Palm Sunday

And so we begin Holy Week. Two thousand some odd years ago, Jesus began Holy Week with a plan.

His plan was, I think, to lampoon the occupying Roman Army while also signalling to the Jewish people that a new day had arrived.

As we discussed yesterday, and in the eMMAUS class this morning at PPC, the Roman army had undoubtedly arrived in the Holy City in preparation for the Passover festival. As Passover was already a politically charged time in the life of the Jewish people, Pilate probably reasoned it would be bad to give them any sort of room to feel free or independent from Roman rule. The presence of the Roman garrison from Caesarea would both protect imperial property and also send a powerful political message.

Its easy to imagine the spectacle of the Romans marching into Jerusalem. Undoubtedly, many watched the procession with a mixture of fear, awe, and resentment. Some may have been happy to see them come. Regardless, hundreds of hardened soldiers were probably involved, and they came with their full array of horses, chariots, banners and drums.

The message they were sending was clear: You are subjects of Imperial Rome. Behave.

But on the other side of the Holy City, the son of a peasant from the tiny hamlet of Nazareth had another procession in mind. Either purely through well timed symbolism and happy accident or, as I like to believe, after careful planning and a signal to his followers ("the Master has need of the donkey", etc sounds like codewords to me!) Jesus marched into the capital and sent a very different message.

He was all alone, riding on a young donkey.

No pomp, no circumstance, no power. Bu plenty of message, and a subversive one at that. His followers got the message regardless, as they quickly began clearing a path for him into town, spreading cloaks and blankets and waiving branches at him (note: these are things are things even poor people have handy). The crowd yells "Bless You, Save Us," to him as he passed through the eastern gate of the City.

What must have been going through his mind! Surely he was excited by it all, surely he was hopeful. Maybe, I'm sure he allowed himself to think, this will work out after all. Maybe the people will see what he is saying and stop compromising themselves and cooperating with the Romans and corrupt temple officials. Maybe he can win this thing and survive.

But I'm sure another part of him knew better.

Another part of him knew this was the beginning of the end.