inspiral blog

These were the questions we tackled. Well, in truth we got through about 5 of them…but they were good questions, and we’ll continue to tackle them over the year.

Who are my kin? Who is my mob?

What acts of civil disobedience will we undertake as an expression of obedience to the alternative society of God?

So we made it to Sunday morning for a celebratory brunch. This is the most exciting day in the church calendar.

The table was adorned with the cross from the previous two services, only this time I had placed cups full of dirt with seeds in them to symbolise new life. We read the story, Luke’s version this time, and included the Emmaus road story. Again we celebrated the Eucharist – this time with the sense of joy of what had been accomplished, and did so using a modified Tablelife liturgy. Then we enjoyed the food and company for a while before parting for family celebrations.

This year has certainly been more meaningful for me, and it’s really not taken all that much effort to get up these very simple little traditions. I think it will become a regular thing for the years to come.

Good Friday saw us do a Tenebrae service using Matthew’s account. We began with the night before, celebrating the Lord’s Supper together. Then using the candles from the Wednesday, and beginning with them all lit, we gradually extinguished them after each part of the story. It ends in almost total darkness. Again, it’s a stark and moving way to explore the story. As I put on the back of the order of service:

“The word ‘tenebrae’ is Latin for shadows. The purpose of the Tenebrae service is to recreate the emotional aspects of the passion story. So this is not supposed to be a happy service, because the occasion is not happy!

The service was originally designed for Good Friday, but it can be used for Maundy Thursday as well. Both services have long scripture narratives, each one assigned to a different reader.

The purpose of the service is to recreate the betrayal, abandonment, and agony of the events, and it is left unfinished, because the story isn’t over until Resurrection Sunday.”

So thus we were left hanging out for Sunday.

Last year we didn’t really do anything for Easter ‘cos we realised everyone would go back home over the weekend. Then I regretted it, because Easter is like the most important part of the church year. So this year we’ve loaded it up with Easter goodness, and we’re going for broke regardless of who turns up.

We kicked off the week with Palm Sunday of course. Then last night (Wednesday) we did a portion of the Great Vigil – really just doing the candles and scripture passages. I found it intensely moving. We began in total darkness and silence – just to dramatize the pre-creation situation. Before each story was read, one candle would be lit. The story would be followed by a period of silence, and then an opportunity for discussion of the significance of that particular passage and its place in salvation history. The room became progressively lighter with each story.

So we covered creation, covenant, exodus and exile, along with the hospitality of God, resurrection and the eschatological vision of the Kingdom. A fair bit for one night! The story continues, of course, on Friday, as we delve deeper into the events leading up to the death of Jesus.

After a couple of years’ hiatus, the Palm Sunday Peace march was back on this year. We met up on the steps of Parliament half an hour before it was due to start. We were met too by Chris from the BUV who was there to get some video footage for an upcoming “Stories of Hope” video the BUV is doing for Winter Gathering. Palm Sunday this year fell on April Fools’ Day, which made for a great parallel with the Jesus story of making fun of military rule.

When everyone arrived, we sat down and read the Lucan version of the Palm Sunday story, together with the preceding passage and the following one as well, to put it in context. Turns out it’s a fascinating juxtaposition, with the Zaccheus story leading into the parable of the nobleman seeking royal power, then the so-called ‘triumphal entry’, then Jesus weeping over Jerusalem. The preceding parable is introduced with, “He went on to tell a parable, because he was near Jerusalem, and because they supposed that the kingdom of God was to appear immediately.” The interesting thing is that it is usually assumed that God/Jesus is the nobleman going to get royal power, and the first two people do the right thing, while the third does the wrong thing; but this makes no sense at all for several reasons. One, the hero/punchline is always the third guy. Whether it’s in jokes or in stories, the first two just set the last one up. So the guy who refuses to make the nobleman more money has to be the punchline/exemplary character. Two, the nobleman is repeatedly described as a “harsh man who reaps where he does not sow”, etc. Is this really how Jesus describes God? Unlikely. Thirdly, the next bit is the so-called triumphal entry, where Jesus completely parodies the idea of military coercive power. I say “so-called” because this is clearly not triumphal at all – in fact, when Matthew quotes the prophesy that he says points to this, he deliberately omits the words “triumphant and victorious” from the quote.

This parable, then, has to be story about the way the world opposes the economy of God, and vice versa, and the consequences for following the way of God (which Jesus is about to exemplify when he is killed in a weeks’ time).

Then after the procession into Jerusalem, Jesus stands and weeps over it, lamenting, “if only you knew the things that made for peace; but you did not.” In other words, the people welcome him as a coercive military ruler even though he clearly parodies it; and is killed a week later when people realise he is not going to lead a violent revolution against the Romans. The very same people who are hailing him as Messiah this week are baying for his blood the next.

So, it was helpful to put it in context and gave us plenty to think about in terms of the rival ideas of power here. On the one hand, various forms of violent and coercive power; on the other, nonviolent suffering love.

After thinking about these things, we did the march – the media was saying a thousand people but it seemed like more. Maybe it always does seem like more, I don’t know: still, it was a great vibe, despite an early sense that things might not be quite so positive. It always makes me a little nervous in large crowds that can sometimes be unpredictable. So great to have Chelsea and Ella there – they had fun, and my parents did a great job of looking after them.

It was amazing how many people I bumped into that I knew – not just at the march but on the tram on the way and on the way home too. A perfect day weather-wise too – not a cloud in the sky and about 22 degrees.

So well done to the organising committee for such a great job.