Palm Sunday: What’s Going on Here?

This is the week when it all begins… Palm Sunday on Sunday morning; an early celebration of Good Friday on Sunday evening, with the Community Easter Cantata Choir service, “In Calvary’s Shadow;” followed by an intimate service of foot washing and Communion on Maundy Thursday; and then a celebration of the miracle of resurrection on Easter Sunday! In this one week, as we accompany Jesus to the cross, it’s possible to feel a whole range of human emotions, from expectation, to tenderness, to grief, and ultimately, to joy… I have always said that experiencing Holy week – consciously, intentionally – may prepare us for what may lie in store in our own lives.

But, this week, our focus will be on Jesus’ ‘parade’ into Jerusalem. He borrows a donkey (a donkey?) and rides into town, with passersby throwing their cloaks on the road and cutting down branches of palm leaves to wave as the ‘king’ passes. The events of Palm Sunday have made much more sense to me since finding out from Jesus scholars Marcus Borg and Dominic Crossan that Jesus’ parade was likely, in fact, street theatre, meant to mock the parade of the emperor’s men – with its clanking metal and symbols of imperial power – on the other side of town. The people in the streets know what’s going on. Under the thumb of Roman rule, they shout to Jesus, “Hosanna!,” which means “Save us!”

The glee and expectation of Palm Sunday lead us to hope, but as has been the case throughout history, to mock the powers that be can be dangerous for one’s health. Jesus has one last supper with his friends, is betrayed by one of them, is arrested, tortured, then crucified. This is the journey.

This Sunday, you are welcome to bring in your own cedar branch as we wave our ‘palms’ in solidarity with the hope of those gathered in Jerusalem the day that Jesus rode into town. It seems like a good day for a story, so we’ll hear it through the eyes of an onlooker observing from the margins.

To prepare, read Matthew 21:1-11 and ponder the following questions:

1.      Does the theory that this was street theatre make sense to you?

2.      It’s important not to go straight from Palm Sunday to Easter. As the bulletin notes for “In Calvary’s Shadow” say, it’s like watching the happy ending of a movie without encountering the rest of the story…  Therefore, how will you honour Holy week?

Image: “Hallelujah,” Mike Moyers, from Art in the Christian Tradition, a project of the Vanderbilt Divinity Library, Nashville, TN., www.mikemoyersfineart.com