When I was a child I loved the record for the musical Jesus Christ Superstar. And one of my favorite songs was Hosanna. You can hear the 1970 cast recording here which is the version we had. It perfectly captured the image of the joy of the crowd and Jesus’ friends as they show up to Jerusalem and the displeasure of the powerful. I also adored the idea of the rocks and stones beginning to sing. That Jesus is so wonderful and amazing that even the landscape itself would proclaim his arrival.
One of the tricks for pastors of holy week is that most folks go from the joy of Palm Sunday to the celebration of Easter and we sort of gloss over Good Friday. Including the story of Jesus violent death at the end of Palm Sunday. Even my favorite musical only has music for this scene with no words, just sounds made by the cast giving the sense of the agony, grief, and fear of the moment. We don’t always have the words for death. And in our culture we especially avoid death. So this coming week is a chance to embrace all of what it means to be human as we ready ourselves to journey with Jesus in triumphant joy, betrayal, suffering, death, and new life. Perhaps it is the rocks and stones we need in these moments most of all, when words fail us and the moments are too big for our hearts and minds.
As Lent comes to a close and we move into Holy Week may you take some time to reflect on your own mortality and the ways we can be present to all the parts of live. And pay attention to what the landscape is saying!
-Eilidh
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