The Making Disciples Today Blog has reflections to help you grow in your journey of missionary discipleship, reviews on recommended Catholic evangelization resources, and practical insight on how to evangelize in your daily life.
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- Written by Kristin Bird
A Simple Ritual for the Home
“On this day the Church celebrates Christ’s entrance into Jerusalem to accomplish his paschal mystery” (Roman Missal).
“Entrance” is the key to understanding the liturgy of Passion (Palm) Sunday. We enter into Jerusalem with Christ. We enter into our holiest week. We enter into our final preparation for the Easter feast.
Ordinarily when we go to Sunday Mass we enter the church one by one, as we arrive. On Palm Sunday, we enter the church together -- a grand entrance.
Usually, the community gathers in another location (outside the church, for example, or in the school hall). One of the Gospel accounts of Jesus’ triumphant entrance into Jerusalem is proclaimed.
Many people spread their cloaks on the road, and others spread leafy branches that they had cut from the fields. Those preceding him as well as those following kept crying out:
“Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Blessed is the kingdom of our father David that is to come! Hosanna in the highest!”(Mark 11:8-10).
And then we “enter into” the Gospel. We go with Christ into Jerusalem. We process into the church.
Procession with Palms
This is one of our most joyful and triumphant processions of the entire year. As we gather on this Sunday we receive a branch of palm or olive (or other green plant).
What do you do with the palm branches you bring home from Palm Sunday Mass?
The branches are blessed by the priest before the procession and often kept as blessed objects in peoples’ homes. Please don't throw them (or any scrap pieces) into the trash. The proper way to dispose of blessed items is to bury them, burn them, or return them your church so they can burn them and use them next Ash Wednesday.
Palm Crosses
One of my fondest memories of Palm Sunday as a child is the quick palm cross my mom would whip each of our palms into as soon as we sat down at church. The palm crosses were a sign of how quickly our love and adoration for Jesus can turn to rejection of him through sin. Our shouts of "Hosannah!" turn to shouts of "Crucify him!" during that Mass almost as fast as my palm turned from a branch into a cross.
There was another, more practical benefit to her talent as well. Palm branches that wave during the procession quickly turn into swords, lightsabers, sky writing pens, lassos, and objects of torture in the hands of young children. The compact crosses my mom whipped out during the First Reading were not nearly as easy to poke my siblings with!
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- Written by Kristin Bird
Did you know...? According to some historical accounts, if you’ve ever pulled a prank on April Fool’s Day, you have the Catholic Church to thank.
In 1582, Pope Gregory XIII issued a decree ordering that all Christian nations adopt a standardized calendar. This new "Gregorian calendar" moved the new year from the end of March to the first of January. If you've ever misdated a January check, you can likely empathize with the confusion this caused for some folks in the years that followed. Those who didn't know about the change, didn't want to observe it, or simply forgot about it were mocked as “fools” when they mistakenly celebrated the new year on April 1.
A French tradition that dates back to this era may have been the start of the pranks we traditionally play on this day. Some writers suggest that those who adopted the new calendar began tricking those who didn't by sending them on foolish errands, playing practical jokes on them, or attaching fish to their backs (symbolizing a young, easily caught fish / a gullible person).
However, we can dig deeper into April Fools Day and consider it more than just a day to play pranks. The whole notion of foolishness has a long tradition with deep meaning in the Christian tradition, and reflecting on them can help us grow in our journey of discipleship.
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- Written by Burning Hearts Team
How Accompaniment Can Help You Grow This Lent
The forty days of Lent can seem like a long time, especially if one is giving up a favorite food or video game. It's helpful to have a friend to keep us going. He or she can encourage us, challenge us, and pick us up if we falter. In fact, that kind of accompaniment - a holy friendship developed out of mutual love for one another and a desire to walk with one another into deeper relationship with Jesus - is the heart of evangelization and discipleship.
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- Written by Kristin Bird
Evangelizing Answers to Every Catholic's Favorite Ash Wednesday Question
We don't presume to have the right response for every situation, but there are a few suggestions below that might help give you a foundation whether the questioner is a stranger just trying to be helpful...