April 17, 2011, The Rev. Erika Takacs, It is Time

Palm Sunday Reflection

Well it is about time. The cherry trees have finished pushing tiny leaves past the remnants of their famous blossoms, the lilacs and tulips and daffodils have all burst up and out and open, and CVS and Walgreen’s have been hawking their Easter candy for weeks now. And finally, on the 17th of April, almost as late as it can possibly be, Palm Sunday is here. It’s about time. We are more than ready. Just as the azaleas and the allergies and the Cadbury cream eggs are telling us that Easter must be near, our hearts, too, are telling us that it is time. We are ready, we have been made ready by the steps of our Lenten walk – by our reading of the Lenten daily reflections, by our prayers and confessions, by our stillness, by our fasting, and by our weekly travels through the Gospel of John in the company of Nicodemus, the Samaritan woman, the man born blind, and Lazarus. We are more than ready to arrive at Easter morning, to have the bright, dazzling joy of the resurrection match the bright dazzling joy of the springtime all around us.

But Palm Sunday reminds us to wait – a little – to resist running ahead to Easter Day without first walking to the foot of the cross. The proclamation of the Passion on this day offers a foretaste of what is to come, encourages us to pause here amid the palms and to step forward slowly, attentively, purposefully. To Holy Monday, and Tuesday, and Wednesday. To the upper room on Maundy Thursday. To Golgotha on Good Friday. To the fresh, clean, quiet tomb on Holy Saturday. Each day is like a season in itself, with its own purpose and promise and power. And each day can change your life. Because when you step day-by-day through the solemn liturgies of this week, you are treading on the holiest ground. Take off your shoes, because God’s presence is potent here. Take off your shoes, because this day, this moment, God is inviting you to this walk. You may have traveled this path many times before, or this may be your first journey to dark Gethsemane and the green hill far away. Together on this Palm Sunday, we all take this first slow step. Walk this week with us. You are more than ready. It is time.