Aldersgate United Methodist Church

Sunday, March 29, 2026

Palm Sunday

“Palm Fronds and Pine Boughs”

Scripture: Mark 11: 1-11 (NRSV) When they were approaching Jerusalem, at Bethphage (pronounced Beth-Fage) and Bethany, near the Mount of Olives, he sent two of his disciples ² and said to them, “Go into the village ahead of you, and immediately as you enter it you will find tied there a colt that has never been ridden; untie it and bring it. ³ If anyone says to you, ‘Why are you doing this?’ just say this: ‘The Lord needs it and will send it back here immediately.’ ” ⁴ They went away and found a colt tied near a door, outside in the street. As they were untying it, ⁵ some of the bystanders said to them, “What are you doing, untying the colt?” ⁶ They told them what Jesus had said, and they allowed them to take it. ⁷ Then they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks on it, and he sat on it. ⁸ Many people spread their cloaks on the road, and others spread leafy branches that they had cut in the fields. ⁹ Then those who went ahead and those who followed were shouting,

“Hosanna!
    Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!
¹⁰     Blessed is the coming kingdom of our ancestor David!
Hosanna in the highest heaven!”

¹¹ Then he entered Jerusalem and went into the temple, and when he had looked around at everything, as it was already late, he went out to Bethany with the twelve.

Sermon: Palm Fronds and Pine Boughs

There’s so much to “unpack” in today’s scripture of history, ritual, and teaching…so let’s dive right in. Jesus entered Jerusalem in what might be described as an ancient “ticker tape parade” with palm branches substituting for confetti and cloaks laid before him serving as the red carpet. He rode a young donkey, often symbolized in eastern tradition as an animal of peace, versus a horse which was used as an animal of war. I guess we could say, he entered Jerusalem as the Prince of Peace, not a war-raging king, and in doing so, marked the beginning of what we now know is a pivotal week in our faith formation and tradition…the beginning of Holy Week.

Ah Yes…Holy Week…the final stretch in our Lenten journey – a time to challenge ourselves to grow personally in our connection with God and to consider stretching ourselves as disciples serving others. Scripture tells us that prior to Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem, people were deeply witnessing his ministry and message. They were discovering how to become the body of Christ, in preparation for his rejection, betrayal and crucifixion. This coming week is an opportunity to once again enter into this story and revisit its teachings. It’s also an invitation to discover its application to our day, our hearts, and in our world.

So, let’s enter into this story and revisit its teachings, but let’s try a little different vantage point. Many of us learn and remember things when they unfold as pictorial metaphors. And, if you’re horrible at retaining information, sometimes painting a picture can help us retain and understand something anew. So, let’s do just that with today’s message, recognizing it may not be “your thing” – you might be someone who to drawn to facts and historical information. To keep us all engaged for the next few minutes, we’ll try to weave in some of both learning styles.

Let’s step out of today’s scripture reading and step outside our church building to see how this picture unfolds. Imagine we’re all sitting in lawn chairs on the north side of our church parking lot. We’re perched at an elevation 5500 feet into the heavens. Facing north, we can see the hillside where historic Walkerville resides (at 6300 ft.) and if we turn slightly west, there’s Big Butte (at 5700) with the “M” on the hillside. If we were to paint a picture of Holy Week using this unfolding landscape, we might use these landmarks as our representation of Palm Sunday (Walkerville) and Easter Sunday (Big Butte) although, the “M” on Big Butte stands for Montana School of Mines/Montana Tech, and doesn’t exactly depict Easter events (perhaps we can think of it as M for Messiah or M-iracle) for the sake of this visual example. We can almost envision Jesus’ donkey leaving Walkerville and trekking down Ryan Drive and Rising Star Road, headed toward the “M”. It would be a bit more strenuous than the biblical trek, given the elevation of The Mount of Olives was a mere 2700 feet, but the overall change in elevation he experienced on his journey would be similar to traveling through our local landmarks and would provide him with an incredible view of our “village” below. His journey then (and now) is pivotal for the next seven days as we explore Holy Week.

So, what did lie ahead for Jesus in the days between Palm Sunday and Easter? Shortly after entering Jerusalem, he angers leaders by throwing vendors out of the temple and the following day confronts the hypocrisy of the Jewish leaders signifying the sanctity of God’s house. Jesus continues to teach his message, preparing his disciples for what’s to come. On Wednesday, Judas agrees to betray Jesus, leading to Jesus’ arrest in the Garden of Gethsemane, and by Holy Thursday Jesus is with his disciples, washing their feet and celebrating the Last Supper. On Friday, Jesus is crucified and dies and on Saturday is laid in the tomb. On Easter Sunday the foundation of our Christian faith is realized in the resurrection of Jesus as he first appears to Mary Magdalene. That’s a Holy Week timeline in minuscule form. There’s so much more to consider and unpack. But what else may have occurred that week that we can explore today from our current vantage point and 2000+ years of wayfaring?

Let’s return to our local Butte landscape metaphor….so Jesus has descended and stepped into town. Do we find glimpses of Jesus’ teaching in our familiar valleys? In Mark’s gospel, Chapter 12 we hear more of the story unfolding. Some Sadducees are questioning Jesus, and a scribe overhears them discussing which commandment is most important. Jesus replies that it’s loving God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength and to love your neighbor as yourself. It’s here in our own valleys where oftentimes we are encouraged to do the same, witnessing firsthand with struggling neighbors the call to serve as Jesus instructed. We have opportunities to feed bodies and souls through various connections with friends in our community, as well as through our local food bank, the Rescue Mission, our missional giving to UMCOR, and our neighborhood schools, United Way, and more. The call to serve and anoint and care for others stretches all the way from Jerusalem to our little valley as well.

If we continue to forge on through Holy Week from Walkerville, through town, to Big Butte, our trek takes us a similar distance in as it did in the Holy Land for Jesus. It’s just a couple miles distance between the Mount of Olives, through Jerusalem to Bethany and then less than half a mile to the site of his crucifixion at Golgotha. This is a similar distance one would trek from Walkerville to the “M” on the hill.

Correlations between that first Holy Week and now continue to emerge if we explore our surroundings. Along another similar path (in our neighboring State Capitol of Helena) we would encounter a dark part of Montana history as well. At the location of present-day Blake and Highland Streets, near the Beattie Street trailhead leading up Mt. Ascension (on the edge of town), was the site of the Hanging Tree. Between the years of 1865-1870, early-day Helena Vigilantes hung at least ten men at this location for crimes of robbery, picking pockets, murder, and attempted murder.

Another “Prince of Peace” or sorts entered the scene in 1875. The owner of that lot of land, Methodist minister William Castlebury Shippen cut down the hanging tree. However, it’s speculative whether he cut it down out of objection to its use or because it was leaning and threatening to topple onto his barn. The coincidental symbolism of these places of judgment and persecution are a reminder that the events of Holy Week are not just a piece of gospel text, but a reality in our time. Imagine what the people of Israel and the State of Palestine might have to tell us this morning about the violence and raging injustice that continues in the Holy Land. The lessons of Holy Week are forever unfolding outside our windows and the windows of all mankind. When will it change? When will WE change?

It begins with each of us…and it begins with Jesus’ message and the Easter story. Theologian Marcus Borg states this when he says, “Easter is not about believing in a spectacular long-ago event, but about participating in what we see in Jesus. Crucifixion and the tomb didn’t stop him. Easter is about saying “YES” to the passion of Jesus. He’s still here, still recruiting.”

When Jesus rode into Jerusalem, he was illustrating to the people that there’s another way of being, another way of living in the world…and beyond. Jesus also knew what was about to happen, and it wasn’t without lots of hatred, violence, and scapegoating. But God was entering in to save us – imperfect us. And as imperfect people we can continue to strive to do our best to make a difference, to stand alongside those who need our assistance and be made new by God’s grace through continued growth. God is everywhere and whether we wave palm fronds or pine boughs as it may be in Montana, we are God’s people, ministers of God’s redemptive work. “Hosanna” – save us!