The Sunday of the Passion: Palm Sunday-The Rev Melanie Lemburg

The Rev Melanie Dickson Lemburg

Palm Sunday-Year B

March 24, 2024

     

        On the very first Palm Sunday, there were two processions that entered Jerusalem that day.  One was the one that we just read about—Jesus of Nazareth’s arrival in Jerusalem, where he knew he was headed to die.  His procession entered from the East and was greeted by Jewish peasants lining the road, cheering for him, and the processions was accompanied by coats and branches of palm.

        The second procession entering in from the West was Pilate’s procession.  Pilate, the Roman governor of that entire region was entering the city ahead of the Passover because often with Passover, the story of the liberation of the Jewish people, there would be trouble in Jerusalem, the heart of Judaism.  Pilate entered Jerusalem at the head of an imperial unit of cavalry and soldiers and was accompanied by all the pomp, weaponry, and symbolism of the empire used to enforce its dominance over the occupied people.

        “Jesus’s procession proclaimed the kingdom of God; Pilate’s proclaimed the power of empire. The two processions embody the central conflict of the week that led to Jesus’s crucifixion.” (from Borg/Crossan The Last Week)[i]

    Through the first quarter of this year, I’ve been learning about Christian Nationalism.  Christian Nationalism is “a cultural framework that idealizes and advocates a fusion of Christianity with American civic life.”  This “framework of thinking… demands Christianity be privileged by the State and implies that to be a good American, one must be Christian.”[i]  Our Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church, Michael Curry, has spoken out against Christian Nationalism, and one of the practical responses that he offers to Christian Nationalism is that  as Christians, we must recenter ourselves on the teachings, example and spirit of Jesus of Nazareth.  Curry talks about how whenever in history Christianity has gone astray, we have seen that Jesus of Nazareth (and his life and his foundational teachings and his example) gets moved aside in favor of this overarching “Christ figure” and Christianity itself becomes placed above and beyond following Jesus.  Christianity becomes the be all and end all, and the teachings, example, and life of Jesus get lost.  Curry suggests that we as Christians must recenter ourselves in love as a part of this process and that instead of focusing on any kind of cultural Jesus, we need to focus on what he calls “the Jesus of the book:”  Jesus as depicted in the New Testament of the bible. 

        Palm Sunday is a weird sort of day in the life of the church.   It starts with a parade—shouts of hosanna and the waving of palms—and it ends in Jesus’ death.  It marks the beginning of Holy Week, the week when we walk in the final footsteps of Jesus leading into and through his last supper with his disciples, his crucifixion, and his resurrection.  There is no better time in the life of the church to try to reconnect with the life, example, and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth, “the Jesus of the book,” than in the coming days.  If we show up with open hearts, we can allow all the extra layers that we ourselves (and possibly our culture) have added onto Jesus to be stripped away as we experience alongside him his triumphal entry into Jerusalem, the deep sadness and poignancy of his final meal with his friends as he struggles to tell them goodbye and to impart to them all the things they need before he leaves them.  We experience his betrayal, his wrestling with God in the garden as he summons the courage to bear what he must bear.  We walk alongside him and watch his unjust trial, and his horrible execution and death by suffocation on the cross.  And we watch how he navigates it all as a fully-feeling human.  There’s no better framework to engage with Jesus of Nazareth than the way these stories shine through in our ancient and vibrant liturgies—our Triduum services. 

        This week, I’ve been reflecting on a poem I’ve recently encountered by Sheri Hostetler who is a Mennonite poet.  (Y’all know I love the Mennonites!).  I think it offers a lovely invitation to us all as we begin this journey into Holy Week together.

Instructions[ii]

by Sheri Hostetler

Give up the world; give up self; finally, give up God.

Find god in rhododendrons and rocks,

passers-by, your cat.

Pare your beliefs, your absolutes.

Make it simple; make it clean.

No carry-on luggage allowed.

Examine all you have

with a loving and critical eye, then

throw away some more.

Repeat. Repeat.

Keep this and only this:

   what your heart beats loudly for

   what feels heavy and full in your gut.

There will only be one or two

things you will keep,

and they will fit lightly

in your pocket.

        How are you being called to get reacquainted with “the Jesus of the book”--the life, example, and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth--as we approach the holiest time of our Christian year?  How is your Lenten observance culminating to strip away non-essentials and draw you closer to God?

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[i] Definitions from Responding to Christian Nationalism Curriculum produced by Christians Against Christian Nationalism: https://www.christiansagainstchristiannationalism.org/

[ii] Poem: "Instructions" by Sheri Hostetler, from the anthology A Cappella: Mennonite Voices in Poetry © Reprinted with permission of the author.  From the Writer’s Almanac: https://writersalmanac.publicradio.org/index.php%3Fdate=2005%252F10%252F07.html