With Palm Sunday or Passion Sunday of the Lord properly, began the solemn annual celebration Holy Week in which they are remembered and celebrated the final days of Jesus' earthly life, with inner torments, physical suffering, the unfair trials, the ascent to Calvary, the crucifixion, death and burial, and finally his Risurrezione.La Palm Sunday comes nearly at the end of the long season of Lent began with Ash Wednesday and Sunday liturgies for five, has prepared the Christian community, reflection and repentance, to the dramatic events of Holy Week, with the hope and certainty of Next Resurrection of Christ, victor over death and sin, the Saviour of the world and every single anima.I Gospels tell us that Jesus came with his disciples in Bethpage, near Jerusalem (he was on the evening of Saturday), he sent two of them in the village to fetch a donkey tied with a colt and lead them to him, if anyone objected, they would have to say that the Lord needed it, but would be sent immediately . He says the Gospel of Matthew (21, 1-11) that this took place to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet Zechariah (9, 9) "Tell the daughter of Sion: behold thy King cometh unto thee, meek, and sitting on a donkey, a colt the foal of a beast of burden. "The disciples did as requested and conducted the two animals, the next morning and covered them with coats of Jesus, we sat down start at the crowd Gerusalemme.Qui numerous, gathered by entries of the arrival of the Messiah, the cloaks spread on the ground, while others cut branches from olive and palm trees, abundant in the region, and waving gaily honoring Jesus cried "Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the heavens. " At this festival that put the city in great agitation, as participating in demonstrations of joy in this world, so many children running back to the small parade waving their arms in response to those who asked, "Who is he?", "This is the prophet Jesus from Nazareth in Galilee. "The major consideration that is given by the Gospel text, it is Jesus enters Jerusalem, the seat of civil and religious power in Palestine, hailed as the king was alone, astride a donkey. It must be said that in the ancient Middle East and consequently in the Bible, the mount of kings , typically warriors, was the horse, a noble animal and considered a powerful weapon for the war, so much so that there were no horse races and were not used even for the work of campi.Logicamente the Messiah, as if the waiting for the Jews, that a deliverer would have to ride a horse, but Jesus as prophesied by Zechariah, choose a donkey, animal, humble and helpful, always on the side of hard-working and peaceful people, the rest the donkey is present in the life of Jesus from his birth in a stable in Bethlehem and the flight into Egypt in the little family pericolo.Quindi Jesus responds to a king who wanted to consider the example of David, that he is a king without any form external power, armed only with signs of peace and forgiveness, from the horse that is not a horse symbol of strength and power since the time of faraoni.La liturgy of Palm Sunday, is held by a starting place for the outside the church, the faithful gather there and the priest read prayers and antiphons, proceeds to the blessing of palm or olive branches, and after reading a Gospel passage, are distributed to the faithful (they can be already given above, before the blessing), then begins the procession from inside the joints chiesa.Qui continues the celebration of Mass, which is characterized by long reading of the Passion of Jesus, taken from the Gospels of Mark, Luke, Matthew according to the cyclical liturgical calendar, the text of the Passion is not the same as stated in the celebration of Good Friday, which is the text of the Gospel of St. Giovanni.Il story of the Passion is read alternately by three players represented by the chronicler, the characters and story of Christ himself. It is divided into four parts: the arrest of Jesus, the Jewish process, the Roman trial, conviction, execution, death sepoltura.Al and the end of Mass, the faithful bring home the blessed olive branches, preserved as a symbol of peace, sharing some with family and friends. It is used in many regions, the head of the family uses a stick, dipped in holy water during the Easter Vigil, the table set to bless the day Pasqua.In many areas of Italy, with the tender parts of large palm leaves, are interwoven small and large packages decorated, which are given away or exchanged among the faithful as a sign of pace.La blessing of the palms has been documented since the seventh century and was a development of appropriate ceremonies and songs on increasing importance in the procession. This is testified to by the Jerusalem late fourth century and almost immediately was greeted by the liturgy of Syria and Egypt. In the West, because this Sunday was reserved for pre-baptismal ceremonies (baptism was administered at Easter) and at the solemn Holy Week procession and blessing of the palms found it difficult to enter, first came into use in Gaul (VII-VIII century) where Theodulf Orleans composed the hymn "Gloria, laus et honor", then in Rome by the end of the eleventh secolo.L 'use of lead in their homes blessed the olive tree or palm stems only devotional, as a wish for pace.Da twenty years, on Palm Sunday is celebrated throughout the Catholic world, the 'Day World Youth ', whose summit was held in Rome in Piazza S. Peter the presence of the pope.
