Today, Palm Sunday, we join Christians around the world in remembering and celebrating Jesus' royal entry (traditionally we call it his triumphant entry) into Jerusalem that Sunday morning, the first day of the week of Passover. We join our voices in singing "Hosanna!" "Save us!"
Ah, but what do we celebrate on this holy day?
In most churches, we have made Palm Sunday about the children as we enlist them to lead the parade of Palms as we begin worship. But the original Palm Sunday was not about children. In fact, none of the gospel accounts of this event mention children. Like so many of the gospel stories, we have domesticated this event. We have "toned it down" so its message is not so offensive to our thinking or disturbing to our way of life.
In spite of what we have made it, the royal entry was a carefully designed and orchestrated political parade that took place in the capital city. It openly and boldly proclaimed Jesus to be the Messiah, the true King. The crowd sang Psalm 118, a song proclaiming God's deliverance and the day of salvation (Psalm 118:24) and the unexpected nature of the messiah (Psalm 118:22-23, 26).
Modern scholarship helps us to recognize the true nature of this event. It is the story of two parades. The parade ushering Jesus into the city as king took place this one time, from the east, across from the Mt. of Olives. At the same time, a second parade entered Jerusalem from the west. This parade took place every year on this first day of the week of Passover. It was a military parade featuring the Roman army. Jesus' parade was intentionally designed in response to the Roman parade, challenging and contradicting its message.
Passover relived God's deliverance of the people from Egyptian bondage. As such, it stirred into flame the desire for God to deliver the nation again, this time from the heavy hand of Rome. So it was not uncommon for anti-Roman sentiment to be fanned into flame, leading to riots and, sometimes, outright rebellion during Passover. Rome had learned to expect such expressions of Jewish nationalism and chose to preempt them by strengthening the presence of Roman military might. So each year at the time of Passover, a legion of Roman soldiers would be re-stationed from Caesarea on the coast to Jerusalem, reinforcing the Roman garrison situated adjacent to the Temple. They would march into Jerusalem in full battle armor on the Sunday of Passover week. This particular year, the Roman parade would have been led by the Roman procurator and representative of the emperor, Pontius Pilate. He would have been riding a white stallion, the symbol of power and domination. The message of the parade was unmistakable: military might is how we deal with any kind of opposition to Roman rule.
In contrast to the Roman parade, Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey, intentionally patterned after the prophecy found in Zechariah 9:9: "Tell the daughter of Zion, 'Look, your king is coming to you, humble and mounted on a donkey." A king would ride a donkey when he went to visit the villages of his land. Riding a donkey symbolized the king came in peace.
The two parades portray two ways of life and two approaches to peace.
The Roman parade proclaimed the way of empire in which power was used to put down and eliminate any hint of rebellion. It was power used over and down against the other for the benefit of the one in power, at the expense of the one being dominated. The Roman army embodied this way of life and this approach to peace.
Jesus' parade proclaimed the way of the kingdom in which power is used to serve. Power is used alongside the other, on behalf of the other's well-being and good, often at great cost to the one serving. Jesus embodied this way of living and this approach to peace.
The way of empire is the way of domination. It is the most common pattern in human history. While it can provide some sense of stability, it can never produce peace. The stability it provides is fragile and temporary, at best. The seeds of rebellion are sown in every act of domination. As a result, every dominant and dominating power (nation) eventually falls. It is the repeated pattern of human history. The way of empire only benefits the elite and those in positions of power. The privileges, affluence, and self-indulgent lifestyles enjoyed by the wealthy and powerful ride on the back of the poor whom they take advantage of and exploit. Policies and systems designed by the wealthy and powerful for the benefit of the wealthy and powerful keep the poor locked in their poverty and powerlessness.
The way of kingdom is the way of power used to serve. It is the way of God, patterned after the merciful and compassionate nature of God. It is the way of Jesus, the Servant. And it is the way of the followers of Jesus! (Merciful God, may it be!!)
Jesus' Palm Sunday parade was design to confront Jerusalem and its leaders with a choice: which way of life, which use of power will you choose? How will you pursue peace?
Palm Sunday, in turn, confronts us with the same choice: empire or kingdom? That is, unless we domesticate its message! After all, we do enjoy some of the benefits of empire through our nation.
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