Palm Sunday

Luke 22: 14–30 (31–23:56)

When the hour had come, Jesus took a place at the table with the apostles. Jesus said to them, “I have longed to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. I tell you, I will not eat it again until everything is fulfilled in the reign of God.” Then taking a cup of wine, Jesus gave thanks and said, “Take this and share it among you. I tell you, I will not drink wine from now on, until the reign of God comes.” Jesus took bread and gave thanks for it broke it and gave it to them saying, “This is my body, which will be given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.”

Jesus did the same with the cup after supper and said, “This cup is the New Covenant in my blood, which will be poured out for you. Look! The hand of my betrayer is at this table with me. The Chosen One is following the appointed course. But woe to the person by whom that One is betrayed!” Then they began to argue among themselves as to which of them would do such a deed. Another dispute arose among them about who would be regarded as the greatest.

But Jesus said to them, “Earthly rulers domineer over their people. Those who exercise authority over them are called their ‘benefactors.’ This must not happen with you. Let the greatest among you be like the youngest. Let the leader among you become the follower. For who is the greater? The one who reclines at a meal, or the one who serves it? Is it not the one reclining at table? Yet here I am among you as the one who serves you.

You are the ones who have stood by me faithfully in trials. Just as God has given me dominion, so I give it to you. In my reign, you will eat and drink at my table, and you will sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel.

Reflection by Lori Kizzia

This is the Passion, THE Passion, Christ’s passion. It is a story that we speak as prayer each time we share the Eucharistic meal, more familiar than any human story and yet, it always overwhelms and surprises me, leaving a profound sadness and a wholeness of being which can only come from embracing life in the shadow of looming death. Approaching one’s own death or the death of a loved one (here, our beloved Jesus) creates a transformation in us which fills every moment with sacred clarity. Each word becomes a sonnet, each breath a psalm. The beautiful and fragile nature of life itself becomes vibrantly clear in the face of death. Every hour becomes a festival celebration. When Jesus calls us to the table with him for a last meal before he dies, he is calling us into a moment such as this, highly charged, passionate and urgent, full of insight. Here, in the Upper Room, death pounding at the door, he offers what is for me, his most powerful teaching on the meaning of human experience.

After breaking and blessing the Passover bread and offering his companions the wine glass, Jesus confirms that someone at the dinner party will betray him into death. His companions argue about whom it might be, accusing each other and no doubt attempting to escape the blame. Absurdly, they escalate the argument into a question of who among them might be considered the greatest. Jesus responds...

“Let the greatest among you be like the youngest. Let the leader among you become the follower. For who is the greater? The one who reclines at a meal or the one who serves it? Is it not the one reclining at table? Yet here I am among you as the one who serves you.”

Jesus, the one who serves us, not Lord Jesus, not Jesus the Savior of the World, not the King of Kings, but Jesus the servant, here in the last hours of his life, calling us into the greatness of serving one another. Some scholars suggest that this moment is added by the gospel writer of Luke, to reflect the fulfillment of a messianic prophecy. Maybe so, maybe not. Either way, a story this powerful doesn’t need to be factual to be true. Jesus calling us into the service of God’s Kingdom is revealed here as a stunning, unavoidable truth.

Contemporary filmmakers and Renaissance painters have it all wrong when it comes to depicting this scene in the gospel drama. Jesus does not elevate himself to the starring role. In casting the Last Supper, Jesus takes the role of servant-waiter, not the celebrity guest of honor, and he expects us to do likewise if we truly want to love and serve God.

There is nothing I desire more in life than to serve God. I often pray a single prayer, “God use me,” to express my desire to be God’s presence to those in need or pain. Yet for many of us, particularly those who have experienced oppression or abuse because of our target status in society, there is a perceivable tension between the role of servant and the abuses of servitude. It can be very difficult to assume the role of servant in a society that demeans and minimizes women, children, people of color, immigrants.

Those who serve are often treated unjustly, paid unfairly, and used by a system which doesn’t value their humanity. The working class poor, those who labor without documents, children who are forced to work adult jobs, those who are put in harms way through their service, all of these servants are denied the dignities that we all deserve as members of the human family.

Here, at the Last Supper, sacred ground we visit together every week, Jesus calls us to serve the servants in our lives and in ourselves. He challenges us to speak, advocate and struggle for justice as acts of love. He calls us to dismantle social structures of oppression and abuse, and to take big risks when need be to accomplish this. Arrest, torture, death—none of these could stop him from serving, and I ask myself daily what am I willing to risk to serve others today?

The Passion of Christ is narrowly described as Jesus’ suffering, death and resurrection. But Jesus’ larger passion was his passion for humanity, for the work of bringing God’s Kingdom to Earth. His passion was his love for God and for those he served, for the servant disciple in each of us. Each time I open my heart or stand in solidarity with someone, each time I lend my voice to demand justice, offer a simple act of kindness or love someone who challenges me, I become a part of Jesus’ story.

This commitment to serve others, even when it is difficult or painful, is the deeper passion of Christ. And it is through this passion that we are lifted out of the abuses of servitude, healed by Jesus’ perfect love for us, and invited into the knowledge that every moment is sacred and every human interaction is an opportunity to touch, know, and serve the Divine.


During the Week
Look for Jesus in each person who serves you, restaurant servers, childcare workers, teachers, postal workers and gardeners. Smile from your heart and acknowledge the divine presence in each person.

Make a list throughout the week, of all who serve you and your family, and all those you serve. Create a litany of gratitude for each one in your own words; offer these thanksgivings to God in your daily prayers.

Offer yourself intentionally as a servant to the Christ in all people. Go out of your way to serve someone this week. Lend a hand to an elderly neighbor by taking out the trash or bringing a treat. Surprise your co-workers with a thank you note for great team work, appreciate your family with extra time and attention, say more than just thank you to every person who helps or serves you.

Finally, offer your gratitude to Jesus himself. Speak to him in your heart; share your joy and thanksgiving for his life and witness and for his constant service to you on the journey of your life.