Being a Christian is a Pilgrimage: Pope's Homily on Palm Sunday

Matthew Harrison

Monday, March 29, 2010

Pope Benedict XVI celebrated Palm Sunday with thousands of faithful in St. Peter's Square on Sunday. Palm Sunday is also the weekend that World Youth Day is celebrated at the diocesan level, and this year marked the 25th anniversary of the event established by Venerable John Paul II. The anniversary was the focus on his Angelus address, and was touched on during the homily, but the major thrust of the homily was an examination of the life of a Christian as a pilgrimage.

Find the homily's full text below, courtesy of Zenit:

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Dear Young People!

The Gospel for the blessing of the palms that we have listened to together here in St. Peter's Square begins with the phrase: "Jesus went ahead of everyone going up to Jerusalem" (Luke 19:28). Immediately at the beginning of the liturgy this day, the Church anticipates her response to the Gospel, saying, "Let us follow the Lord." With that the theme of Palm Sunday is clearly expressed. It is about following. Being Christian means seeing the way of Jesus Christ as the right way of being human -- as that way that leads to the goal, to a humanity that is fully realized and authentic. In a special way, I would like to repeat to all the young men and women, on this 25th World Youth Day, that being Christian is a journey, or better: It is a pilgrimage, it is a going with Jesus Christ. A going in that direction that he has pointed out to us and is pointing out to us.

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