Palm Sunday falls on this date in 2024, so here are ten facts about Palm Sunday:
Palm Sunday is a Christian moveable feast, celebrated the Sunday before Easter. It is also the sixth Sunday and final day of Lent.
It marks the triumphant entry of Jesus into Jerusalem, which is told in all four of the gospels: Matthew 21:1-11, Mark 11:1-11, Luke 19:28-44, and John 12:12-19.
On the first Palm Sunday, Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a Donkey while crowds spread palm leaves and items of clothing in front of him, and cried, “Hosanna” which translates as “save us!” This fulfilled a prophecy in the Old Testament in Zechariah 9:9, about 500 years earlier. “Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass.”
Why a donkey? Wouldn’t you expect a king to show up on a fine white horse? Perhaps, but this would send a signal that the king had come to wage war. It was traditional for a king to ride on a donkey if he came in peace. Exactly the message that Jesus would have wanted to convey.
In the ancient Near East, it was customary to cover the path of someone deemed worthy of great honour.
The Christian church marks Palm Sunday by blessing palm branches, which may be woven into crosses, and handing them out to the congregation. The crosses are kept until just before Lent the following year, when they are collected and burned to make ash to use on Ash Wednesday.
The palm branch represented goodness, well-being and victory, so is particularly appropriate to symbolise Christ’s victory over death.
Of course, palm trees aren’t available everywhere in the world, so in some countries it’s necessary to use a substitute. In Ireland, for example, they’ll use Yew, silver fir, spruce or Cypress instead and the day is known as “Yew Sunday” instead. In India, Marigolds are strewn on the ground on this day.
In Latvia, it’s called "Pussy Willow Sunday". Children are traditionally woken this morning by being swiped with a willow branch. Congregations at church will be given pussy Willow, which symbolise new life.
The colour Red is associated with Palm Sunday. Catholic priests wear red robes on this day.
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