inducement. This makes it possible to abandon our own when the chips are down. For this reason, Jesus ends up alone. He suffers abandonment and rejection by friends and followers.

Only weak, simple women like Veronica are left with Jesus! Reluctant people like Simon of Cyrene. Helpless women of Jerusalem. The thief on his right, and minority leaders like Joseph of Arimathea. Jesus does not thrive by popular opinion, nor is it the same with the Christian faith.

Who is left with Jesus? That is the reflection of Holy Week. Where do we belong? Betraying? Hesitating? Compromising? Absconding? Shrinking? Opportunities are before us every day, beginning with our family, our kids, and our grandkids. Let us start witnessing right from there.

Like Frost says, “Two roads diverged in a wood, and I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference.” Two roads diverge in our lives: the lure of attractive offers presented by the world and/or the demands of faith. Someday we shall be telling the story of the road that we chose. And like those old baseball players, that will make all the difference.

Happy Holy Week!

Readings: 1st- Is. 50:4-7; 2nd- Phil. 2:6-11; Gospel- Lk. 22:14-23:56