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“Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord. Peace in
heaven and glory in the highest.” Some of the Pharisees in the
crowd said to him, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples.” He said in
reply, “I tell you, if they keep silent, the stones will cry out!”
Luke 19:38–40
At the foot of the Mount of Olives was the Garden of Gethsemane
where Jesus agonized in prayer and was arrested. But several days
before that happened, our Lord crossed over that hill next to the
Mount of Olives with His Apostles and then approached the slope
heading toward the Garden. As He descended, He encountered “the
whole multitude of his disciples” who “began to praise God aloud
with joy for all the mighty deeds they had seen.” They then cried
out: “Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord. Peace
in heaven and glory in the highest.” They met Him within eyeshot of
the gate of the city of Jerusalem. This must have left the Twelve
in amazement.
Among those who were amazed were the Pharisees. But they were not
amazed with joy. Their amazement was caused by envy and led to
condemnation. Jesus’ response was very clear: “I tell you, if they
keep silent, the stones will cry out!” That begs the question: If
these disciples had not offered our Lord this glorious welcome,
would the stones truly have cried out? Most certainly they would
have! They did so just several days later after Jesus had been
abandoned by the crowds.
Recall that when Jesus was crucified, almost every one of these
disciples abandoned Him. They fled in fear. Even most of the Twelve
ran and hid. Only our Blessed Mother, Saint John and a few others
remained. Therefore, when Jesus died on the Cross, abandoned by the
crowds, this prophecy of His came true. “And behold, the veil of
the sanctuary was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth quaked,
rocks were split, tombs were opened, and the bodies of many saints
who had fallen asleep were raised” (Matthew 27:51–52).
We must never keep silent in praise and worship of God. There is an
important lesson to learn from these two moments from that first
Holy Week. At the beginning, as Jesus entered Jerusalem with much
excitement, there were many who offered Him praise. It’s easy to
give praise and glory to God when it is popular and when many
others are doing so. Contrast this with the end of Holy Week when
Jesus was persecuted and killed. Suddenly, praise and open
acclamations were not that popular. Fear had the effect of
silencing the crowds and ending their worship of our Lord. For that
reason, the stones did cry out and the earth quaked.
As we enter this Holy Week, consider whether you are more like the
“whole multitude” of Jesus’ disciples who praised Him when it was
easy and popular, or whether you are more like our Blessed Mother
and Saint John who remained faithful to Him when it was anything
but popular to do so. Do you persevere in your praise and adoration
of God during difficult times? Or do you allow fear of what others
may say, fear of rejection and other forms of humiliation to deter
you from your sacred calling?
Reflect, today, upon these two contrasting moments of that first
Holy Week. Join, today, with the crowds as they acclaim Jesus as
King. As you do, turn your eyes to the King Whom you worship.
Choose to follow Him to His betrayal, His suffering and His death.
Commit yourself to fidelity, especially when it is hard to do so.
Do not waver in your commitment. Look at the love in the heart of
Jesus’ own mother and pray to her that you will have the courage
she had to remain faithful to our Lord, lest the stones be forced
to cry out in your place.
Most glorious King, You were fittingly worshiped and adored as
You entered Jerusalem for the Feast of Passover. I commit myself to
that adoration and praise, and I pray that I will honor and love
You, not only when it is easy but also when it is unpopular. May I
never allow fear to deter me from my love of You and follow You all
the way to the glorious throne of Your Cross. Jesus, I trust in
You.
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