I was just re-reading my Palm Sunday post from 2020. At the time, all the churches were still in lockdown, so we had to stream the Palm Sunday mass.
This year, we will be attending in person.
I think back to the first time I could go back to Mass after the restrictions were lifted. It was a bit odd, but making that touchstone to that spiritual reality was something special. So much of our Catholic ritual involves filling up the senses. I love how the Catholic tradition understands that we are not purely intellectual beings like angels. We need things to encounter in the body in order to make them truly human experiences. It's one of the reasons I love being able to hold the palms in my hand during the beginning of today's mass (of course as a child, the palms were immediately turned into lightsabers, but I have hopefully matured since).
Back in 2020, I wrote that physical proximity does not always mean spiritual proximity. I still stand by this, since there were many people who surrounded Christ and still condemned Him to death. But the physical proximity is important. My poor mother-in-law has been bed-ridden for a little while now and show she has not been able to come to church. It breaks my heart to see the spiritual toll that this takes on a person. It motivates me to be continually grateful for the gift of being able to attend Mass.
So today, may we lift up the name of our Triumphant King!
Hosanna!
Hosanna!
Hosanna in the Highest!
Blessed is He who comes in the Name of the Lord!
Hosanna in the Highest!
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