Palm Sunday

Palm Sunday is a multi-voiced entry into the Way of Holy Week, pointing toward the Paschal Mystery. We are headed toward the Resurrection, but there is so much to contemplate along the way. As always.

The custom of the western Church in recent years has been to observe this Sunday as the Sunday of the 'Passion', despite the 'Palm' beginning. While most begin with an observance of Jesus' entry into Jerusalem - with processions, hymns, palms... - the heft of the liturgy is felt in the reading of the story of Jesus' suffering and death ('The Passion'). Yes, this is the focus of Good Friday, but the assumption was that if one did not seek out pious company on Good Friday one might not have heard the Passion story by Easter morning, so, in time, it was appended to Palm Sunday.

This year, in the interest of keeping our liturgical entry into Holy Week brief - pandemic! - we will return to the earlier tradition of reading just the 'Palm Sunday' Gospel -- where Jesus has his disciples borrow a donkey so he can imitate - and mock - the kings and pomp of this world, and enter into Jerusalem displaying a different sort of power.

Truly, this returns us to the origins of Holy Week, itself. Easter/The Paschal Mystery/'The Feast of the Resurrection' has been observed since the 1rst or 2nd century, but 'Holy Week' as a chain of devotional, liturgical observances grew out of 4th and 5th century pilgrims visiting the various sites in Jerusalem associated with the Gospel readings of the time leading up to Jesus' death and resurrection, itself. Holy Week is, truly, the pilgrim's way. And, so it remains, for us.

The observance of Jesus' entry into Jerusalem - they're going there to observe the Passover together, and to find a spot for what would become a 'seder' in later Jewish development, yes - can focus on what we think of Jesus: all glory, laud, and honor! Wave those palms! This is the king of kings! (Never mind that most of us politically, have no experience of a monarchy... choose a metaphor that works for you.)

Yet, what Jesus is doing here, on that donkey, might escape us if we focus only on the acclamation of the crowd - among whom we doubtless count ourselves!

Jesus is doing some performance art. He is appropriating the work of an earlier performance artist, the prophet Zechariah, who used the image of a king coming, riding on a donkey, to initiate the reign of God. The Messiah comes humbly. His audience knew what he was doing.

And, into other gates in Jerusalem, the Roman legions may have been marching. A different sort of demonstration of power. Indeed, Jerusalem was a city under foreign occupation, and it was about to observe an ancient feast that involved the telling of a story of liberation from oppression. Get those Roman soldiers there to 'keep the peace!' -- particularly if you're the puppet kings, the Herodians, who made a deal with Rome to stay in compromised 'power.' All Passover observances then would have been 'social justice seders,' telling the story of liberation from slavery in Egypt. And, in a Jerusalem full of the soldiers of Roman occupation, here comes Jesus, on a donkey.

We can tell where this will lead, even if we don't know the Good Friday story.

Trust that we can follow in this way, in this procession, through our meal together Thursday, washing each other's feet and learning to be least in order to grow into the size of true greatness in the kingdom of God; in the sitting with the suffering of the world, and that of our hearts, on Friday, following Jesus to the shameful death that is the way of the world, and to follow him to the grave.

He shows us how to live without fear of shame, or fear of death, or fear of speaking truth to power. All else is a gift, unlooked for. Walk in this pathway: you'll find Jesus as both companion and as the path, itself.