Our Christian Role on the Stage of Life

Homily: Palm Sunday of the Passion of the Lord  (B)

Mark 11:1-10 / Mark 14:1-15:47

28 March 2021 

Fr. Ricky C. Montanez, AA

In today’s liturgy, the story of the Passion of Jesus is read dramatically, with some people in the assembly taking on various roles: the narrator, Jesus, Pilate, the apostles, some minor characters and the crowd. Among these roles, I feel the most challenging is the part of the “CROWD” which is often assigned to the rest of the congregation. I have always found it awkward to have to say the lines and capture the irony in the crowd’s response towards Jesus as presented in the two gospels proclaimed in this Sunday’s liturgy. The crowd in the narratives that greet Jesus with joyful shouting: “Hosanna!” (meaning “Save us, we pray!”) “Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!” (Psalm 118: 26), are the very same people who would later demand Jesus’ death, preferring to save a vicious thug and murderer over Jesus crying out: “Crucify him!” (Mark 15:13).

In the passion narrative, Jesus knew Judas was going to betray Him, maybe even before Judas did. “Amen I say to you, one of you will betray me, one who is eating with me.” (Mark 14:18) Remember that Judas had free will and it was his willful decision to conspire with the high priests but he could have also chosen to abort his plans. But he didn’t. The development of his character in the company of Jesus skewed his tendencies and veered him from the path Jesus was showing them. Perhaps, we can say, that Judas disagreed with Jesus’ plan and opted to take matters into his own hands.  Whether it was intended to save Jesus or deliberately eliminate Him, we do not know. Nonetheless, in John’s Gospel Jesus seems to imply that the betrayal was a necessary first step to His glorification. We read there that as soon as Judas leaves, Jesus says, “Now is the Son of Man glorified.” (John 13:31) Judas’ terrible act of betrayal sets into motion the events that led to the passion.  

Peter is another interesting character. Jesus knew that Peter’s faith would be shaken just like the rest of the Twelve and that eventually he would deny Him. “Amen, I say to you, this very night before the cock crows twice you will deny me three times.”  (Mark 14:30) Peter vehemently objects saying: “Even though I should die with you, I will not deny you.” (Mark 14:31) We all know how Peter’s story ends and how he eventually dies for Christ in an equally gruesome crucifixion but he lives many years before that as he still had much to accomplish to continue the work of Jesus. Judas’ betrayal, Peter’s denial, the abandonment of the rest of the Twelve and what He had to go through in His passion and death were ugly and unpleasant events but they were necessary to bring about the desired outcome. We recall what Jesus taught about “the Son of Man who must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and after three days rise again.” (Mark 8:31). Jesus knew what He had to undergo in order to be glorified by the Father. 

As we enter more deeply into the story of the Passion of Jesus at the start of the Holy Week, we are invited to look closely at the complex reality of human life and human relationships through the choices and interactions of the characters in the drama. Life is almost like a stage play with each of us playing vital roles in the continuing story of human salvation. The script, in this case is unfinished and continues to evolve with the passage of time driven by the exit of players and the introduction of new characters through the generations. Our faith compels us to trust that our presence is of value because God, our Creator, who knows us before we are born, has a purpose for each one of us. He knows who we are and what we are all capable of since He designed us and gifted us with our unique talents.

The human drama of life and the choices made by all its characters continue to puzzle us. In the Act of the play where we must live out the COVID 19 pandemic, it is easy to label persons as “incorrigible”, “wicked” and “evil”, because we observe them to have made such poor choices or to exhibit bad behaviour. We must constantly remind ourselves that each one of us has indeed a vital role to play in God’s unfolding plan for us. Like the antagonists in the passion story, where they commit their wrong-doings, failings, poor and critical judgments, God is still there, bringing about or ushering in a greater good. Ironically, in Mark’s passion narrative it is from the enemies and foreigners that we come to understand who Jesus is and what His purpose is for humanity. The high priest asks Jesus if He is “the Christ, the Son of the Blessed One.” (Mark 14:61) Pilate condemns Jesus because He is the “King of the Jews”. Then, there is the Roman centurion who confesses that Jesus… “This man is truly the Son of God.” (Mark 15:39)

When I think of the people who get on my nerves, I would still like to believe that there is a purpose why they are part of the unfolding twists and turns of our human lives. Through them, we are made to realise how important it is to be discerning of our choices and actions in life. In all humility, we must acknowledge that we, too have played both sides at some point.  We, too, are constantly faced with the choice to be either protagonists or antagonists in the human drama. Also of importance is realising that coming to a fuller appreciation of the unique roles we play in the story of humanity is a lifetime process. As long as we live our characters, we have a chance to change, develop and improve. Inevitably, the characters in the human drama simply change over time as people die and are born but the story of salvation continues. This is not to say that we are God’s puppets or this happens for His entertainment. God is not self-serving nor selfish. We have free will so our roles are not completely defined and the script is always in flux, developing as the story unfolds, revealing surprise twists with every unexpected interactions of the characters. This being said, we cannot judge someone to be villain or hero until his/her story is truly over. As long as the story continues, we as characters can always find redemption. Perhaps, this is a worthwhile prayer — that those who choose to be the villains in this human drama called life may have that moment of conversion.

“All the world’s a stage, and all men and women merely players; they have their exits and their entrances, and one man in his time plays many parts…” So goes the opening line in William Shakespeare’s play, As You Like It. We all have a role to play in life. But we have the choice how to play our part. As long as we breathe there will always be a part of us who can either shout “Hosanna!” or “Crucify Him!” over the many circumstances by which Christ presently makes Himself manifest. Let us be patient with one another and suspend judgments over each one’s character. After all, we are all created by God in His great love. We all have the potential to be the hero that bears witness to Christ and ensures that His saving love is a constant element in the drama of our broken humanity.