Hosanna! Palm Sunday and Holy Week are Here

This past Sunday, March 29, more than 500 members of the Seton Hall University community gathered to celebrate Palm Sunday across four different Masses. The celebration of Palm Sunday marks the beginning of the most important week of the liturgical year in the Catholic Church, Holy Week. Holy Week offers us an opportunity to return with full hearts to the Lord and prepare our hearts for His death and the celebration of His resurrection on Easter Sunday. 

One of the staples of Palm Sunday Mass is red – the altar is covered with a red altar cloth, the priest wears red garments and the people gathered in worship wear red as well. But have you ever stopped to wonder why red is worn on Palm Sunday? Catholics wear red because it symbolizes the blood, passion and sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross out of love for each and every one of us. While raising palm branches to the sky and say “Hosanna” in joyful acclamation of the Lord, the red worn by the Faithful and seen throughout the chapel is a reminder of Christ’s ultimate sacrifice coming later this Holy Week.

Reflecting on the color red and the upcoming sacrifice of Jesus this Holy Week, our celebrants at the 6 p.m. and 8 p.m. Masses, Father Nick Sertich and Father Colin Kay, offered the University community some more profound thoughts on which to reflect. At the 6 p.m. Mass, Father Nick spoke not only about the sacrifice of Christ on the cross, but the sacrifice of the many saints and martyrs who came before us who gave their life for their faith and those around them.

Thinking about the examples of the thousands who have given their lives for their Christian faith, Father Nick asked the assembly, “Would I be willing to shed my blood for someone I love? Would I be willing to give up my life for the God who gave me the gift of life?” These profound questions push each of us to reflect more deeply on our faith and see perhaps where our hearts are still stuck or still hardened. It is a call to see where we can still grow and deepen our faith in every corner of our hearts and lives. 

At the 8 p.m. Mass, Father Colin urged the assembly to drop it – drop the rock, the stress, the anxiety, the struggle, whatever is holding us back from experiencing the love of the God. Father Colin called the University community to bring everything to Jesus, for He is the one who can sustain us.

According to Father Colin, “We have everything we need,” particularly when we turn to Jesus and drop everything for Him. Collectively, Father Nick’s and Father Colin’s messages call us to go deeper into our faith, to see where we can grow, to see what we can drop in front of the Lord and to rely of Jesus and His source of hope during this Holy Week. 

Holy Week is a beautiful reminder of what the Catholic faith is about, love. Palm Sunday Mass served as an opportunity for our University community to gather in love and worship in a meaningful way. As one student at the 8 p.m. Mass said, “It was beautiful to see everybody gather in worship.” The beauty of Holy Week is only just beginning and Seton Hall Campus Ministry wishes you all a very blessed week.

Categories: Campus Life, Faith and Service