Palm Sunday Year B (2024) – Passion Sunday

About Palm Sunday Year B (Passion Sunday)

When is Palm Sunday in 2024?

Sunday March 24, 2024

The readings for Palm Sunday Year B (Passion Sunday) focus the sacrifice which Jesus Christ made for me and you. The reading for the procession of the palms tells of Jesus’ triumphant entry into Jerusalem. The first reading from Isaiah foretells Jesus’ suffering. The psalm sings “My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?”, which is the Psalm Jesus prayed from the cross. The second reading from Philippians speaks of the how Jesus Christ is our Lord and Savior. And in the gospel we hear how Jesus first celebrated the Passover, and then became the sacrificial lamb for us.

What are the Mass Readings for the Palm Sunday Year B?

• Procession – Mark 11:1-10: “Those preceding him as well as those following kept crying out: Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!”
• Procession alternate gospel – John 12:12-16: “When the great crowd that had come to the feast heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, they took palm branches and went out to meet him”
• First reading – Isaiah 50:4-7: “I gave my back to those who beat me, my cheeks to those who plucked my beard; my face I did not shield from buffets and spitting.”
• Responsorial Psalm – Psalm 22: “My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?”
• Second Reading – Philippians 2:6-11: “he humbled himself, becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross”
• Gospel – Mark 14:1—15:47: “Jesus gave a loud cry and breathed his last.”

What Are the Themes for the Mass Readings for Palm Sunday Year B?

• The Pascal Mystery
• The sacrifice of Jesus
• Humility
• True leadership

Where Is God?

This prayer is based on Psalm 22, which is the responsorial psalm for Palm Sunday Year C. It is a prayer for when we feel like God is nowhere to be found. Psalm 22 is the psalm Jesus prayed from the cross when he quoted “Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?”

Where Have You Been? (Reflection on the Passion of Jesus Christ)

Reflect on the sentencing of Jesus. It works well if one person reads the scripture and another reads the meditation. It includes a set of questions for small group discussion.

Attend the Mass of the Lord’s Supper

The Mass of the Lord’s Supper commemorates the last supper of Jesus Christ with his disciples, when the institution of the priesthood and the Eucharist took place.  Holy Thursday is not a holy day of obligation, but you should consider attending with your whole family.

Make Jars with the Jelly Bean Prayer to Prepare for Easter

The Jelly Bean Prayer is a fun Easter prayer for your family or youth ministry. Make up some jars of jelly beans to give away with the prayer during the Octave of Easter. Put them on display for the rest of Lent to remember that we are walking this Lenten journey with the hope of celebrating the resurrection of our Lord on Easter.

Attend Good Friday Services

Good Friday is the Friday before Easter. On Good Friday, Catholics commemorate the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, who died to redeem us. There is no mass on Good Friday, but your local parish will hold a liturgy to remember this tremendous act of love. Attend them with your family.

Prayerfully Read the Passion of Our Lord

We are all familiar with the Passion story. We hear it every year on Palm Sunday and on Good Friday. But when we read it at Mass, we read it at the same pace as the whole congregation. So try reading it prayerfully on your own.

Lent and Triduum Cryptogram Puzzle

This printable cryptogram is a fun way to introduce youth to the vocabulary for Lent and Triduum. Each word is encrypted and definitions are given. Youth must consider the definition and then decrypt the word.

Fasting on a Day Other Than Ash Wednesday or Good Friday

Catholics are required to fast on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday. Adding another day of fasting is a way of practicing an additional sacrifice during Lent. You can decide to fast one day per week. (Friday would be a traditional.)

Visit a Garden and Pray

Christ went to pray at the Garden of Gethsemane. It is a prayer of total surrender to the Father’s will.  So as a Lenten activity, go to a garden and think about the Garden of Gethsemane.

Anyone who turns away from the Cross, turns away from the Resurrection.

“Anyone who turns away from the Cross, turns away from the Resurrection.” – Pope Francis

Every Knee Shall Bend, Every Tongue Confess

Because of this, God greatly exalted him and bestowed on him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend, of those in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and…