the sunday of the passion
the PRAYER …
Everlasting God, in your endless love for the human race you sent our Lord Jesus Christ to take on our nature and to suffer death on the cross. In your mercy enable us to share in his obedience to your will and in the glorious victory of his resurrection, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
the READING …
When the hour came, [Jesus] took his place at the table, and the apostles with him … luke 22:14 – 23:56
the DEVOTION …
No doubt, you’ve heard the story, before. From India. About blind men who “see” an elephant for the first time. One man touching the trunk and saying the elephant must be like a snake. Another touching an ear, saying it’s like a fan. Another its side and saying it’s like a wall. Etc., etc., etc. The only way that they can get the “feel” what an elephant is really like is by stepping back and taking it all in.
Same’s true of scripture. We get so focused – fixated, actually – on dotting i’s and crossing t’s that we lose sight of the bigger picture. Like whole chapters! Entire books! Sure, smaller passages are quicker, easier to handle. More convenient! But we miss a lot. On palmSunday, though – aka, the Sunday of the Passion – we go big! It’s our way looking at the forest instead of the trees. Or at least, looking at more of the forest! We read a hundred fourteen verses! Twenty-two hundred thirty-nine words! That’s ten times the normal! If the devil’s in the details, god has to be in the panorama!