Palm Sunday, A March 29, 2026
Fr. Alexander Albert St. Mary Magdalen, Abbeville
Who wins? The chief priests? Not when the veil of the sanctuary is torn. Judas? Certainly not when he takes his own life. Pontius Pilate? Not when he has to answer to his wife who asked him not to do it. The disciples? Not when they fell asleep in the garden, not in their futile attempt to use the sword, not when they fled and not when Peter denies Jesus. Who wins in the end, then?
Jesus wins in his resurrection. But we aren’t there yet. Who wins at the end of today? Who wins while Jesus lay dead? Two groups of people “win” in this moment: Mary Magdalen with the women and the Centurion with his men. In what way do they “win?” They know the truth when everyone else is too preoccupied to see it. More importantly, how do these women and these men win? By keeping watch. “Could you not keep watch one hour with me?” asks Jesus in his agony. And no, the disciples could not. “The spirit is willing, but the flesh is week.”
To “win” in the way that matters most is not a matter of strength or human accomplishment. It is a matter of keeping watch over with God. Everyone else fails because they only look at Jesus so long as it suits them, so long as it fits what they expect and what they want. But the centurion and his men? Even though they themselves crucified him, they also sat down and “kept watch.” Because they kept watch despite their sins, they saw what happened and were able to say what even the Apostles forgot in that moment, “truly, this was the Son of God.”
Mary Magdalen and the women, for their part, kept watch over it all and even over the tomb, not knowing what was next but knowing not to turn away. So it is that Mary Magdalen is first recorded witness and proclaimer of his resurrection.
You and I, just 30 minutes after hailing Christ as King, called for his death. Because of our sins, we killed Jesus just as much as the Centurion and his men. But that doesn’t have to end in defeat… not if we keep watch.
When faced with the truth of our sins and weakness, we want to turn away. Do not turn away, keep watch!
When suffering greatly, we want to turn away from our suffering. Do not turn away, keep watch.
When faced with the suffering, the annoyances, the difficulties of other people, we want to turn away. Do not turn away, keep watch!
Whatever you’ve done, wherever you are, however you feel, keep watch! Jesus himself wanted to escape his passion and even prayed for it. You can do likewise… only, imitate him further by keeping watch. To keep watch is to set aside our self-reliance, to gaze fixedly at the truth, at who God is, and at what God is doing. Only by keeping watch in the darkness, the suffering, the uncertainty can we be made capable of seeing the light, the joy, and the clarity of Christ’s victory.
In this most solemn of weeks and in your hardest moments, do not turn away from the truth about Jesus, the truth about a broken world, the truth about yourself, or the truth of other people’s pain. Keep watch knowing that you are not alone and God is not done. God always wins in the end. Those who win with him are not the most powerful, the smartest, or even the ones who look holiest. It is those who hear the words of Jesus Christ and obey them:
“Remain here and keep watch with me.”