Dear Friends,

“Hosanna, loud hosanna, the little children sang.”

[she Googles, “How do I add music to a blog post?”

At the very least, here's a link to last year's Palm Sunday procession.]

Which is to say, Palm Sunday’s just around the corner.

In preparation, you might want to visit this Instructable for making a palm frond into a cross. (Note: We often have the “frilly” kind of fronds - as in the photo above - rather than the “spear” kind, so you might need to make some adjustments as you fold your cross.)

The other thing to think about is that “Hosanna, loud hosanna” thing. And no, I don’t mean the ever pervasive pronunciation conundrum of ho-ZÆ-nah versus ho-ZAH-nah, though, there is that as well. Most of the time Hosanna! is something we say as though we are yelling, “Yay Jesus!” or “Here he comes!” or “Welcome to our town!” Full disclosure, scripture contributes to that understanding when Matthew 21:9 is translated as, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest heaven!” What kinda gets lost in there, though, is that “Hosanna!” means “Save us!”

The real Palm Sunday conundrum, then, is how to tone down the celebrity welcome aspect of “Hosanna!” while amping up the “Have mercy on us!” part.

I’m remembering reports from when a group of Texas Buddhists recently made a Walk for Peace from Fort Worth to Washington, DC. The monks walked 2300 miles over 108 days. Some of them walked with bare feet. So, even though they were, for the most part, silent, the monks definitely had something to say just in the way they walked those many miles.

Several friends were along the route when they moved through the Triad/Triangle in late January. Even though the monks are of a different tradition from my mostly-Presbyterian friends, the encounter was sacred for each person who shared their experience with me. A report on WRAL quotes one person’s response to encountering the Monks: “When I first saw them, I burst into tears because we need them so much right now. This is a time filled with hate and we need the sort of dedication, love and intentionality that they have to offer.” (Full story on WRAL) See what I mean about a little less celebrity greeting and a little more “Save us”?

So, as you prepare to sing, “Hosanna, loud hosanna” on Sunday, I invite you to think about how you’d greet Jesus if he were walking into our town. What would be your version of “Hosanna”? How will you (and will you?) shift beyond “Hey! Jesus!” and lean into “Lord, have mercy!”?

(PS: definitely on team ho-ZAH-nah)

See you Sunday.

Peace,

Lisa

Photo by Paul Moody on Unsplash