Hosanna in Malta

Hosanna – Palm Sunday – celebration by the Orthodox Eritrean/Ethiopian Church in Malta.

The worship services on Palm Sunday include a procession of the faithful carrying palms, representing the palm branches the crowd scattered in front of Jesus as he rode into Jerusalem. Palm leaves are used to create rings and other ornaments.

According to the Gospels, Jesus Christ rode a donkey into Jerusalem, and the celebrating people there laid down their cloaks and small branches of trees in front of him, and sang part of Psalm 118: 25–26 – … Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord. We bless you from the house of the Lord …

The symbolism of the donkey may refer to the Eastern tradition that it is an animal of peace, versus the horse, which is the animal of war. A king would have ridden a horse when he was bent on war and ridden a donkey to symbolize his arrival in peace.

Palm Sunday, or the “Entry of the Lord into Jerusalem,” as it is often called in some Orthodox Churches, is one of the Twelve Great Feasts of the liturgical year.

Idea and Camera by Pawlos Yowhanees

Voice by Major Sium

Selected at African Smartphone International Film Festival, Dec 2018