Christian Reflection and Prayer

All Glory, Laud and Honor

Scripture:

He was in the center of the
procession, and the crowds
all around him were shouting,
"Praise God! Bless the one
who comes in the name of
the Lord! Bless the coming
kingdom of our ancestor
David! Praise God in highest
heaven!" Mark 11:9-10 NLT

Hymn:

All glory, laud, and honor
to Thee, Redeemer,
King, to whom the lips of
children made sweet
hosannas ring; Thou art
the King of Israel, Thou
David's royal Son, who
in the Lord's name comest,
the King and blessed One!

To Thee, before Thy passion,
they sang their hymns of
praise; to Thee, now high
exalted, our melody we raise:
Thou didst accept their
praises—accept the praise
we bring, who in all good
delightest, Thou good and
gracious King! All Glory,
Laud and Honor Theodulf of
Orléans (c. 750-821)

Reflection:

Not the revolutionary they expected

When Jesus entered Jerusalem
riding on a donkey, hopeful crowds
filled the streets waving palm
branches and praising God. But
less than a week later, when it
became clear that Jesus was not
the revolutionary they expected,
this same crowd demanded His
crucifixion.

For Theodulf, whom King Charlemagne
had made bishop of Orléans in
the late 700s, praise was born of
painful circumstances. After
Charlemagne's death, Theodulf
was exiled to Angers, France,
on charges of conspiracy. In the
dark prison at Angers, Theodulf
apparently wrote the text of this
hymn, which became the great
Palm Sunday processional of the
Western church—a celebration of
God's grace sung by millions through
the centuries.

Our Holy Week readings are adapted
from The One Year® Book of Hymns
by Mark Norton and Robert Brown,
Tyndale House Publishers (1995).
Today's is taken from the entry for March 27.