Sunday, April 14, 2019
Today we mark the Sunday of the Passion which includes the liturgy of the Palms. It ushers in the most turbulent week of the liturgical year…and the point of no return for Jesus. What begins triumphantly with Jesus entering Jerusalem, continues with poignant stories of Jesus interacting with others and then careens through scenes marked by hostile voices and graphic violence, and ends in silence, within the dark tomb, its door sealed shut with a great stone.
On that notorious day in Jerusalem, there was noise and excitement, and perhaps an undercurrent of mass hysteria, as men, women and children lined up along the parade route, welcoming Jesus with the shout “Hosanna! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!” Perhaps, they dared to wonder, perhaps He really was the Messiah, the anointed one, who would, as promised, free them from Roman occupation and oppression, and bring them back to some earlier glory, as in King David’s reign. Later that week, or whatever time frame it was, Jesus would walk the Via Dolorosa, the Way of Suffering and the glad ‘hosannas’ quickly turn to jeers of “crucify “.
Around the world, Christians in every time zone, in every life circumstance, of every race, culture, nation and language will begin the journey today, gathering for worship and telling the story of how “God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.” John 3:16.
Come, join the pilgrim journey, as we walk with Christ.