changing weather...changing minds

Growing up in the Ohio river valley for most of my life there is one thing I know about the weather during the Easter season here...it can be very changeable and dangerous. As a matter of fact Palm Sunday has historically been the day of some of the worst tornado outbreaks in history. There were devastating killer tornado outbreaks on Palm Sundays in 1920, 1965, and 1994 and this Palm Sunday 2011. The temperature swings can be extreme and can vary as much as 40 degrees in 12 hours. It's called unpredictable...changeable... Ohio River valley spring and if you live here you just get used to it. So, why am I telling you all this? Where am I going with this, you probably are wondering, right? Admittedly, this is a big jump here...so bear with me. I got to thinking about how things can be so completely changeable in a short period of time...things other that the weather...things like peoples attitudes and opinions and affections. In light of thinking and reflecting about the essence of Palm Sunday and what it represents in the historical Christian tradition I see some small bit of analogy here. On the Sunday before the resurrection of the crucified Christ...just seven days previous... there was joyous celebration in the air...excitement...and expectancy as the King of the Jews rode into Jerusalem. People lined the road and crowds gathered and many jockeyed for a position in order to get a better view. As told in Matthew 21,

“And when they drew nigh unto Jerusalem, and were come to Bethphage, unto the mount of Olives, then sent Jesus two disciples, Saying unto them, Go into the village over against you, and straightway ye shall find an ass tied, and a colt with her: loose them, and bring them unto me. And if any man say ought unto you, ye shall say, The Lord hath need of them; and straightway he will send them. All this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying, Tell ye the daughter of Sion, Behold, thy King cometh unto thee, meek, and sitting upon an ass, and a colt the foal of an ass. And the disciples went, and did as Jesus commanded them, And brought the ass, and the colt, and put on them their clothes, and they set him thereon. And a very great multitude spread their garments in the way; others cut down branches from the trees, and strawed them in the way. And the multitudes that went before, and that followed, cried, saying, Hosanna to the son of David: Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord; Hosanna in the highest. And when he was come into Jerusalem, all the city was moved, saying, Who is this? And the multitude said, This is Jesus the prophet of Nazareth of Galilee.”

As with everything Jesus did there was much symbolism embedded into this very act of riding into Jerusalem. Even the unlikely choice of riding in on a lowly donkey was a subliminal message to those who understood these things. In this time it was customary to honor someone worthy of the highest respect by covering their path they were traveling with palm leaves and sometimes their garments. This day was no different as people laying their palm fronds created a green leafy carpet for every step of the donkeys foot. Actually the very act of riding a donkey was controversial as Jesus never rode anywhere. Additionally, this was considered a mission of peace as opposed to riding a horse which would be considered warlike. The ever increasing crowd was going wild...singing...shouting...cheering. Hosanna...Hosanna...Hosanna! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord. And then...in the period of 5 short days...the weather radically changed in Jerusalem. Dark heavy clouds gathered on the horizon signaling an upcoming storm that was about to change everything...forever. The adoring crowd has now become an angry mob. Their fickle affections had now turned to a murderous rage. The exact same people who were welcoming Jesus into Jerusalem days ago were not calling for Him to be killed. KILL HIM ! ...replaced Hosanna...every imaginable gesture of distain and hatred replaced the raised hands of adoration only days before. Cursing... beating... spitting... was what greeted the King now. How unimaginable that the tide of public opinion and welcoming acceptance would shift so violently and unexpectedly in a few short days. As they say...the weather took a dramatic turn...and was about to get worse...