From Parade to Parade

An overnight train from Heidelberg… the promise of a few romantic days in Paris… for parents with three young children, a get-away weekend was a dream come true. We had flown to Germany to visit friends who were stationed in Heidelberg. We hiked the Alps, shopped in Rotenberg, and ate more than our fair share of schnitzel. Then our friends surprised us with tickets and the offer of childcare. Before we knew it, we were stepping off the train in Paris with two full days to explore. It was the morning of Palm Sunday, so we made our way across the city to Notre Dame. It seemed right to be in a cathedral on such an important Sunday. We arrived just minutes before the start of the morning service, miraculously finding the last seats in the front row of the transept just to the left of the pulpit. From our vantage point, we would have a full view of the service that was about to unfold.

No surprise, the service was in French. My husband’s high school French could barely help us order a pastry or find the restroom. I have a passable facility in high school German, but my only exposure to French was in the preschool I attended in Viet Nam. Any memory of the language I knew as a child had long since faded. Yet, even without the language, we knew the cadence of worship. The prayers and the hymns swept us along. We joined as Psalm 23 was sung. Then came the New Testament reading of the day. On Palm Sunday, Catholic churches around the world stand to share the reading of the Passion of the Christfrom palms to tomb. Note, I said ‘share’ because the congregation plays the part of the crowd when that crucial moment comes. At Notre Dame the Passion was not read but rather sung. Jesus was played by a young priest with a stunning tenor voice. We knew the story even without knowing the words, so when a cathedral full of Parisians cried out, “Crucifie! Crucifie-le!”, I felt the full brunt of those words. Even in a romance language, “Crucify! Crucify him!” sounds convicting. Those words still echo in the core of my being.

Talk to almost any Catholic and they will complain about the tradition of reading the Passion on Palm Sunday. Many weary as they stand for a reading that begins with Jesus entering Jerusalem to the adulation of the crowd and continues until Jesus takes his last breath. Most Catholics know that their Protestant friends down the street stop reading at the last “Hosanna.” Why do we have to hear the whole story every year? The answer: the Catholic church knows their people better than we know ours. They understand our instinct to go from party to party without noticing what happens in between. Most of us go from palms to Easter eggs without blinking an eye. Yet, in our haste to celebrate, we miss the reason for the party. Easter takes on a deeper meaning if we walk the journey from a parade to a Passover feast to a cross.

If we want to know the full power of the resurrection, we need to stand in the midst of a Palm Sunday crowd who wanted Jesus for their own agenda. We need to sit with the disciples as Jesus feeds the one who would deny and the one who would betray. Have we ever denied or betrayed, or have we run when Jesus needed us most? We need to feel the mood of an angry crowd disappointed to the core of their being that Jesus had not done what they hoped, so they cried, “Crucify!” If we want to know the full power of the resurrection, we need to stay at the foot of the cross to see his agony and receive the gift of those seven last words. If we want to know the joy of an empty tomb, we need first to see his lifeless body laid there. Dust off your Bible and read the story again. Join your brothers and sisters on the journey. Easter will take on new meaning if you notice what happens before.

I remember watching the cathedral of Notre Dame burn in 2019… the red glow cast across Paris… the spire falling into the conflagration. We have all seen pictures of a burned-out sanctuary with only a cross surviving. So, what joy to see pictures of the restoration of that beautiful cathedral. I hope one day to revisit Notre Dame, to worship again among her faithful. Tourists flock to see the marvel of that restoration. Yet, I know that we will appreciate the new Notre Dame more because we saw her before.

Take a moment this week, or perhaps more than a moment, to walk the journey, to feel the emotion, to witness the sacrifice. Along the way, meet the One who can bring the victory you need. Then your Easter “Hallelujah” will raise the roof with joy!


With you on the journey,
Anita



Maundy Thursday 
Worship @ 7:00 pm

Good Friday 
The Stations of the Cross
3:00 pm at the Shrine of Czestochowa
7:00 pm Worship at LVC

Easter Sunday
6:05 am SonRise Service - Followed by a light pot luck breakfast
9:00 am Easter Celebration Worship
10:30 am Easter Celebration Worship