On Happy Days

If the Liturgical Calendar is a rollercoaster of sorts, Holy Week is when the most number of corkscrews, loops, drops, and twists occur. The week starts, though, with a smile as we ride up the lift-hill.

Jesus enters Jerusalem for Passover, welcomed as a conquering hero. He rides a colt symbolizing peace while crowds gather to welcome their desired king. People lay their cloaks and tree branches on the ground and proclaim louder and louder that Jesus is the chosen one who has come to save them from tyranny. It is a joyous moment and a truly happy day. (Mark 11:1-12; Luke 19:28-40; Matthew 21:1-11)

Like most happy days, the celebration is not fully unfettered. The religious rulers of the day question the scene and ask why Jesus does not rebuke the crowd’s clear act of civil disobedience. Jesus responds that if the people were silent the stones themselves would shout out—this movement will not be stopped and there is no turning back now.

In Christian churches on Palm Sunday, the restraint of the Lenten season is abruptly paused to mark this moment. Palm branches, banners, anthems, and abundant praise litter sanctuaries to recall the excitement that was felt as Jesus ascended into Jerusalem.

This week will really get wild after the Passover Seder on Thursday night. In the lead up though, the foreboding grows as Jesus turns over the moneychanger tables in the temple and the religious rulers dispatch spies to trap him in his own words. Jesus responds with insights and foresights that confound us still today as much as they did those back then. (Mark 11:12-14:11; Luke 19:41-22:6; Matthew 21:12-26:25)

The happiness of the disciples must have been mixed with fear and trepidation with all that was going on. There must have been a lot of questioning among them as to the nature of who Jesus was and what was the objective of their mission in Jerusalem this Passover.

As we go through Holy Week, we are invited to ask similar questions: Who is Jesus? What is the objective of our individual and communal missions this Holy Week? Where are we headed? And are we headed there with Jesus Christ, or without?