Why is palm sunday celebrated

In some traditions, there is the washing of the feet of various members of the community to recall a gesture of Christ at the Last Supper when he washed the feet of his disciples.

This is a sign of the need to do more to love one another and to serve all people, especially the poor. Good Friday is a solemn day on which Christians recall the death of Jesus and its promise of hope and new life.

In some traditions a wooden cross is set up and people spend time meditating before it. Other people make the Stations of the Cross a devotion that recalls the journey of Jesus on the Via Dolorosa Way of Sorrows in Jerusalem to Calvary where he was crucified.

In Jerusalem the place of Christ's death and resurrection is commemorated inside the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Many Christians keep this devotion but also see in the suffering of Jesus a reminder to be more concerned for the suffering of people in today's world. For many Christians, this day is also a day of fasting and penance. Easter Sunday is the greatest feast in the Christian calendar. There are competitions for the best ones. Devotees hold their palm fronds that's another word for leaf of a palm tree or fern plant during Palm Sunday mass in Manila, Philippines.

People in the Philippines will decorate and weave palm fronds into complicated shapes, called palaspas say 'pal-a-spawce'. A ski lodge in the mountains of Norway. People in Norway decorate their homes with birch twigs and painted eggs for Palm Sunday. Lots of places have the week before Easter off and people will travel to cottages for skiing, reading and family time. Read all about Lent — the 40 days before Easter. Bread made in the shape of a rooster for Palm Sunday. In some towns, kids have a procession where they carry crosses decorated with ribbons and, on top, a rooster made out of bread.

The catkins, the furry part of the pussy willow, appear in eary spring. Photo courtesy of pasja by Pixabay. Pussy willows are a lot easier to find in Latvia than palms, so the day is known as Pussy Willow Sunday. Palm Sunday is a moveable holiday meaning it's date changes each year based on Lent and the spring equinox.

Many churches celebrate Palm Sunday with the waving of palm branches, singing traditional hymns, and making crosses out of palm fronds. Palm Sunday will be on March 28, Palm Sunday is always the Sunday before Easter. Maybe your church has children waving palm branches to help them connect to the story. Matthew tells us: 'This took place to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet, saying, 'Say to the daughter of Zion, 'Behold, your king is coming to you, humble, and mounted on a donkey, and on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden.

Jesus had become somewhat of a celebrity among people who had heard of the miraculous raising of Lazarus from the dead, and they wanted to see Him and treat Him like a king. Download and print this guide to keep with you as a reminder of God's goodness and sacrifice leading up to Good Friday and his glorious resurrection on Easter Sunday. Matthew - Jesus Comes to Jerusalem as King. Untie them and bring them to me.

If anyone says anything to you, say that the Lord needs them, and he will send them right away. They brought the donkey and the colt and placed their cloaks on them for Jesus to sit on. A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, while others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. On the heels of Palm Sunday, as we begin this Holy Week, may we constantly be reminded of its significance and value for our lives today.

That very important day in history, when Jesus began His journey towards the cross. Yet maybe in the midst of busy lives, on the heels of Spring Break, or in all of the upcoming thoughts about Easter, the real meaning of it may, even unintentionally, get missed. His Word reveals such great truths in every part of this story.

Truths that draw us closer towards Christ, reminding us that He alone is King God's Word tells us the people cut palm branches and waved them in the air, laid them out on the ground before Jesus as He rode into the city. The palm branch represented goodness and victory and was symbolic of the final victory He would soon fulfill over death. O death, where is your sting?

Jesus chose to ride in on a donkey, which directly fulfilled Old Testament prophecy of Zech. In Biblical times, it was common for kings or important people to arrive by a procession riding on a donkey. The donkey symbolized peace, so those who chose to ride them showed that they came with peaceful intentions.

Jesus even then reminded us that He is the Prince of Peace. Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem!