Palm Sunday. The photo is illustrative
The last Sunday before Easter is called “Valley”. According to Christian scriptures, Christ entered Jerusalem on this day, and the laymen paved his way with palm leaves. In Ukraine, palm leaves were replaced by willow. Because of this, on Palm Sunday, the willow tree is consecrated in the church and taken home.
0532.ua journalist Yulia Kharchenko has collected the relevant traditions and prohibitions on this day.
History of the holiday
On this day, Jesus Christ left the village of Bethany riding a donkey – there, according to legend, he raised Lazarus from the dead, and then went to Jerusalem. In the city, he and the apostles were met by a joyful crowd, who lined the road in front of the Savior with palm branches as a sign of respect. Those who met hoped that Jesus would free them from the slavery of the Roman Empire, and did not understand that he was preparing to give them not an earthly, but a heavenly salvation.
Jesus entered the Jerusalem temple and, seeing the merchants there, accused them of turning the holy place into a “den of robbers” and then expelled them. No one dared to contradict Christ, fearing the wrath of the people, but the clergy planned to destroy the Savior, who continued to heal people with the power of prayer.
The following days, called Holy Week, will be the last and most terrible in the earthly life of Jesus.
Palm Sunday 2024
Palm Sunday belongs to transitional holidays – it depends on Easter. Therefore, every year the holiday falls on different dates, but always on the sixth Sunday of Great Lent.
In 2024, Palm Sunday falls on April 28. This date is the same for both the new and the previous church calendar.
What can and cannot be done on this day?
Palm Sunday is a big holiday, so all business should be postponed. The following are prohibited on this day:
- to quarrel, enter into conflicts;
- to be angry, offended, slander;
- to have fun and eat excessively;
- work, cleaning and other household chores – time must be devoted to spiritual, not worldly.
It is good to go to church service on a holiday. Believers bring willow twigs to the temple to consecrate them – they symbolize the victory of life over death, that is, the Resurrection of the Lord. The consecrated willow is then kept at home throughout the year – the iconostasis is decorated with twigs. Those who observe Great Lent have a relaxation on this day: they can eat fish and fish dishes.
In the folk tradition, there is a custom to lightly beat household members with a consecrated willow – so that they are healthy and to protect them from evil, willow twigs are also placed at the head of the sick person.
Omens for Palm Sunday
Weather and harvest are judged by signs of the day:
- clear and warm weather stands – the harvest will be good;
- windy weather – to a cool summer;
- frost this day – there will be a rich harvest of wheat;
- if there are already leaves on the shore, but there are none on the field, the summer will be dry; and if on the contrary – rainy.
According to one of the folk signs, if you eat one bud of a consecrated willow on Palm Sunday, you will be able to find happiness.
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