HIS EMINENCE METROPOLITAN NICOLAE
The Romanian Orthodox Metropolia of the Americas
Liaison to IOCC from the Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops of the United States
By raising Lazarus from the dead before Your passion, You did confirm the universal resurrection, O Christ God! Like the children with the palms of victory, we cry out to You, O Vanquisher of death: Hosanna in the highest! Blessed is He that comes in the name of the Lord!
— Apolytikion: First Tone
As we enter the final week of our Lenten journey, we begin by taking part in the celebration of Christ’s entrance into Jerusalem. Our Lord entered the Holy City in meekness, sitting on the back of a beast, as cries of “Hosanna!” greeted Him from all directions. The people, for a brief moment, recognized their Lord, and rejoiced that He had come to dwell among them.
We also rejoice at Christ’s coming, but our joy is just as short lived, as we embark on the procession toward the Cross. We witness as Christ establishes Holy Communion with His disciples, blessing bread and wine, we witness His agony in the Garden of Gethsemane, His prayer and His isolation, we witness His betrayal at the hands of Judas, His defense before the Pharisees, we witness His terrible Passion, His ascent to Golgotha, and ultimately, His Crucifixion.
Though He is painfully misunderstood by so many around Him, nevertheless, at every moment, Christ pours forth His love and care. We are blessed to share in this love during the dark days of Holy Week, experiencing its profound beauty even if we cannot grasp its depths.
And finally, as we approach the crucial moment of Christ’s Resurrection on Great and Holy Pascha, our mourning gives way to joy, and we behold that the grave truly cannot hold the Creator of life. May the sweetness of Our Lord’s victory over death stay with us all through the Paschal season, as we join together to shout in jubilation:
“Christ is Risen! Truly! Truly He is Risen!”
