It is the Feast of Palm Sunday, the faithful begin preparations for Easter

It is the Feast of Palm Sunday and the beginning of Holy Week, with which the faithful begin preparations for the greatest Christian holiday, Easter. It is marked by solemn Masses and the blessing of olive and palm branches.

With the Sunday of the Passion of the Lord, the faithful have stepped into Holy Week.

The Archbishop's Message: Examine Your Conscience

The Archbishop of Zagreb, Dražen Kutleša, said on Palm Sunday that Christ's Passion simultaneously reveals the depth of human sin and the greatness of God's love. Palm Sunday, which marks the beginning of Holy Week, recalls Jesus' entry into Jerusalem, but also his path toward the Cross.

In his homily, he highlighted the contrast between the shouting of "Hosanna" and the later "Crucify him," emphasizing how this change reflects human fickleness. “In Christ's Passion,” he said, “the entire range of human weaknesses is visible—from betrayal and fear to hatred and indifference—showing that sin destroys relationships and extinguishes love.”

Kutleša warned of the danger of relativizing sin and emphasized that Christ's Passion calls for a serious examination of conscience. He pointed out that the Cross shows the weight of sin, but also God's justice, which is manifested not by the destruction of man, but by the sacrifice of the only Righteous One.

In conclusion, he said that the center of the Christian message is a love that goes to the end, even toward those who betray and reject. He called on the faithful to follow Christ by accepting their own cross—not as a search for suffering, but as a path of faithfulness, love, and salvation.

The faithful keep certain customs from being forgotten.

Waking up and washing in water with flower petals, coming to Holy Mass, and entering Holy Week with the blessing of branches.

Love and peace versus a world of interests

The faithful also celebrated Palm Sunday in Rijeka. The ritual of blessing olive branches began in the Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, led by the Archbishop of Rijeka, Mate Uzinić. Afterward, he proceeded in a procession with priests and the faithful to the Cathedral of St. Vitus, where Mass was celebrated.

"Does it not happen even today that Jesus, with his message of love, forgiveness, and the sword returned to its scabbard, remains alone? Not only the members of his own people who did not recognize him as Christ but also those who have confessed him as Christ, justify their arms race, the economic interests of the powers of this world, and bless warlords with some kind of desire to achieve world peace. The path of Christians is the path of the Cross; it is always a path of defeat, a path of humility, a path of giving and serving, a path of love to the end," said Archbishop Mate Uzinić of Rijeka.

Archbishop Uzinić sent powerful messages about war, peace, and the responsibility of world powers.

"I believe that we should join one another in this common cry against war and killing, and we should act together and resist the logic that removes those who are in the way just because they are in the way," Mate Uzinić, Archbishop of Rijeka, stated.

Ahead of the faithful are Holy Week and the Easter Triduum, the crown of which is the celebration of Easter.

The Custom of Processions with Palm and Olive Branches

The custom of religious processions with palm branches originated in Jerusalem in the 4th century and has been practiced in Rome since the 9th century, from where it spread throughout the entire Church.

As the custom spread across Europe, the faithful in Mediterranean regions used green branches of palm and olive, while in continental regions, they used branches of fir or whatever ornamental shrubs they had at hand. After participating in the liturgy, they would take them home as a sacred object and place them in the house or in the fields to protect them from storms or other evils. When a storm was brewing, these blessed branches would be burned while praying that God would spare the crops from hail and storms.

Customs such as washing in water strewn with flower petals in the Dalmatian Hinterland and Lika, and decorating wells with flowers and greenery in the Pannonian regions, are—as noted by the Ethnographic Museum—linked to pre-Christian beliefs.

Palm Sunday marks the beginning of Holy Week, the commemoration of the final days of Jesus' life, his Passion, and death. Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and the Easter Vigil are specially celebrated.

Source: HRT