This Sunday is Palm Sunday of the Passion of the Lord – a very important day for Christians throughout the world.
On this day, we recall Jesus’ messianic entrance into Jerusalem before his crucifixion and the hero’s welcome his supporters gave him. They carried palm branches – symbols of joy and victory – and spread them on the streets before him, exclaiming praises as he passed by.
At the Catholic Church of St Bartomeu in the main square of Soller, the faithful will gather in front of the Church for a procession around the town, which will begin at 10.00 a.m. They will carry palm and olive branches and, in this way, they will act out and share in the mystery of the first Palm Sunday and Christ’s suffering, death and resurrection as it unfolds during the following week: Holy Week.
When the procession arrives back at the Church, the congregation will process or enter into the Church together; bearing witness again to their “entering” into Jerusalem with Christ and “entering” into the Gospel. Once inside the Church, the Mass will begin and the Gospel account of the Passion of Christ will be announced with the priest, readers and congregation reading aloud respectively the responses of Christ, the Apostles and the crowds as they occurred that day.
Please feel free to join the faithful outside the Church at 10.00 a.m. Olive branches are available beforehand on the right hand side inside the Church or, alternatively, you will find very beautifully tied and plaited palm branches that you can buy in the marketplace this Saturday.
Debra Reynolds – Religious Affairs Correspondent and Soller Resident
