Palm Sunday

When: The Sunday before Easter (the date changes each year)

On Palm Sunday Christians remember the day Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey while crowds waved branches and shouted “Hosanna!”. It begins Holy Week, the last week before Easter.

Where it came from

All four Gospels tell of Jesus's entry into Jerusalem (Matthew 21, Mark 11, Luke 19, John 12). The crowds spread cloaks and branches on the road. “Hosanna” is a word that means “save us” and was used as a cry of praise. Only John mentions palm branches by name.

A pilgrim named Egeria, who visited Jerusalem in the late 300s, described a procession on this day, with children carrying branches from the Mount of Olives down into the city. The custom spread to other churches, and in time people used whatever branches grew nearby.

How it is kept around the world

• The Philippines. People bring woven palm fronds, called palaspas, to church to be blessed. They are kept at home for the year and burned for the ashes of the next Ash Wednesday.
• Spain. In Elche, white palms are woven into tall shapes. Palm Sunday processions march in many towns.
• Poland. People make very tall palms of dried flowers and ribbons. In some villages there is a contest for the tallest palm.
• Mexico and Latin America. Families make small palm crosses and sell them outside churches.
• Cold countries. Where palms do not grow, people use olive, willow or other branches. Willow catkins are used in Russia and Eastern Europe.
• Ethiopia and the Middle East. Churches hold processions with palm and olive branches and singing. In Jerusalem, pilgrims walk from the Mount of Olives.

Christians differ

Catholic, Orthodox, Anglican, Lutheran and many other churches keep Palm Sunday with palms. Most Protestant churches read the story and may give children palm branches to wave. Orthodox Palm Sunday is on a different date in most years, because Easter is counted differently. All agree on the story: Jesus entered Jerusalem to cheers, and the week that followed would lead to the cross and the resurrection.

Do it together

Ages 0 to 2

• Wave a soft scarf or a leaf and say “hooray!”.
• Walk slowly with a toy donkey and sing a happy song.

Ages 3 to 5

• Fold a paper palm leaf and wave it in a family procession.
• Act out the story: someone is Jesus, others wave and cheer.

Ages 6 to 8

• Weave a simple palm cross or a paper braid. Look up how palaspas are made in the Philippines.
• Say “hosanna” in a song and learn what it means.

Ages 9 to 12

• Compare the four Gospel accounts of the entry. What does each add?
• Find out why Jesus rode a donkey (see Zechariah 9:9) and what the crowds expected.

Ages 13 to 17

• Read Mark 11:1–11 and then John 12:12–19. What is the mood of the crowd, and how does it change in the week after?
• Think about what you cheer for, and whether you would still stand by it when it is hard.

A short prayer

Jesus, we welcome you with joyful hearts. Help us to follow you not only on happy days but on hard days too. Amen.

Mark as done

Where this comes from

• Gospel of Matthew 21:1 to 11; Mark 11:1 to 11; Luke 19:28 to 40; John 12:12 to 19; Zechariah 9:9
• John F. Baldovin, Liturgy in Ancient Jerusalem (Grove Books, 1989), on the Jerusalem Holy Week described by Egeria
• F. L. Cross and E. A. Livingstone, eds., The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church, 3rd ed. (Oxford University Press, 2005), entry “Palm Sunday”

Written with AI assistance and checked against the sources listed. Please read it before sharing it with a child.