When is Palm Sunday?
Palm Sunday is a Christian moveable feast that falls on the Sunday before Easter.
Palm Sunday is the first day of Holy Week, a period leading up to Easter. Holy Week is the last week of lent, before the festival of Easter and the end of fasting. The Holy Week is seven days of religious significance, with masses often held on key days.
Why is it called Palm Sunday?
During the Jewish Passover celebration, Jesus rode into Jerusalem and was given a hero’s welcome by the people, who had heard of his miracles and regarded him as the leader who would deliver them from the domination of the Roman Empire. They carried palm branches, a traditional symbol of victory, and spread them in the streets before him, shouting ‘‘Hosanna, glory to God’’ (John 12:12,13). Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem is mentioned in each of the four canonical Gospels.
Palms are still used in church services on this day, which is the beginning of Holy Week, and Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem is often reenacted with a procession—the most impressive being the one in Rome, where the pope, carried in St.Peter’s Chair, blesses the palms.
At the beginning or end of the service, the palms are distributed to the congregation. In some countries, where palms are not available, branches of other trees—particularly pussy willow, olive, box, yew, and spruce—are used. They are later hung up in houses for good luck, buried to preserve crops, or used to decorate graves.
On Holy Thursday, Jesus was arrested after the Last Supper, before being crucified on Good Friday.
According to the bible, Jesus then rose again on Easter Sunday.
