3/28/10
Palm Sunday
“The Black Parade”
Luke 19:28-40
Some of you have no doubt have caught the reference in the title of this sermon or at least recognize the lyric sheet you hold in your hands. You’re probably an interesting mix of excited, nervous and curious—possibly even anxious. Good. Hold on to that feeling. Because as Jesus and his followers approached Jerusalem, they were mostly likely feeling all of that and more.
Remember that Jesus and his followers lived in conquered land. The Romans in all their misery and hate ruled over the Jewish people with an iron fist. Pontius Pilate was in Jerusalem to ensure that the turbulent time of Passover did not escalate from turbulent directly into full-blown rebellion—and he rode into the city as representative of the Empire, with armed and armored troops and on the back of mighty warhorse! Jesus and his followers knew that they were headed toward the proverbial powder keg when they turned their faces towards Jerusalem—and Jesus had not once, not twice, but three times told his disciples that one day he’d leave them. And if the disciples refused to hear him, who can blame them? Who wants to believe in a world that sends you reeling from decimated dreams?
And then there’s all that business with the colt. As they get to the Mount of Olives, Jesus says, “Go into the village ahead of you, and as you enter it you will find tied there a colt that has never been ridden. Untie it and bring it here. If anyone asks you, ‘Why are you untying it?’ just say this, ‘The Lord needs it.’” And it goes exactly as Jesus described. How exciting! Not simply because Jesus knew what he was talking about when he sent his people to take the donkey—but also because Jesus is clearly and intentionally acting out the words of the prophet Zecharaiah:
Rejoice greatly, O daughter Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter Jerusalem! Lo, your king comes to you; triumphant and victorious is he, humble and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey. He will cut off the chariot from Ephraim and the war-horse from Jerusalem; and the battle bow shall be cut off, and he shall command peace to the nations; his dominion shall be from sea to sea, and from the River to the ends of the earth. (Zechariah 9:9-10)Jesus! Your King! Triumphant and victorious! Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest heaven! Jesus! He who defeats demons and the plans of the non-believers! Hosanna! Let’s shout it loud and clear! Hosanna! (cue the music) Take it back! Hosanna! We want it all! Hosanna! You’ll never break me! Hosanna! Defiant to the end we hear the call!
No! No, no, no! This is completely inappropriate! We cannot shout hosanna! We must not be defiant, or it will be our end! On and on we carry through the fears of bodies in the streets, and here you come on your donkey and your followers singing? No! I refuse to look upon the disappointed faces of your peers should you be put to death and I do not care for this—obscene parade! I demand that your followers cease singing before you bring the wrath of Rome down on all our heads!
And Jesus, the savior of the broken, the beaten and the damned answered, “I tell you, if these were silent, the stones would shout out." It was a bad, bad move to ride into Jerusalem in the manner of the triumphant King spoken of by the prophet Zecharaiah. It was a bad, bad move to let His followers sing and shout like a victorious army coming home. But it was a necessary thing—because even though it was a bad, bad move… it was true. Jesus was the Messiah that the people had been waiting for and he was riding toward his greatest victory. This was a truth so profound that if people had not proclaimed it, the rest of creation—even stones!—would have done so. As it turned out, the stones didn’t need to proclaim anything—because Jesus had a parade.
Which brings me back to the song we just heard. It wasn’t intended to be about Jesus. The album it comes from is a rock opera about a cancer patient and tells the story of his apparent death, experiences of the afterlife, and subsequent reflection of his life. Gerard Way is the band’s front man, co-founder, and co-songwriter, and the imagery of the Black Parade comes from his belief that death comes for a person in the form of their fondest memory, in this case seeing a parade as a child. But if you think about it, death coming in the form of a parade is kind of what this scripture is about, isn’t it? It would be all too easy to march into Jerusalem with the victorious king, with our Savior the Messiah, shouting Hosanna to the rafters today—and then come back next week and sing Alleluia, He is Risen!—without ever considering what comes between.
The followers of Jesus weren’t singing “Welcome to the Black Parade” on that fateful day, but I think they might have resonated with its message. I won't explain or say “I'm sorry.” I'm unashamed, I'm gonna show my scar. Give a cheer for all the broken, listen here, because it's who we are. We’ll carry on. Even unto death on a cross. We’ll carry on.
Please be with me in the spirit of prayer. God of truth and light, sometimes we are a people who’d rather focus on the parade than consider its consequences. Sometimes we are a people who are more afraid of making a bad move than we are in the most profound truths. Sometimes we simply do not know when we should shout and sing. And, much like the disciples of Jesus, sometimes we get confused as to just what kind of a savior we have. Guide us, we pray. Direct our focus, soothe our fears, and grant us the knowledge to help your will be done on earth. In the name of your Son, Jesus Christ. Amen.
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