Today’s readings speak of the son of God, the king and Savior, who came to establish the kingdom of peace and righteousness “Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord! Blessed is the kingdom of our father David.” This kingdom is revealed in Christ’s glorious death and holy resurrection.
Therefore, today’s readings are related to the readings of Good Friday, since the Lord entered Jerusalem today with the lambs to be offered as Passover sacrifice, so the Lamb of God entered the temple with the Lambs and stayed in Jerusalem and around it until Friday to offer Himself as a sacrifice for the world.[3]
The custom was to buy the Passover lamb on this day – the tenth of Nisan-and slaughter it on the evening of the fourteenth day.[4] therefore, today there is a lot of talk about the salvation of Christ, glory be to Him, about the cross, about the kingdom of the New Testament, the kingdom of peace and righteousness.
There is no wonder that the order of our Holy Church is to present to us the story of the Lord’s entry into Jerusalem in the four Gospels, a situation that is repeated only on the night and on the day of Good Friday, when we move hour by hour with trials and sufferings until the cross and death.
It is like an announcement of the unity of the theme and purpose of the arrangement between Palm Sunday and Good Friday:
On Sunday He entered with the Passover lambs ..And on Friday He offered Himself as a sacrifice for the whole world.
And the cheering on Sunday is Hosanna (Hosanna = save us) .. This was done on Good Friday (and they do not know), as if heaven responded to the cheering of the crowds according to its inner need and not according to its aspirations.
And on Sunday the temple was cleansed of corruption and trade ..And on Friday He renewed human nature from the corruption of sin
And on Sunday the heavenly forces appeared (Luke 19: 37).. And on Friday many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised (Matthew 27: 52, 53).
And on Sunday the crowds call Him King ;son of David (Luke 19: 38) and look forward to His new kingdom ..And on Friday He rejects the kingdom of men in His dialogue with Pilate and says that my kingdom is not of this world (John 18: 36), and chooses to reign on a tree (Psalm 96: 10) – Septuagint and Coptic translation).
Vespers
Psalm of Vespers (Psalm 118: 26, 27)
“Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! We have blessed you from the house of the Lord. Bind the sacrifice with cords to the horns of the altar.”
Here is the cry and chanting of souls in the New Testament who are hungry for salvation, because the One who comes is the son of Man, the blessing is from His holy house, the feast is lived at the altar and the sacrifice of divine love in the New Testament, so we can call it the psalm of salvation.
Unfortunately, this psalm in the Protestant translation is “Bind the sacrifice with cords to the horns of the altar.”, perhaps because the (Protestant) translators refused to celebrate church holidays.
Gospel of Vespers (John 12: 1-11)
(Note: it is the same gospel chapter that is read on Lazarus Saturday in the Jerusalem church and on the Monday of the Holy Pascha in the Byzantine Church) [5]
“Then, six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus was who had been dead, whom He had raised from the dead.
There they made Him a supper; and Martha served, but Lazarus was one of those who sat at the table with Him.
Then Mary took a pound of very costly oil of spikenard, anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped His feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the oil……….
But Jesus said, “Let her alone; she has kept this for the day of My burial.
For the poor you have with you always, but Me you do not have always.”
Did Mary know that her celebration of the resurrection of her brother Lazarus from the dead, and the fragrant oil that she poured on the Master’s head was for His burial? And that it will be the Holy smell of His resurrection and not the spices of His death, for the One who raised Lazarus from the Dead is able to resurrect by His divine authority.
Instead of Bethany, the House of misery and trouble, it became the House of fragrant oil and sacrificing love, and Bethany became a model for the Houses of love and the poured fragrant oil
There is no wonder that this Gospel also comes on the Saturday and Wednesday from the Holy Pascha, for love is the only language in which we recognize and understand the nature of God (1 John 4:8 ) and it is the only way of communion with God (Luke 10: 27).
If we know that the value of the fragrant oil is three hundred dinars (Mark 14: 5) and that the daily wage of the worker at that time was one dinar (Matthew 20: 2), this means that the value of the fragrant oil was almost the wage of the worker in a whole year excluding the weekly and annual holidays.
Similarly, if we imagine the wage of a worker in Egypt during a month can to be one thousand pounds, so the value of the bottle is twelve thousand pounds.
This does not refer to the high value of fragrant oil, but the insignificance of its price before the greatness of divine love, and that the love of Christ in the heart of this woman made her sell everything she had to acquire this treasure and this jewel (Matthew 13: 44-46), and counted all things loss in order to win Christ (Phil 3: 8).
St. Gregory connects the house that was filled with the smell of fragrant oil and the universe that was filled with the smell of the Gospel of the New Testament: (This perfume does not differ from the perfume of the bride, who smelled the groom’s fragrance “While the king is at his table, My spikenard sends forth its fragrance. ” (Song of songs 1: 12)
It is stated in the Gospel that the pouring of fragrant oil on the head of our Lord created a fragrant smell throughout the house where the banquet was held. It seems that the good-natured woman prophesied the mystery of Christ’s death, and the Lord testified to her deed about this, saying: “For in pouring this fragrant oil on My body, she did it for My burial.” (Matt 26 : 12).
The house that is filled with this smell represents the whole universe, the whole world: “wherever this gospel is preached in the whole world,”” the smell of her work spreads with the preaching of the gospel, and the gospel becomes a “a memorial to her”, as spikenard in the text of the song of songs sends forth its fragrance of the groom to his bride, and in the Gospel also the fragrant smell of Christ, which filled the whole house as a fragrant oil that pleases the whole body of the church in all the whole world [St. Gregory of Nisi ] [6]
Matins
The Gospels of the procession during Matins of Palm Sunday (and the Feast of the Cross)
In the procession there are twelve chapters from the Gospels and likewise, twelve Psalms.
While the psalm speaks of the person of the icon or its subject, the Gospels speak of the Kingdom of the New Testament, which was proclaimed by the salvation of the Lord in His death and resurrection.
Therefore, the words “King” or “Kingdom” are repeated in almost all of the twelve chapters from the Gospels:
“You are the king of Israel” –> in front of the main altar.
“He has put down the mighty from their thrones, And exalted the lowly.” –> in front of the icon of the mother of God.
“He will reign over the House of Jacob Forever” –> in front of the icon of the Archangel Gabriel.
“The kingdom of Heaven is like a hidden treasure” –> in front of the icon of the Archangel Michael.
“The kingdom of God has come near to you” –> in front of the icon of St. mark the evangelist.
“The kingdom of Heaven is at hand” –> in front of the icon of the Apostolic Fathers.
“Until they see the son of man coming in His kingdom” –> in front of the icon of St. Anthony.
“And they recline in the kingdom of God” –> in front of the door in the west.
“And if the heavens have opened to him” –> in front of the Lakkan.
“Behold, your king is coming to you meekly” –> in front of the church door.
“But the youngest in the kingdom of Heaven is greater than he” –> in front of the icon of John the Baptist.
The twelve gospels can be divided into three groups:
The first four readings –> concern God the Father, the Virgin (incarnation) and the Archangels.
The next four readings –> concern the saints.
The last four readings –> concern the church.
If the readings of this procession direct our focus to the cross and salvation, we can see:
In the first group –> the divine economy (plan) of salvation.
Because the Father in His love sent His only Son for our salvation (John 3: 16), and chose the mother of God so that the son of God will take from her His body (Luke 1: 30), the annunciation of the Archangel Gabriel the server of the Incarnation (Luke 1: 11, and 26), and the Archangel Michael proclaimed His resurrection when he rolled the stone from the mouth of the grave (fraction of the resurrection and the Fifty-day)
In the second group –> icons of salvation.
“And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death.” (Rev 12: 11), so we see in this group the Apostle Mark, the Apostolic Fathers, The Prince of martyrs, St. George and the star of the wilderness, St. Anthony, and the Holy Church always puts them before our eyes to look at the end of their biography and whose faith follow, considering the outcome of their conduct. (Heb 13: 7).
And we lay aside every weight when we live in communion with the heavenly cloud of witnesses (Heb 12: 1). They are the sheep who gave their lives for the Great Lamb, they painted for us the footsteps of the flock and built for us the shepherds’ tents (Song of Songs 1:8) that is, the way of life in Christ.
In the third group –> we see the Holy Church, and the methods of salvation.
Here we talk about the place of salvation and the mysteries of salvation, we see the beloved dwellings (psalm of the 9th reading), and the door of the Lord through which the Saints enter (psalm of the 11th reading),
And The Voice of the Lord on the waters – i.e. the baptism – (psalm of the 10th reading), which qualifies us to become like a fruitful olive tree in the House of God (psalm of the 12th reading).
To summarize,
In the cross, the first group proclaims the love of the Father (John 3: 16), (John 12: 32).
In the cross, the second group reveals the salvation through the saints (Rev 12 :11), (Heb 12: 1) and we are supported by their prayers for us.
Finally, in the cross, the third group shows us how to obtain strength from the sacraments of the church (1 Cor 11: 26), (John 20: 23) and we are lifted up to become part of the heavenly.
Thus, in the Cross of the son of God, we always see ourselves entirely attracted by the fatherly love, sustained by the communion and prayers of the Saints, and lifted up by the holy sacraments of the church.
The twelve Gospels also tell about the different angles and aspects of the cross and the salvation.
The Cross is a call of love to man for the fellowship of Christ (the Gospel of the first reading)
“And he found Philip, and Jesus said to him, follow me.”
The Cross is a ministry and a sense of responsibility for everyone in need of ministry (gospel of the second reading).
“Now Mary arose in those days and went into the hill country with haste, to a city of Judah,”
The Cross is a sign of salvation and joy for all mankind (gospel of the third reading).
“And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus.”.
The Cross is the discovery of the treasure of life in our hearts, and we sell everything for it (Gospel of the fourth reading).
“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and hid; and for joy over it he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.”
The Cross is a calling to the Kingdom (Gospel of the fifth reading).
“And tell them, the kingdom of God is near to you.”
The Cross is a power and authority over the actions of the antithesis (the Gospel of the sixth reading)
“And when He had called His twelve disciples to Him, He gave them power over unclean spirits”
These is pain and distress in the sufferings of the cross, but it is a testimony that the world cannot contradict or resist (gospel of the seventh reading).
“You will be brought before kings and rulers for My name’s sake. But it will turn out for you as an occasion for testimony….for I will give you a mouth and wisdom which all your adversaries will not be able to contradict or resist.”
The Cross is denying oneself daily and the reward is eternal glory (the Gospel of the eighth reading).
“For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.
For the Son of Man will come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and then He will reward each according to his works.”
There is strife and struggle in the Cross, it’s not just a shape (the Gospel of the ninth reading).
“And He said to them, “Strive to enter through the narrow gate, for many, I say to you, will seek to enter and will not be able…….And indeed there are last who will be first, and there are first who will be last.”
On the cross, us being the offspring to God the father in Christ was revealed (Gospel of the tenth reading).
“And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”
By the cross, the son of God reigns over our hearts with His meekness (gospel of the eleventh reading)
“Tell the daughter of Zion, ‘Behold, your King is coming to you, Lowly, and sitting on a donkey, A colt, the foal of a donkey.”
The cross is a judgment on those who refuse Salvation (gospel of the 12th reading).
‘We played the flute for you, And you did not dance; We mourned to you, And you did not lament.’
Important note: different readings of the early Gospels of the feast of the cross in ancient times:
The scholar Yassa Abd Al-Masih explains what we do in Palm Sunday, quoting Abu al-Barakat in his book “The enlightening lamp with respect to clarification of the service” which explains the fast and the rites, from the eighteenth chapter:
[As for the chapters of the Gospels that are read during the procession whilst carrying the churchly adornments (the icons, the incense, the ornaments of Palm Sunday such as olives and palm branches), each church could have their own perspective. The custom of the hanging Church in Cairo was that, the Gospel of prayer as well as the chapter of Zacchaeus the tax collector from Luke, should be read under the image of Palm Sunday. The gospel concerning the end of the world should be read under the icon of St. George. At the altar of John the Baptist the chapter mentioning his name and his praise is read and if there is no altar on his name, this chapter should be read at the place that is usually attributed to him (which every church in that time designated). After the procession, we return with churchly adornments to the altar, etc …[7]
This is also confirmed by Father Athanasius Al-maqari:
[As for the chapters of the Gospels that are read during the procession whilst carrying the churchly adornments (the icons, the incense, the ornaments of Palm Sunday such as olives and palm branches), each church could have their own perspective. The custom of the hanging Church in Cairo is to read in Gospel of the prayer and the chapter of Zacchaeus the tax collector from Luke, under the icon of Palm Sunday. Under the icon of St. George, the chapter concerning the end of the world is read. At the altar of St. John the Baptist, the chapter containing his name and praise is read. At the women’s house, the section about the Centurion from Luke is read, and under the image of Holy Virgin, the section about the Annunciation from Luke is read. At the temple of St. Michael, the chapter from Matthew about the merchant is read. And under the image of the baptism, the chapter from Luke is read where it starts with “And Mary rose”].[8]
The source for the procession during Matins Palm Sunday dates from the 19th century from the monastery of ‘El Baramous’ Wadi el Natroun (called Paromeos Monastery according to the Western world) and the monastery of the Holy Virgin Mary, Al Muharraq.
The first manuscript is from the monastery of the ‘El Baramous’ in Wadi el Natroun, which is numbered as number 132 of the rituals and its title is “The Gospels of the procession, the psalms and the expositions of the Pascha”. The manuscript contains sixteen Gospels that are read on procession of Palm Sunday and on the feasts of the cross in the church and around the monastery.
The second manuscript is from Al Muharraq Monastery of Virgin Mary, which is numbered ‘13 D S 19 rite” and is without date, and contains thirteen Gospels for the processions of the feasts of the cross and Palm Sunday, inside and outside the church].[9]
From these sources, it is clear that the procession of the gospels during Matins on these feasts, contained more than a dozen Gospels in the monasteries and churches and they were according to the Saints known specifically to the respective church/monastery. The processions and the readings took place not only inside the church of the monastery but also in and around the monastery and it corridors where the relics and bodies of the Saints were situated.
The Psalm of Matins (Psalm 68:19, 35)
“Blessed be the Lord, Who daily loads us with benefits, The God of our salvation! The God of Israel is He who gives strength and power to His people. Blessed be God!”
This psalm is one of the psalms of praise and joy for the entry of the Lord into Jerusalem and the entry of the Lamb of God, in preparation for the sacrifice of the cross, and the blessing here is like the blessing of the multitudes to Him in entering Jerusalem “Blessed is the kingdom of our father David.”
Father Tadros Jacob Malti says about this psalm :
[This psalm is the fourth and final in the series of Psalms of praise (65-68) and it is one of the psalms hymns that is sung/prayed when entering the city of David with the ark of the covenant (2 Samuel 6 : 12-15)
He also explains it by saying :
It is a messianic psalm that reveals the salvation that Christ offers to the whole world.
This messianic, festive, churchly and eternal Hymn of praise, had an impact on the lives of the people in ancient times, as they chanted it on the feast of the harvest and with it, commemorated the descent of the law on Mount Sinai. It is a festive, liturgical Psalm, referring to the gifts from the glorified Christ to His church”] [10]
The Gospel of Matins (Luke 19: 1-10)
“and he was rich. And he sought to see who Jesus was, but could not because of the crowd, for he was of short stature…..
And when Jesus came to the place, He looked up and saw him, and said to him, “Zacchaeus, make haste and come down, for today I must stay at your house….”
Then Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, “Look, Lord, I give half of my goods to the poor; and if I have taken anything from anyone by false accusation, I restore fourfold.”
And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because he also is a son of Abraham; for the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.”
The readings gradually begin to clarify and reveal the essence of the cross, redemption and salvation which is God’s unparalleled love for mankind. When the souls of mankind are united in loving the Redeemer, mankind belittles everything whether expensive or cheap, as their eyes are enlightened by His salvation. Mankind is “able comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height— to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God” (Ephesians 3 : 18, 19).
The narrative of the Vespers Gospel with the woman pouring the fragrant oil on the head of the master, was the language of love that made her give away her income for a whole year in order to love Him. In the Gospel of Matins we see Zacchaeus, the head of the tax collectors; which belong to the group of people that only knows the language of money and business and wants to profit to the maximum.
However, after Zacchaeus has met with the Lord, we observe in him an abundance and gratuitousness of his love, dismissing the profits of previous years from trade and taxes, and opening himself up to the poor and the needy, in as much as up to half of his possessions.
It is strange that the criticism was directed to the Lord in the Vespers Gospel on the pretext of the poor and the desolate, whereas Zachaeus who is mentioned in the Matins gospel, gives very much to them (the poor). The Lord was also criticized for entering the house of a sinful man. These two readings make clear to us that those who do not respond to divine love, are always ready with excuses they have for themselves. However, the gift of divine love to thirsty souls is beyond understanding and expectations. The woman who poured the fragrant oil in the Vespers gospel, did not know that wherever the Gospel would be preached in the whole world, that what she did would be told as a memorial for her. And Zacchaeus did not know that the mere desire of wanted to see the Lord from above a tree, would be rewarded and crowned with a divine presence of the Lord in his house, giving salvation for all the people in his house. His divine love does not break a bruised reed and will not quench a smoking flax (Matthew 12: 20).
Concerning the salvation of the rich and how they deal with money, the Holy Fathers say[11]:
St. Ambrose says: [let the rich know that wealth in itself is not a sin but its abuse; money, which is a stumbling block for the wicked, is a means of exercising virtue for the good. Zachaeus was rich, let’s learn that not all rich people are greedy].
St. John Chrysostom says: [the Lord did not forbid people to be rich, but does want them be slaves to their wealth. He wants us to use it as a necessity and not to be guards over it. The slave guards, but the master spends].
The readings put before us another comparison, between Zacchaeus the tax collector and the woman who poured the fragrant oil on one hand, and the leaders of the people (and later on Judah) on the other hand. The precious ointment given by the woman was a sign of pure love and appreciation of the Lord in her life, and also so Zacchaeus, a slave of money, easily gives up half of his wealth after the Lord enters his house.
On the other hand, we find the leaders in the temple occupied by the tables of the money changers rather than the One who was in their midst and did not know Him (John 1: 26), because the blindness of their hearts. Also in Judas’ eyes, the Lord turned from a “value” in front of which all temptations are reduced, to a “price” that he would accept by any means.
It is worthwhile to mention the houses that the Lord entered which are recalled in the Gospels of Vespers and Matins. These are the house of Martha, Mary and Lazarus and the house of Zacchaeus the tax collector. In the gospel of Vespers, we observe a house full of the scent of fragrant oil, love and generosity (i.e. the act of giving) which is accompanied with the preaching of the Bible in the whole world. Likewise, in the gospel of Matins, the house was filled with the odor of salvation that was freely poured out onto souls that were to perish.
The Holy Liturgy
Pauline Epistle (Hebrew 9:11-28)
“But Christ came as High Priest of the good things to come, with the greater and more perfect tabernacle not made with hands, that is, not of this creation.
Not with the blood of goats and calves, but with His own blood He entered the Most Holy Place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption.
For if the blood of bulls and goats and the ashes of a heifer, sprinkling the unclean, sanctifies for the purifying of the flesh,
how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?……..and without shedding of blood there is no remission……
For Christ has not entered the holy places made with hands, which are copies of the true, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us;…..but now, once at the end of the ages, He has appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself.
And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment, so Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many. To those who eagerly wait for Him He will appear a second time, apart from sin, for salvation.”
Although today is the entry of the Lord into Jerusalem as a king, the whole reading is focused on the Salvation and redemption that the Lord offered to mankind with His pure blood. The reading declares that the kingdom for which the Lord came and was incarnated and why He entered Jerusalem today, is a kingdom of salvation and the promise of eternal inheritance, and not as the multitudes of the people were expecting, namely a kingdom for political salvation and liberation from the power of the Romans.
That is why the word “entered” has been repeated many times to announce that the Lord’s entry into Jerusalem marked His entry with us into the heavenly sanctuaries and into heaven itself, in which we will find eternal redemption.
” He entered the Most Holy Place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption”.
“For Christ has not entered the holy places made with hands, which are copies of the true, but into heaven itself”
The value of His redemption and His entry into the heavenly holy places has been manifested to us, by cleansing us from dead deeds, by abolishing sin by the sacrificing himself, through forgiveness of sins and through receiving the promise of eternal inheritance.
Thus, He was the priest and the sacrifice.
As St. Augustine says: [you are the priest, you are the sacrifice, you are the provider and you are the offering)[12]
The temple of the Jews was denied by the body of the Lord, as Pope Athanasius the Apostolic (also called Pope Athanasius the Great or the Confessor by the Western world) said: “the ancient temple was built of stones and gold as a shadow, but if the truth came from there, the symbol was nullified, and as the Lord said,” not one stone shall be left here upon another ” (Matthew 24: 2)
Engineer Fouad Naguib also explains the connection of the (sacrifice of) atonement with the (sacrifice of) Passover in the words of St. Paul here: [he explains the same theological thought in the presentation of Christ the High Priest on the great day of atonement, who enters the holy places “to atone for sin by sacrificing Himself”. The entry of the Messiah to Jerusalem is similar to the entry of the high priest, where the high priest used to retreat to the temple a week before the day of atonement, to prepare himself for the event (according to Jewish tradition)
Thus, in Christ, the atonement sacrifice is the Passover sacrifice, ” But Christ came as High Priest of the good things to come, with the greater and more perfect tabernacle not made with hands, that is, not of this creation.”, The Messiah is the temple, the high priest and the sacrifice at the same time][13]
Catholic Epistle (1 Peter 4:1-11)
“Therefore, since Christ suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves also with the same mind…..
In regard to these, they think it strange that you do not run with them in the same flood of dissipation, speaking evil of you.
They will give an account to Him who is ready to judge the living and the dead.
For this reason the gospel was preached also to those who are dead, that they might be judged according to men in the flesh, but live according to God in the spirit.
But the end of all things is at hand; therefore be serious and watchful in your prayers.
And above all things have fervent love for one another,……..
God may be glorified through Jesus Christ,”
The readings continue to shed light on the cross and the glorious death of Christ, but Catholic Epistle here adds the importance of being “armed” with the sufferings of the salvation of Christ.
As St. Clement of Alexandria says: [the Cross of our Lord has become for us a boundary, a fence and a fortress against our past sins. Therefore, since we have been renewed, let us establish ourselves in it (in the cross) in the truth, and return to the sanctification and reverence of our souls.[14]
And the seriousness and responsibility of those who refuse salvation, and the judgment planned to come on all the world, and as the Lord condemned the sellers and merchants in the temple today, He is preparing for the judgment of all the living and the dead, and invites us to a vigil of prayer, purity of love and honesty of Service, qualifying us to the glory of God in everything.
Praxis (Acts 28:11-21)
” many came to him at his lodging, to whom he explained and solemnly testified of the kingdom of God, persuading them concerning Jesus from both the Law of Moses and the Prophets, saying, ‘Go to this people and say: “Hearing you will hear, and shall not understand; And seeing you will see, and not perceive; For the hearts of this people have grown dull.
“Therefore let it be known to you that the salvation of God has been sent to the Gentiles, and they will hear it!”
Then Paul dwelt two whole years in his own rented house, and received all who came to him,
preaching the kingdom of God and teaching the things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ with all confidence, no one forbidding him.”
It is clear here that the preaching of the kingdom is the basis of preaching and service and is the subject of the law and the prophets, and this kingdom will extend its light to all peoples, not only the Jews but also the Gentiles, i.e. all other nations.
Yet it is also a warning to those who hear and do not listen (i.e. understand), those who look and do not see, as a result of the absence of circumcision of their earthly senses and the consecration of the heart, despite the formal affiliation to God and the routine engagement with worship.
Thus the passion of Christ, glory be to Him, became our way to the heavenly holy places (Pauline Epistle), the weapon of our daily struggle (Catholic Epistle) and the subject of our ministry (Praxis).
The Relationship between the readings of the Book of Acts in the Saturdays and the Sundays of Lent, and the readings of Lazarus Saturday and Palm Sunday:
The readings of Acts in Lazarus Saturday and Palm Sunday complement the readings of Acts in the sacred Saturdays and the Sundays of Lent, which have a special system that differs from the readings of Acts in the days of fasting. The first reading of Acts in the days of Lent begins on the Saturdays of Preparation (Acts 21:1-14), which is the first reading after the farewell speech (Acts 20:17-38) of Saint Paul with the pastors of the churches, in which he said to them:
“And see, now I go bound in the spirit to Jerusalem, not knowing the things that will happen to me there…
And indeed, now I know that you all, among whom I have gone preaching the kingdom of God, will see my face no more.” (Acts 20:22, 25)
“And when he had said these things, he knelt down and prayed with them all.
sorrowing most of all for the words which he spoke, that they would see his face no more. And they accompanied him to the ship.” (Acts 20:36, 38)
In his farewell address to the bishops and priests, he told them that he was going to Jerusalem (like the Lord’s final journey to Jerusalem) and that they would not see his face (like the Lord’s farewell address to the disciples: John 14, John 17), and he knelt down and prayed (like the Lord’s prayer in Gethsemane).
Reading the Acts of the Apostles at the beginning of Lent is like the beginning of the journey to the cross and crucifixion, and the arrival was on Palm Sunday, when the Lord entered Jerusalem with the Passover lambs. Therefore, the last consecutive reading of the Acts of the Apostles on Palm Sunday (Acts 28:11-21) was the arrival of St. Paul at the end of the journey in which he would be tried and receive the crown of martyrdom.
This meaning is explained by Father Kyrillos Abdel Messih Hanna in his book “The Great Lent,” an introduction to the study of the readings of Great Lent: “With the reading of the first chapters of the Acts of the Apostles (Acts 21:1) every Saturday and Sunday during the Great Lent, the final stages of Paul’s life are narrated from his first return to Jerusalem on the Saturdays of Ascension (preparation) until his being sent in chains and his stay in Rome awaiting his hour of martyrdom and departure to heaven, as stated in the reading of the Acts of the Apostles on Palm Sunday (28:31).”
The readings of Acts in Saturdays and Sundays of the fasting follow a special system that is different from the system of Acts of the days, known as the system of consecutive readings. The chapters are sequenced continuously from beginning to end of their reading, and the last journey of the Apostle Paul (in addition to the journey of the Exodus) is unique among all consecutive readings in the Great Lent, ending not in the forty-day fast but in the Palm Sunday week, and this has a deep meaning.
Therefore, we find that chapters 21 to 28 are distributed in consecutive order from the Saturday of the Preparation in the fast until the Palm Sunday in the Holy Week.
[Acts 21:1-14] Saturday before the Great Lent.
[Acts 21:15-26] Sunday before the Great Lent.
[Acts 21:27-39] The Saturday preceding Treasure Sunday.
[Acts 21:40, 22:1-16] Sunday of Treasures.
[Acts 22:17-etc.] The Saturday preceding Temptation Sunday.
[Acts 23:1-11] Temptation Sunday.
[Acts 23:12-etc] The Saturday preceding the Sunday of the prodigal son.
[Acts 24:1-23] Sunday of the Prodigal Son.
[Acts 24:24-etc, 25:1-12] The Saturday preceding the Sunday of the Samaritan Woman.
[Acts 25:13, 26:1] Sunday of the Samaritan Woman.
[Acts 26:1-18] The Saturday preceding the Sunday of the Paralysed Man.
[Acts 26:19-etc., 27:1-8] Sunday of the Paralysed Man.
[Acts 27:9-26] The former Saturday of The Man born blind.
[Acts 27:27-37] Sunday of the Man born blind.
[Acts 27:38-etc, 28:1-10] The Saturday of Lazarus.
[Acts 28:11-etc] Palm Sunday.
Gospel of the Holy Liturgy
Psalm of the Holy Liturgy – First (Psalm 80:3, 1, 2)
” Blow the trumpet at the time of the New Moon, At the full moon, on our solemn feast day.
“Sing aloud to God our strength; Make a joyful shout to the God of Jacob.
Raise a song and strike the timbrel, The pleasant harp with the lute. “
The rejoicing and praise in this psalm is for the God of Jacob, the God of wrestling love until dawn, the God of souls determined for blessing even at the expense of the body seeking rest. Also, the exaltation on the feast day, the day the Lord enters our hearts, and the day of the new covenant made by the Lord, which we live every day in the offerings of love and sacrifices of thanksgiving.
Our Father Tadros Jacob Malaty says that the title of this psalm is: “For the winepresses,” meaning [for the Church of the crucified Christ, where we are honored by sharing in His crucifixion, suffering with Him and glorifying with Him].
This is also explained by the holy fathers:
[There are three sacred celebrations: Easter, Pentecost, and Tabernacles, so there are also three psalms entitled: {For the winepresses }… There are no winepresses where there is no vineyard, and a flow of grape harvest… The Lord Savior says: “I have trodden the winepress alone, And from the peoples no one was with Me ” (Isaiah 63:3). This is the reason for which He brought a vineyard from Egypt and transported it (Psalm 80:9).
Jeremiah says: “Yet I had planted you a noble vine, a seed of highest quality. How then have you turned before Me Into the degenerate plant of an alien vine?”
(Jeremiah 2:21)] (Saint Jerome)
[The term ” winepresses ” is used for the churches of God throughout the world. This psalm tells of the rejection of the Jewish community and the faith of the nations in God like clusters of grapes]. (St. Ansemos, Bishop of Jerusalem)112
The Gospels
[Note: Reading the four Gospels in the liturgy of Palm Sunday is a ritual unique to the Coptic Church alone and is repeated on the eve and day of Great Friday]. [17]
The four Gospels generally speak of the Lord’s entry into Jerusalem and the joyful reception of the crowds, the discomfort of the chief priests at their praises, the Lord’s expulsion of the merchants from the temple, and His departure in the evening to Bethany.
But every Gospel reveals to us this entry from a certain perspective, the picture is completed and the situation becomes clear, so we see salvation clearly and live the kingdom in Christ and with Him in the journey of our lives and our daily struggles.
Gospel of Matthew (Matthew 21:1-17)
We see in the Gospel of Matthew:
The promised entry in the prophets and in the Old Testament.
” All this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying:”Tell the daughter of Zion, ‘Behold, your King is coming to you, Lowly, and sitting on a donkey, A colt, the foal of a donkey. “
And also the prophesied praise:
“Have you never read, ‘Out of the mouth of babes and nursing infants You have perfected praise?”
As we see in the account of Saint Matthew, the whole of Jerusalem was stirred up by the power of His entry into it:
“And when He had come into Jerusalem, all the city was moved, saying, “Who is this?”
Saint Matthew is distinguished from the rest of the evangelists by the Lord’s healing of the blind and the lame in the temple: “The blind and the lame came to him in the temple, and He healed them.”
Saint Augustine comments on the saying “Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!’,” saying: [Let us understand from his saying “in the name of the Lord” the most “the name of God the Father,” even though it can be understood as in His name by being the Lord.. He said Himself: “I have come in My Father’s name, and you do not receive Me; if another comes in his own name, him you will receive.” (John 5:43).
The true teacher of humility is Christ who made Himself of no reputation and obeyed even unto death, death on the cross (Philippians 2:8), but He did not lose His divinity by teaching humility.
For in one He is equal to the Father, and in the other he is like us. By being equal to the Father, He called us into existence, and by becoming like us, He saved us from destruction].”
Gospel of Mark (Mark 11:1-11)
It is distinguished by the power, glory, and greatness of the person of Christ, glory be to Him. Here, it mentions the crowds’ longing for the kingdom of God and the kingdom they hope for for the descendants of the prophet David. “Hosanna! ‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!’
Blessed is the kingdom of our father David That comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest! “
The Gospel speaks in more detail than the other Gospels about the disciples’ untying of the colt, and St. Athanasius the Apostle connects this act with the message of the shepherds in the holy church: “My beloved, untying the colt is a gift! It is a gift given to the great, not the greatness of the body, but the greatness of faith, love, reason, and virtue, as witnessed about Moses, who became great in his people… For he who is great can untie the colt!”
I wish I could be like them to be able to break the chains of the present, because each one of us is bound by the chains of sin, as the scripture testifies saying that everyone is bound by the cords of their sins. Let us then pray that the Lord Jesus sends His disciples to us to release us from all the chains that bind us, as some of us are bound by the love of money, others by the chains of adultery, others by alcohol, and others by injustice.
Gospel of Luke (Luke 19:29-48)
Saint Luke referred to the human side of the entry:
He was the only one who indicated that the disciples rode Jesus on the colt:
” And they threw their own clothes on the colt, and they set Jesus on him.”
He was also the only one who elaborated on the joy of the disciples, the defense of the Lord for their joy in front of the Pharisees, the opening of the eyes to heavenly appearances, and the company of heavenly forces in praise.
” the whole multitude of the disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works they had seen, saying: “‘Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord!’ Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!”
And some of the Pharisees called to Him from the crowd, “Teacher, rebuke Your disciples.”
But He answered and said to them, “I tell you that if these should keep silent, the stones would immediately cry out.”
The saints Ambrose and Augustine refer to the acceptance and faith by the nations in reference to stones. Saint Ambrose also believes that the words of the Lord were literally fulfilled when the Jews remained silent in praising and glorifying Him during the crucifixion, as the stones indeed spoke, with earthquakes occurring, rocks splitting, graves opening, and so on. “What are these stones but those who worship stones?! If the sons of the Jews are silent, the nations will cry out, both great and small.” (Saint Ambrose) “We are among the nations, our fathers used to worship stones.” (Saint Augustine)
He is also the only one who mentioned the weeping of the Lord over Jerusalem because of what was destined to happen to it: “Now as He drew near, He saw the city and wept over it, saying, “If you had known, even you, especially in this your day, the things that make for your peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. For days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment around you, surround you and close you in on every side, and level you, and your children within you, to the ground; and they will not leave in you one stone upon another, because you did not know the time of your visitation.”
Some see the time of God’s visitation in two ways:
Either the visitation of anger (Ezekiel 32:34).
Or the visitation of mercy (Jeremiah 29:10).
Here, the second type of visitation is meant, which is God’s visitation of Jerusalem with mercy.
Psalm of the Liturgy – Second (Psalm 64:1,2)
” Praise is awaiting You, O God, in Zion; And to You the vow shall be performed.O You who hear prayer, To You all flesh will come.”
These two verses also come from the Psalm, as Father Tadros Yacoub Malaty says in the readings of the Feast of the Cross, and in the Feast of the Renewal of the Church of the Resurrection in Jerusalem for the following reasons:
The church is a community of praise and inner joy; the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ is the source of joy and the spring that overflows with the spirit of praise to God, the lover of humanity.
The doors of the New Covenant church are open to every person, regardless of nationality or sins, inviting everyone to enjoy the cross, where the Word of God incarnate Himself for the whole world.
The word “prayer” in Hebrew here also means “vow,” so when God declared His practical love for humanity, He joyfully accepts the vows of believers responding with love for love.
John 12:29-48
The gospel of Saint John is distinguished by indicating that He is the King of Israel, that is, the awaited Messiah: “Hosanna! ‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!’ The King of Israel!”
Also, it indicates that the disciples did not understand everything that happened to them until after the revelation of His glory through the crucifixion and resurrection. Saint John did not hesitate to confess this, as Saint Cyril the Great says.
“Saint John was not ashamed to confess the disciples’ ignorance, as he returned and showed their knowledge, for he did not consider honoring people, but called for the glory of the spirit.” (Saint Cyril the Great) [23]
“His disciples did not understand these things at first; but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things were written about Him and that they had done these things to Him.”
There is also a reference to the impact of the crowd by the miracle of raising Lazarus, and the anger and envy of the Pharisees towards the surrounding crowd.
“Therefore the people, who were with Him when He called Lazarus out of his tomb and raised him from the dead, bore witness.
For this reason the people also met Him, because they heard that He had done this sign.
The Pharisees therefore said among themselves, “You see that you are accomplishing nothing. Look, the world has gone after Him!”