Jesus enters Jerusalem 

Palm Sunday begins with a dramatic scene. Jesus stands on the Mount of Olives overlooking Jerusalem. Below Him lies the Holy City, the Temple shining in the sun, the crowds gathering for Passover. Then something unusual happens. Jesus mounts a donkey and begins riding down the long slope toward Jerusalem. As He descends the hill, the crowd spreads their cloaks on the road and cries out, “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord!”

But why would simply riding a donkey into Jerusalem provoke such an extraordinary response? Because for the people of Israel, this action had royal meaning. When Solomon was publicly proclaimed heir to David’s throne, he was placed on King David’s own mule and brought to Gihon to be anointed king (1 Kings 1:33–40). Later, when Jehu was proclaimed king, the people spread their garments beneath him as a sign of homage (2 Kings 9:13). So, when Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey while the people spread their cloaks before Him, the meaning was unmistakable.

Jesus was publicly revealing Himself as the promised Messiah and King. In doing this, He fulfilled the prophecy of Zechariah, “Behold, your king comes to you; triumphant and victorious is he, humble and riding on a donkey.” (Zech 9:9)

That is why the people cried out, “Hosanna to the Son of David!” They knew what this meant. The King had come.

The Call to Conversion 

Halfway down the Mt of Olives, Jesus stopped, and he wept over Jerusalem, saying, “If you in your turn had only understood on this day the message of peace! But, alas, it is hidden from your eyes! Yes, a time is coming when your enemies will raise fortifications all round you, when they will encircle you and hem you in on every side; they will dash you and your children inside your walls to the ground; they will leave not one stone standing on another within you – and all because you did not recognize your opportunity when God offered it!”

Jesus came, inviting the Jews to conversion and faith. Many did. But many did not and continued on their path of sin, and the Jewish leaders rejected Him. Forty years later, just as Jesus foretold, the Romans came and destroyed Jerusalem, leaving not one stone standing on another.

From Ash Wednesday to today, Jesus has been inviting us to a deeper conversion, a radical change of life. Are we, will we? On March 25th, 2025, Our Lady once again renewed her call for our conversion at Medjugorje, “Dear children, in this time of grace when you are called to conversion, I am encouraging you, little children: offer me your prayers, sufferings and tears for conversion of hearts that are far from the Heart of my Son Jesus. Pray with me, because, little children, without God you do not have a future or eternal life. I love you, but I cannot help you without you; therefore, say 'yes' to God.”

The Cleansing of the Temple

Immediately upon entering Jerusalem, Jesus went into the Temple and drove out those buying and selling. He overturned the tables of the money changers and would not allow anyone to carry goods through the Temple. (Mark 11:15–17) On the surface, this scene appears to be a condemnation of turning the Temple into a marketplace. But we need to listen carefully to the reason Jesus himself gives. When the Jewish leaders confront Him, Jesus explains His actions by quoting two prophets.

First, He quotes Isaiah 56:7: “My house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations.” Then he adds Jeremiah 7:11, “But you have made it a den of robbers.”

 The Temple was meant to be the place where all nations could come to know and worship the true God. But in practice, the Temple excluded the Gentiles. Its structure was a series of increasingly restricted courts. Only certain groups could come closer to the sanctuary, and Gentiles were confined to the outermost area. A warning inscription even stood at the inner barrier, “No Gentile may enter within the barrier… Whoever is caught will be responsible for his own death.”

Pope Benedict XVI explains that Jesus came to bring God to all people, not only to Israel. Therefore, the barriers that prevented the nations from approaching God had to be removed, and a new form of worship had to begin, one that would be open to every people and every nation. As Benedict writes, “According to his own testimony, this fundamental purpose lies behind the cleansing of the Temple: to remove whatever obstacles there may be to the common recognition and worship of God.”

By quoting Jeremiah’s warning about the Temple, Jesus was also indicating something deeper: the time of the old Temple was coming to an end.

The End of the Temple and the Beginning of the Mass

Because true worship of God always includes sacrifice, the Temple in Jerusalem was the only place in the Old Covenant where that sacrifice could be offered. Synagogues were places for prayer, teaching, and gathering, but sacrifice could only take place in the Temple. All of the sacrifices of the Temple pointed forward to the one perfect sacrifice of Jesus on the Cross. When Jesus offered Himself on the Cross, He fulfilled and completed all the sacrifices of the Old Covenant. This one sacrifice of Christ is now made present to us in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.

Jesus Himself foretold this when He said, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” (John 2:19) But, as John explains, “He was speaking of the temple of his body.” (John 2:21)

The true Temple is no longer a building in Jerusalem. Jesus Himself is the Temple, and His Body and Blood are made present to us in the Eucharist. Pope Benedict XVI explains it this way, “The era of the Temple is over. A new worship is being introduced, in a Temple not built by human hands. This Temple is his body, the Risen One, who gathers the peoples and unites them in the sacrament of his body and blood. He himself is the new Temple of humanity. The crucifixion of Jesus is at the same time the destruction of the old Temple. With his Resurrection, a new way of worshipping God begins, no longer on this or that mountain, but ‘in spirit and truth’ (Jn 4:23).”

Through the Mass, the sacrifice of Christ is made present everywhere in the world, so that people from every nation can worship the Father and truly make His house a house of prayer for all nations.

Will I let Jesus be My King? 

Jesus entered Jerusalem as King, but Jesus does not force anyone to accept His kingship. He leaves us free. He shows us the path to happiness and holiness. He comes to dwell within us through grace. He gives us His Holy Spirit to guide us and strengthen us. And yet, so often, I forget.

Instead of letting Jesus reign in my life, I fall back into trying to manage everything with my own weak and anxious power. Palm Sunday places a simple question before each of us, “Who is the king of my life — Jesus, or me?” And so today we pray, “Jesus, I surrender to you. Reign in my mind, my heart, and my actions. Help me to trust your presence, rely on your grace, and live by the power of your Spirit. Amen.”

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