Everyone loves a parade . . . so, it should come as no surprise that we kick off Holy Week--the last week of Lent--with a parade. Our scripture reading tells us of Jesus’ triumphal entry into the city of Jerusalem: “Many people spread their cloaks on the road, while others spread branches they had cut in the fields.” There were those who went ahead of Jesus, and those who followed, who shouted: “Hosanna! ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David!’ Hosanna in the highest!” This is a parade of joy and hope as the people shout hosanna . . . hosanna is an expression of praise, but it is also a call for mercy. In Jesus they had hope that they would finally be delivered from their oppression.
This was not the only parade happening in Jerusalem that day. No, as Jesus’ parade made its way in from the east, there was another parade coming from the west. From the west came another parade. This parade was a Roman procession, which would have had a focal point on the Roman governor by the name of Pontius Pilate. His was a parade to show might and power . . . to remind the people of who was in charge . . . to let them know that they were not going to find deliverance from their oppression. There were horses, soldiers brandishing weapons, proclaiming the power of the empire. Needless to say, this parade was not one of joy and hope . . . such expressions would be crushed with the threat of death.
The writers of the gospels do not mention this second, contrasting parade, though it did happen. But I think we should take notice of the fact that there were two parades taking place on the same day in Jerusalem . . . one with a message of joy and hope, the other with gloom and doom. We should take notice of this because each parade contributes to the events that would take place over the next week . . . each has its finger in the mix. There is a convergence that brings these two together to tell the one story . . . to tell the final tale.
In my mind’s eye I imagine these two parades proceeding through the street of Jerusalem . . . each heading for the same destination though through different routes. And, I imagine them suddenly converging upon one another . . . running into one another . . . and, then, BOOM! They smack right into one another.
Do any of you remember those old Reese’s commercials in which there is a guy walking down the street eating chocolate? Coming from the other direction is another person eating peanut butter. Neither is paying attention to what they are doing . . . then, BOOM! They run right into each other. Chocolate gets into the peanut butter, and peanut butter gets on the chocolate. Remember those commercials . . . remember how they complained? Then each takes a bite from the newly created mess . . . and, they like it? The birth of Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups.
That’s what I imagine happens in my mind’s eye . . . even though it didn’t. Yet, a convergence still takes place. Each parade influences the other . . . each mingles with the other . . . and, the end result is that we have what we call Holy Week. In Holy Week we see the joy and the hope. We also see the pain and suffering. They have become mixed together in this holiest of stories . . . and, they cannot be separated. They cannot be separated no matter how much we would like to separate them.
Unlike the Christmas story, the Easter story has this big gap between the triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem and the resurrection of Easter Sunday. We celebrate Palm Sunday with all of its pomp and circumstance and then jump right into the glory of Easter morning. We jump right over the fact that it was not that clean and simple . . . we jump right over the fact that there was a convergence--a mixing--of two very different parades with contrasting messages. These two parades produce the story that is told between Palm Sunday and Easter morning . . . it is a mixture of hope and joy, pain and suffering.
No one likes to have his or her parade rained on . . . and, we--as the followers of Jesus, really do not care for anything to diminish our hope and joy . . . especially the stuff that takes place during Holy Week. All that betraying, violence, and death really puts a damper on things. So, why wouldn’t we want to jump straight from the triumphal parade of Palm Sunday into the glory of Easter morning? It sure is a lot easier and a lot more manageable than the mess of Holy Week. Who could blame any of us if we choose that route?
The problem with that is that it denies the rest of the story. It denies the acknowledgement of the two stories converging and melding into one story. The story is not an easy one to hear . . . and, it is an even more difficult one to live. Following Jesus is not easy as he takes us to places we would rather not go. In the days between the triumphal entry and the glory of Easter, the story is hard to hear and hard to live. And, yet, in all honesty, if we are going to follow Jesus, we must follow Jesus through the days and events that lead up to his resurrection.
But, the choice is up to us as individuals.
So, going back to what I imagine in my mind’s eye of two parades converging. I imagine that each parade comes to a crossroads of sorts. And, there at the crossroad, the convergence takes place. The two parades are mixed up . . . mingling among each other . . . and then, they have to go home. Which way will they go home?
Will the people head home thinking the Pollyannish idea that with Jesus’ arrival it is all said and done . . . that they are delivered? Or will the people cave in to the brutish tactic of the Roman Empire, too sacred to do anything else? Or will the people actually follow Jesus as these two parades collide into one . . . a roller coaster of highs and lows, hope and despair?
Well, the decision will be theirs as they stand there at the crossroad.
We have all heard stories about the crossroad. It is at the crossroad that one meets the devil to finagle a deal . . . where one bargains with one’s soul. That is the mythical understanding of a crossroad, but in simpler terms a crossroad is a point at which a crucial decision must be made that will have far-reaching consequences.
Our scripture tells us the decision that the people made . . . but, it does not tell us what decision we will make. That is up to us as individuals.
On this Palm Sunday, as we rejoice in the triumphal parade of Jesus, we will come to the crossroad. What will we decide? Will we choose to leapfrog over Holy Week and go straight to Easter? Will we quit in frustration and just ignore it all? Will we enter into the days ahead, follow Jesus through it all, and admit to ourselves and God that it is not easy to follow Jesus . . . that faith falls somewhere between the two as they converge together? What will you choose?
I hope you choose to follow Jesus in the days that are coming. I hope you choose to continue and finish the work that you have been doing through this season of Lent . . . hard work that has been necessary to build your relationship with God and others.
Yeah, everyone loves a parade. At the same time there is work to be done once the parade is over. May we continue to do the work that needs to be done as we follow Jesus from the parade to the cross to the empty tomb. May God bless us as we stand at the crossroad . . . and, may we choose well. Amen.
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