April 5 Palm Sunday

While out on an emergency call today for a hit pump, I passed a Baptist Church on the South Side of Chicago. The crowd was African -American and dressed to the nines. Most of the worshipers were carry palm fronds. Now at this point I have to admit something that may be painfully obvious to you, I do not know much about religion. I was baptized Catholic. That's the extent of my religious training. Unless listening to the Jesus Christ Superstar soundtrack so many times that I can sing every song counts as religious training. Back to my story, so it dawns on me that today must be Palm Sunday. Ok, what is the significance of Palm Sunday. I have no idea. It isn't mentioned in any of the songs in JCS. So when I got home I googled Palm Sunday. Here's what I found on a site called Christian Resources:

In fulfillment of prophecy (Isaiah 62:11 & Zechariah 9:9), Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey. The crowds lined the street shouting "Hosanna! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord." (Psalm 118:25-26) They placed palm branches and robes in front of Jesus. This was particularly disturbing to the religious leaders who were jealous of Jesus. They demanded that Jesus silence the crowd, but he responded that even if the crowd were silent, the stones would cry out. The events of the next week would forever change the world. Jesus entered Jerusalem and the crowd welcomed him as a king. By the end of the week they were demanding his death. His followers abandoned him in fear. None of his close followers had really understood the events of Palm Sunday and Holy Week until after Jesus returned. They had all expected Jesus to be an earthly king, but God had given them something so much better - an open door into a Kingdom that would never end.

So now I know about Palm Sunday. It turns out that certain events were in JCS because there is a line when Jesus sings "If every tongue was still the noise would still continue, the rocks and stones themselves would start to sing". So I did know something about Palm Sunday. It occurred to me, that nothing changes over time in this world. The power brokers were afraid of how powerful Jesus had become so they turned the crowd against him and the sheep like followers believe the leaders crap and turn against the man trying to help free them from oppression. Is their really any hope this will ever change? For those waiting for Jesus to return, trust me, he's in no hurry to try again.