PALM SUNDAY: TWO ROADS AT THE CROSS: WILL YOU STAY WITH JESUS?

This week, the Church leads us into the heart of our salvation—the suffering and death of Christ, which opens the way to Easter joy. The Passion is not just something we remember; it is something we enter.

In this narrative, we see the instability of the human heart. Jesus is abandoned by friends, rejected by His own people, falsely accused, and condemned to die. The same crowd that shouted “Hosanna” will soon cry “Crucify Him.”

And yet, even in the midst of betrayal, small lights shine. There is Simon of Cyrene, who helps carry the cross. There are the women of Jerusalem, who weep. There is the good thief, who turns to Jesus in his final moment. There is Joseph of Arimathea, who offers a tomb. And there are the women who are simply described as “sitting there, facing the tomb.” These quiet acts of faithfulness remind us that even in darkness, goodness has not disappeared.

As Fulton Sheen once said, the story of Christ is different from every other life: His death comes first, and His life follows. The cross is not the end—it is the beginning of victory. This brings us to a choice.

Robert Frost once wrote in the poem The Road Not Taken, “Two roads diverged in a yellow wood. And sorry, I could not travel both and be one traveler. Long I stood and looked down one as far as I could, to where it bent in the undergrowth… One is the easy road—comfort, popularity, silence when faith is inconvenient. The other is the narrow road—the way of Christ, which includes sacrifice, courage, and sometimes suffering.

The Passion shows us that even the disciples stood at this crossroads. Stay with Jesus and suffer? Or step away and save themselves? Peter chose wrongly—but he returned. That is the hope of the Gospel.

There’s a simple story about two elderly friends who wondered if there was baseball in heaven. One appeared after death and said to his friend: “There is baseball in heaven… but you’re pitching tonight.” The point is simple: we all hope for heaven, but we must be willing to step onto the field now. Faith is not passive. It requires participation—prayer, sacrifice, witness, perseverance.

Holy Week confronts us with a question: Will we remain with Christ, or will we drift with the crowd? Real Christian faith does not move from “Hosanna” to “Crucify Him.” It stays. It endures. It chooses Christ—even when it costs. So today, we ask: What small act of faithfulness is God calling me to? Where am I tempted to compromise my faith for comfort or acceptance? How can I stand with Christ this week—in prayer, in sacrifice, in love?

Because in the end, as Frost says, “Two roads diverged in a wood, and I— I took the one less traveled by. And that has made all the difference.” We will tell the story of the road we chose. And that choice will make all the difference.

Christ has walked the road of the Cross for us. He has given everything. And from the Cross, He speaks words of completion and trust: “It is finished… Father, into your hands I commend my spirit.” This Holy Week, may we not walk away. May we stay with Him.

1^st Reading: Is. 50:4-7; 2^nd Phil. 2:6-11; Gospel: Matthew 26:14–27:66