A journey to our heart

Jesus' journey into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday is a journey to meet his death. At the gates of Jerusalem, people screamed joyfully, "Hosanna, the King, Son of David" and in Jerusalem, the same people, shouted, "Crucify him, crucify him." In Jerusalem, people gave up their clothes as the foundation for the donkey that Jesus was riding on, and in Jerusalem, people took Jesus' clothes, and gambled away his robes, leaving only a piece that covered his body. In Jerusalem, people waved palm fronds when welcoming Jesus’ arrival, and in Jerusalem, people played with the whips that hit Jesus' body. At the gates of Jerusalem, they welcomed Jesus like a king, and in Jerusalem, Jesus was defiled and spat on in abomination.

If so, then Jesus' journey into Jerusalem is Jesus' journey into our hearts. Perhaps our hearts are no better than the hearts of the Jerusalemites. How the human heart changes so quickly. How easy it is for humans to be full of pretenses. How there is almost no distance between loving and hating. If Jesus' journey entering Jerusalem 2,000 years ago means Jesus' journey entering our hearts today, let's ask ourselves: what kind of heart will Jesus find? Perhaps He will find a heart similar to Judas, Peter, or Simon of Cyrene.

First, Judas’ heart. In Jerusalem, Jesus’ death started with Judas' kiss. He not only betrayed Jesus by selling him but also hurt Jesus' heart with the bitterness of a kiss. How people sell each other so easily, how crime is often wrapped up in beautiful but cunning ways. Judas sold Jesus 2,000 years ago, and today, it is repeating itself in many forms. Humans make each other into merchandise. What we call human trafficking is the heinous practice of selling human beings as slaves, as well as selling organs at prices reaching millions of pesos.

If in the past, Judas betrayed Jesus, now we do it in another form. Many couples find it so easy to betray the promise and dignity of marriage that they used to say in front of the altar. Many parents are so quick to betray their role as parents when they fail to pass down good values and instead set bad examples. Many people make sweet promises so easily but also betray those promises so quickly. Our betrayals not only lead Jesus to the cross but also crucify our neighbors. Judas marked his betrayal with a kiss, and on Good Friday, we will kiss Jesus too. What does our kiss mean?

Second, Peter's heart. In Jerusalem, Jesus found Peter, his trusted disciple, forgetting him quickly. Peter, who the previous night promised to be willing to die for Jesus, now even denies Jesus for the third time. The fear of death was stronger than Peter's love for Jesus. Peter not only denied Jesus, but also broke his promise. Peter's denial also occurs in our lives today, in many forms: when we so easily forget and deny our relatives just because of a small misunderstanding or different political choices; when a child lives a luxurious lifestyle in the city, while in the village, his parents are half dead. If before, Peter's feelings of love were lost in the face of his fear, now our love for Jesus may have been defeated in the face of economic interests that make us ignore Jesus.

Third, Simon's heart. On the way to Golgotha, Jesus found that those who were moved to help him were not his disciples, not his relatives, nor the people he had helped, but a stranger from Cyrene named Simon. In Jerusalem, Jesus found many people mourning his suffering, but only Simon was moved to help. This experience of Jesus is perhaps also the experience of each of us: when it is often, someone else who helps us quicker, and not our family; or when we tend to be more moved to help others, and it is difficult to help our own family. Often, we focus more on the people we just met in cyberspace and ignore the people we meet every day, including our family.

Jesus entered Jerusalem, and he will enter our hearts. There Jesus will examine: Are our hearts the same as those of Simon of Cyrene, or are they more like the hearts of Peter and Judas?