The Peril of Palms

WESTMINSTER PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH
March 16th 2008
Palm Sunday
Rev. Mark R. Bradshaw-Miller
“The Peril of Palms”
Psalm 118: 1-2, 19-29; Matthew 21:1-11

Palm Sunday is a day which makes me a little uneasy. This day of joyous songs, waving branches and shouts of hosanna can overshadowed the tragic events of the week. After all, at the end of the week Jesus is betrayed, arrested, tortured and executed by the Roman governor. If we are not careful the joy of Palm Sunday will lead directly to the joy of Easter without noticing the violence and death which precedes the resurrection. Palm Sunday is not merely an opportunity to wave palms, shot hosanna and proclaim Jesus king. It is the day that invites us, in our celebration, to follow the way of Jesus. It is the way of Jesus that rejects the ways of empire and the ways of violence which leads to the cross. The peril of the palms is that we risk missing the invitation to follow this journey in the midst of the celebration.
In order to understand what happens at the end of the week we need to look closely at the procession that took place on that first Palm Sunday. The meanings and implication of the day are often obscured in our modern celebrations. But the truth is that the procession dangerous act which had political, as well as religious, implications. In a book by Marcus J. Borg and John Dominic Crossan called: The Last Week: What the Gospel’s Really Teach about Jesus’ Final Days in Jerusalem, this is made clear. This begins to make more sense once they explaining that Jesus’ procession were not the only one which occurred. They write:
Two processions entered Jerusalem on that day. The same question, the same alternative, faces those who would be faithful to Jesus today. Which procession are we in? Which procession do we want to be in? This is the question of Palm Sunday and of the week that is about to unfold.
We know a great deal about the procession of Jesus that included his followers and other admirers. Jesus rides down from the Mount of Olives on a donkey as branches are laid in front of him and the people yell: “Hosanna.” It is no accident this event looks like a scene from the prophet Zechariah. The intended similarity is meant to be a proclamation that Jesus stands in the prophetic tradition and claims the mantle of the peaceful king who rejects the ways of war and violence. This scene is God’s rejection of the ways of violence through the witness of Jesus.
The second, or other, procession looks nothing like the one we know well. As Jesus enters from the east side of Jerusalem, Pontius Pilate enters from the west. And his entry is anything but humble. The contrast between the processions is amazing. Pilate’s procession into the city is an imperial show meant to terrify the population. At Passover, Rome wanted to make sure that everyone would know who had the power. To insure that this Passover celebration would not get out of hand, the imperial cavalry and soldiers were part of the procession. It was a massive show of force meant to show that the order of the empire would be maintained at any cost. This other procession on the other side of Jerusalem expressed a belief in gods who ordained the ways of violence and empire.
Both these processions sent a message about their belief in God. Both processions proclaimed a divine mandate and claimed ultimate authority on heaven and on earth. But, these processions were radically different in their approaches to peace. The empire of Rome used violence to ensure the Pax Romana or the Peace of Rome. Peace for the empire of Rome came through war. But in the life and witness of Jesus we learn that the kingdom of God rejects the ways of violence, on earth just as it is in heaven.
If you are anything like the group which gathered over the last six weeks to study the book, The Last Week, the idea of two processions and their contrast is rather new. During our discussion a question arose: “Why have we not heard this before?” But instead of venturing a guess on why we sought to answers another question: “Now that we know, what are we going to do?” Indeed, now we know that picking up palms and celebrating Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem means we have some decisions to make like: “Which procession do we want to be in?” And, “What will that mean for our own life of faith?”
Deciding to pick up the palms may put us in peril. Living in an age where ‘might makes right,’ can leave those seeking to reject violence as foolish. We know the ways of violence around the world and in our own backyard. Working to reject the ways of violence or even standing near the One who embodies this call is a risky affair. This is what the palms are all about. Now that we know the peril, I guess we have some decisions to make. Amen? Amen.