The “sedia gestatoria” was a ceremonial, portable throne used for centuries to carry popes during processions. It consisted of a richly adorned, silk-covered armchair mounted on a platform and carried on the shoulders by twelve footmen in red uniforms. The use of the sedia gestatoria was discontinued after 1978 by Pope St. John Paul II, and has been replaced by the more secure, motorized “popemobile” for public, pontifical events. The majestic sedia certainly connoted papal authority as today the popemobile might rather suggest a nearness of the pontiff to the Vatican crowds and to humanity in general.
Jesus, too, apparently knew the value of a planned entrance to get across a point and to teach a lesson. In the Gospel that opens this coming Palm Sunday’s celebration of his entrance into Jerusalem, Jesus employs the imagery found in the writings of Isaiah and Zechariah: “Exult greatly, O daughter Zion! Shout for joy, O daughter Jerusalem! Behold: your king is coming to you, a just savior is he, humble, and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.”
The entrance on a donkey clearly signifies humility and contrasts with the more common expectation of a militant messiah. Jesus enters the Holy City embodying the ideals of a promising king who brings righteousness and justice to his people. The verse also clearly encourages joy among the people as they celebrate the arrival of their deliverer.
Jesus’ riding on a donkey can certainly be seen as a symbol of humility and peace, contrasting with riding a horse, which often signified war or conquest. In biblical and historical contexts, donkeys represented meekness, service, and reconciliation rather than aggression. Donkeys were and still are common beasts of burden, used for carrying loads and transporting people. Choosing a donkey to enter the Holy City instead of a horse clearly emphasized humility and servanthood.
Commentators note that, in the ancient Near East, and elsewhere as well, kings rode horses when going to war, but, in the East, they deliberately rode donkeys when they came in peace. Thus, Jesus riding a donkey certainly conveyed peaceful intentions. This act highlighted that his kingship was not about military power but about peace and reconciliation between people and among peoples. His would be a kingdom built on compassion rather than domination, led by a just savior, a figure of humble demeanor who would restore harmony and concord rather than a royal personage seen as a conquering warrior and possible oppressor.
All four Gospel accounts report the entry into Jerusalem in detail (Mt 21:4-5; Mk 11:1–11; Lk 19:28–38; Jn12:14–15), a rare occurrence in the Scriptures. St. Matthew, however, differs from his fellow authors in suggesting two animals were employed by the Master as he entered the city: “...an ass tethered and a colt with her.” The other writers mention only one foal. Matthew has two as a misreading from Zechariah might possibly indicate: “...riding on a donkey, on a colt...” The donkey and the colt are the same animal in the original prophecy, simply mentioned in parallel ways, a common Hebrew writing device. That Matthew takes them as two might suggest that he was a Gentile rather than a Jewish Christian who would presumably not make that mistake. This misunderstanding of course leads to Jesus riding in on two animals “and he sat upon them (21:7).” A unique entrance indeed!
Certainly, the Jewish nation of Jesus’ era needed peace and reconciliation. On a local level, the Pharisees with their Scriptures and the Sadducees with their ceremonies did not see eye to eye, no doubt confusing the average Jew. Judea on the south and Israel (or Galilee) on the north had long been at odds as warring kingdoms and even now suffered as provinces oppressed by Rome. The Samaritans in central Palestine were totally disregarded and held in no esteem. And, of course, the Jewish world and the Gentile world, one so tiny and the other so broad, desperately needed some understanding of their common dignity before God. This was Jesus’ mission then and it is still Jesus’ mission today as well as that of his Church. Peace with God and reconciliation among mankind are the Christlike ministry of every believer. Jesus enters Jerusalem today to win peace between God and humankind effected through his death and resurrection. That task continues today through the efforts of believers to be men and women of personal compassion and community justice.
