Thirty years ago this week a man was murdered in a church in El Salvador by a death squad organised by the government.
El Salvador is a small country in Central America and in 1980 it was a right-wing dictatorship and poverty and inequality were everywhere. Violence, torture and disappearances were commonplace.
What made this particular death newsworthy was that the man who was shot was the Archbishop of the country. His name was Oscar Romero.
In places like El Salvador the Catholic Church was split. There were many priests and ordinary Catholics who took the side of the poor and oppressed and tried to support them. But there were also those on the hierarchy who were conservative and who enjoyed privileges in the country thanks partly to their wealth and status, and they tried to have a quiet life with the military dictatorship. There may have been less of them, but they tended to be the leaders in the church.
In 1977 it was time to appoint a new archbishop for the country. They decided to pick someone who wouldn’t rock the boat, someone who would be quiet and safe and who wouldn’t make trouble – so they appointed the very mild mannered Oscar Romero.
Those who were concerned about the injustices and the abuse of the poor peasants of the country were bitterly disappointed by the decision. But they were in for a surprise.
Romero, who was not much interested in the political state of the country had a friend called Rutilio Grande. He too was a priest. He had a radical outlook unlike Oscar Romero, but it didn’t stop them being friends.
Not long after Romero became Archbishop, Rutilio was shot down in cold blood, for trying to start a support group for some poor farmers. Oscar was shocked to the core at the brutal death of his pal and he asked the government to carry out an investigation into who had committed the murder. The government refused to do that – no doubt because the murderer was almost certainly working for the government.
This was a major turning point in Oscar Romero’s life.
And it opened his eyes.
His eyes became open to the terrible injustices in his country and the terrible suffering of ordinary people and he decided to use his position to speak out for justice and peace.
Being in effect the most senior official in the largest church in the country, Romero was in a good place to get a proper overview of what was happening. And he realised that as a Christian it was his duty to get involved – not to look away, it was essential for him to side with the poorest rather than the richest, and that he needed to find a voice to speak up for what was right rather than keeping silent and aloof.
As a result, this man – the favourite of the conservatives, soon became an enemy. The government, the rich and powerful started to see him as a threat and soon he began receiving death threats.
But Romero knew that his duty was to God and truth and not the thugs who were running the country and he continued to speak out - often in his sermons at church. Until one day when celebrating Mass, some gunmen walked into the church and opened fire as Romero held the cup of wine aloft in his hands.
After his death, many more people in El Salvador were encouraged to speak out for justice and peace and follow his witness and example.
Now you could say that what Romero did was to refuse to live by the standards of the kingdom (or value system) around him. Instead he lived his life with another allegiance – his concern was to be loyal to God.
He could have shrugged his shoulder and said: “What’s happening in my country is not good but it’s not my fault – or there is nothing I can do – or it’s not my job to interfere in politics”…
But instead Romero realised that being loyal to Jesus means not being loyal to a government that oppresses the poor.
Romero tried to be faithful to Jesus in his situation and he paid the ultimate price.
Now all of this happened thirty years ago this week. But, you may wonder, what’s all this got to do with Palm Sunday?
Romero was executed because he was seen as a threat by the powers around him. Jesus was executed for the same reason. Jesus refused to be silent in the face of injustice. Jesus lived his life according to different rules, and lived counter to the ways of the world.
And one of the clearest examples of this fact is what happened on Palm Sunday.
Two of my favourite writers are Marcus Borg and John Dominic Crossan. They write books separately and together. Borg is Protestant, Crossan Catholic. And a couple of years back they wrote a book together called The Last Week which is all about the events of Holy Week and they uncover a historical fact which the church hasn’t really noticed before.
There were two processions into the city of Jerusalem on Palm Sunday. One came from the west and one from the east. Both were planned. Both were organised in advance.
The first procession came through the gates from the west. It was the official one - and it was Roman. A new set of reinforcements were arriving in the city and Pontius Pilate, the governor, (who usually lived by the sea where the climate was kinder) was coming into the capital to be there at this important time.
For this was a special time for the people of Israel. It was coming up to the Passover Festival. Many Jewish pilgrims from around the world were streaming into town over these days and the population of Jerusalem was going to grow enormously.
For this very reason, the Romans in occupation had to make sure that they were right on top of things. This was the very time that could be dangerous. If there was going to be a revolt against them what better time than when the city was full to bursting of people? So they had to make sure the city was also full of their people too – that is Roman soldiers - armed to the teeth, ready for any sign of trouble.
A Roman military march might have been a bit painful for the Jewish folk to witness but it was an amazing spectacle – and it drew a crowd. A great deal of the population would be at the roadside to watch the governor and the troops march past with great fanfare, pomp and ceremony.
But this was not the only procession that day. From the other side of that city, the east, came another procession, and this was more unusual.
Here was Jesus coming into the place with his followers. Jesus is riding down from the Mount of Olives with no fanfare and no soldiers and no horse. Jesus is riding a humble donkey. No doubt his feet were trailing just off the ground. Nothing impressive like the Roman leaders. And yet the people who were there to welcome Jesus cheered loudly. He was a more welcome sight than the soldiers who oppressed them.
People picked up branches of palms to wave and welcome him. Some threw their cloaks on the ground and they all shouted “God bless the one who comes in the name of the Lord.”
Now I don’t know when you were last on a demonstration, and I don’t know whether you have ever been on a demonstration, but what was happening here was just that. This was a planned demo – planned deliberately to demonstrate another way of life, another truth, another set of values, another understanding of God. This march of Jesus was a deliberate contrast to the values of the Roman occupiers.
There were two different kingdoms (or value systems) being represented here.
This great Roman procession was literally a sign of the kingdom of Rome. It reminded everyone (as if they needed reminding), that the Roman Empire was in command here, that the people were subjects of Rome, and not free to do as they wished. The show of strength was a sign of the power and the violence that would be used to back up their way against any who would dissent. A reminder too of the social reality, that the Jewish people needed to pay taxes to Caesar. This situation was not good for the majority, but there were those of course (particularly the wealthy and some religious leaders) who had decided to collaborate and acquiesce with the Romans and were able to benefit from the new situation. (Fast forward to El Salvador in the 1980s and you see the same thing happening again!)
Of the two kingdoms this kingdom was the one that was most obvious and easily seen. But there was another kingdom around and that was the kingdom that Jesus represented.
And if we look at the Jesus’ procession there are signs in it that point to the values of his kingdom.
For example, you can contrast donkey and horse. Look at them together and there is little doubt which one looks the best. Little doubt which one looks the most impressive.
Why did Jesus choose a donkey?
One answer given is that Jesus wasn’t a rich man and a poor person is more likely to be able to have a donkey and less likely to own a horse. And Jesus wasn’t rich and he identified with the poor. And that’s all true enough.
But there is another reason why Jesus was on a donkey. He was deliberately echoing a prophesy which would have been well known to the Jews - the prophesy of Zechariah who said that:
”a king would come to Jerusalem humble and riding on the foal of a donkey”
Zechariah went on to say that this king will:
”remove the war chariots from Israel and take the horses from Jerusalem. The bows used in battle will be destroyed and the king will make peace among the nations” (Zechariah 9: 9-10)
That was the message that Jesus was putting across – he would be a new kind of king, a different kind of king – no more chariots or warhorses or bows. He was the King of Peace.
What Jesus was doing was countering what was happening in the other side of the city.
There are two kingdoms.
Pilate’s is all about power and wealth and violence.
Jesus’ kingdom, God’s kingdom, is all about love and serving and peace.
Jesus’ kingdom is upside-down compared to the kingdom of this world.
And what we have this day on Palm Sunday is the clash of the two kingdoms. This is the clash that will continue over the next days, as Jesus’ way is seen to be in conflict with this worldly kingdom.
And by the end of this fateful week it seems as if this other kingdom has won and got rid of Jesus forever. Power and wealth and violence seem a whole lot stronger than love, serving and peace.
Jesus lies crucified and dead.
But that was just Friday.
And by Sunday everything has changed.
By Sunday it is clear that the kingdom of God is unstoppable.
Jesus is unstoppable.
God’s love and power are unstoppable.
That’s what happened. But we aren’t there yet. Today we are still in the day of the processions. And if this day has anything to say to us, it is this question: whose side are you on?
Jesus didn’t come into this world to tell us a few interesting facts about God. He didn’t just come to show concern to some people in trouble.
Jesus came to begin a whole new way of life – a way of life that wasn’t just for him but for all of us to live.
What Jesus was all about, is what he calls us to be all about.
Jesus is the forerunner. But we are called by God to follow.
This new way of life with its different values and priorities made for real difficulties for Jesus. It made for opposition and trouble. But we see from Holy Week that Jesus didn’t run away from that. He stuck to the path before him.
We are called by God to demonstrate this new way of living, to line ourselves up with the values of Jesus, and to choose his way over and above the way of the world.
Our allegiance needs to be to Jesus and not to the Caesars of this earth.
And as we see from the story of Oscar Romero, even in our age, being faithful to the kingdom of God can be risky and costly.
Palm Sunday presents us with two processions, two kingdoms and ultimately two choices.
Here is the kingdom of the world – the kingdom of Caesar.
And here is the kingdom of God – the kingdom of Jesus.
We all need to answer this: whose side are we on?
And if we say we are on Jesus’ side, how will we show the world that we are serious?