THE DAY. THE STONES CRIED: OUT

March 19, 1989, Palm Sunday

8:30. and. 11:00 a.m. Worship: Services
John M. buchanan e ;

: Fourth Presbyterian Church, Chicago.

Scripture ps
Isaiah .50:4=9a
Luke -19:28-40

"7 tell you, if these were. silent, the very”
‘Stones: would cry out." =~ -<Luke/ 19: 40 (RSV)

It is, I have always thought, a difficult day for us. For we know,
don't..we, that this triumph is brief; that. these "Hosannas” will. soon be
drowned. out _ by a chorus of. strident voices demanding his death.,

, Listen to. how William Willimon expresses. the. “ambiguity and, the. irony
of Palm Sunday: ree

“Here in. Lent, as the church makes its” way. with ite: Lord to the =
cross, we pause. We-stop: for a moment. to catch our. breath. With “the: ‘world
we expected to-see a savior coming to take charge on our. terms... Then the
parade comes and we find that we are standing in the wrong place to get a
good: view....There comes this carpenter's son, bouncing on the back of'a
donkey;. not. coming for breakfast: (at.the White House), .or dinner. with:
Congress,..or consultations at {National Church Officescat .475 Riverside:
Drive.) The: ‘Smart ones, Che-ones who. are: well ~adjusted to=-the way. things.
are, the ones..in. the know, neither. see nor, know, so.the story goes... on
a Wild and Windy Mountain, p. 68] Ces es

Itis’a difficult day for us. because. of. the nagging ‘suspicion that we
would not have..been there. And had we allowed our. curiosity..to- draw MS.
down the street to see. what all-the. shouting was: about, we-very likely
would have. found it all. objectionable, and we would surely have found.
reason: to be distressed. by his overt challenge to the established order,
the established religion,..the established way. of doing things. He came,
John Fry said one time, to save the city from:the idiocy of its religion:
(Fire and Blackstone, -p.- 238). =: : a

We are troubled by this day because. the religious types on the scene
aren't the ones waving palm. branches::and shouting “Hosanna !!".. They. are :
clearing their throats and suggesting that it..might be. more. effective if he
lowered the volume and made:a few. rational proposals about.reforming. the
religious practices at, the Temple, rather .thanoali. this’ chaotic shouting:
The. religious types who are=there are. pounding: the’gavel,-calling: for
order, asking him, please, to disassociate himself. from the more radical

members of his crowd of follawers who have had the bad taste to>°call-him
King within hearing of Pilate's’ palace. "For God's sake," literally they
say, these keepers of: the religious tradition, “tone it. down-a- bit. and
forget about. that. King:business.” That. will get” us al].-in. trouble,
particularly. you."

The .observation you-can't’ avoid making even-if you try, is that
things. get dangerous. for’ Jesus when he comes: to the city. : Sitting here on
- the: corner.of -Michigan Avenue and Delaware, on Palm Sunday, it is neither
possible nor plausible to ignore’ the’ simple fact that while Jesus has-a few
problems in the suburbs, he gets into real’ trouble when he comes:to the
city.- And that <may ‘be= the: same thing that happens’ to. the religion of
Jesus; the friends of. Jesus, maybe ‘even the Church of Jesus. Christ.

It=besins..in smal] towns: and villages, this story. does.. Bethlehem -
Nazareth — Capernaum: It. proceeds on’ ‘country reads and by the lakeside. and
fishing settlements. And as it proceeds. = the story starts ‘gradually to
point to: the city.°::It's ‘almost. as “if-the deeper Jesus goes into his life,
the” more it becomes flear that he must go to Jerusalen.

“The story. of ‘his arrival is one ‘of our treasures. He was determined
to go to Jerusalem for the Passover, the annual celebration of Israel's
liberation from Egyptian slavery. The city was crowded with pilgrims full
of religious and nationalistic fervor.. Tt is also true that the occupying
forces, Roman troops and Roman officials, became very. nervous during the
annual Passover. observance. If. there ever was going to be trouble, a
political demonstration or‘riot,. for instance; ‘it would happen, in-all
“probability, while the: city | was full. Of. of overheated | religious fanatics”
from the: countryside: :

The. Romans aren't the only nervous ones. Perhaps: even more nervous
are the religious authorities themselves; the temple officials: - priests
and scribes who were allowed a bit of. autonomy by the Romans... but were
supervised. closely: °-The religious leaders of the people had*the unenviable
task of trying to live in the tension between their:-faith commitments and
the overwhelming coercive power of the Roman Sword. It's not. an easy-place
tobe... Every. single-day religious leaders in totalitarian lands have to
decide how far to go, how much to: ‘say, have to decide ‘when- and how to.
compromise conscience in order to survive. A Russian. Orthodox priest has
to decide every day how much to say about human rights; how far to go.
Christians in El Salvador know that speaking about freedom and ‘justice ‘can
get you killed. In South ‘Africa church officials. constantly. struggle with
the tension between conscience and the institutional realities of their
church ‘and culture: They make an easy.target; these religious’
authorities.. But the more J> think about them, the more. Ll understand
exactly the dilemma they were in and how they convinced. themselves that the
survival of the’ Temple andthe’ worship ‘and the religious tradition ‘was
worth ‘a reasonable compromise here and there.

So: they came, worried, to see: what: ard who is causing a an

disturbance: For; inthe meantime, Jesus of Nazareth has decided: to come
to Jerusalem; has .made his way with a band of friends, up from Jericho and

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has. spent last: night: at@the howe af friends in the. smal] town of Bethany, a
few wiles outside the city. : " : a

While there, something seems to come over ‘him. He sends for-a-.
donkey. Having walked mile after dusty mile, all the way from Jericho,
having walked from village to village for ‘three years; Jesus decides: to
ride the last mile or two on the: back’ of a donkey. re ee ee

Now “in times of stress’ ‘and national calamity, people turn to poetry =
and music: to: express hope: “During thé War Between ‘the’ States people ine
the: South sang: "Dixie" and: people in the. North. Sang "He is. tramping out: the
Vintage where? the ‘prapes of wrath are ‘stored:! And in’ the first century,
Israel; under the despised heel: of ‘pagan Rome, people. sang..

"Rejoice greatly, a0) daughter of Zion!
"Shout.-aloud... your king comes

“toe yous ‘triumphant and® victorious, ~humbYe™
and riding, ofan ass." : ER ces

Tt was. from the prophet. Zechariah: tcwas a vision. of what could be;
what should be; what would be when God's Messiah, Son of David, rode. into :
the capital city and hurled the hated oppressors into the sea; and - ne
re-established the throne of Saul and David and Solomon:

When: these poor: people. saw it; “saw: this vision: of hope. playing =
out. before their: very. eyes; théey-tore the coats from their backs. and laid
them in his path, and shouted: : oe nes oes

"Blessed is the King who: comes in
the “name: of. ‘the: Lord! -.Peace<in ‘heaven and
on-earth." PEE ES :

And it is then that the religious authorities suggest that he might
like to: distance himself. from that king business and it is to them. that
Jesus says something striking... ae : :

“I tel] you, if these were silent, the S
very stones: would cry out." BS

Translate ‘that... What these poor people are . shouting is the. truth:
the truth of God, the truth more ‘powerful, more real” than Roman’ truth. or’
even religious: truth. =This truth will not “be® silenced. “God's whole”
creation shouts it. Silence these few poor’ people and. others will take alten
the chorus... Shut: down the presses: and the truth. will be whispered. Jail
the. preachers,;-the people will tell the ‘truth.: Close the churches, the.
truth will ‘survive: °-Kill ‘everyone, and: the mountains and hills will. shout
this truth. "If these were silent, even the stones would cry out. "Palm >
Sunday .is about the arrival of Jesus of Nazareth inthe city. But it-is
more,. itvis-a’ symbol ofthe relationship. of God. ‘to. Auman life.. > the human
citys but also the individual. : CAE

There are, it seems to me, two observations that we ought to make on-

this day about. this incident. The first is that -the- Lord of Christian |
faith doesn't stay out on the safe perimeters of. life, but instead, with

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high, intentionality: and. great. courage; presents himself: at: the center; in .
the city, at the heart of things as it: were. “And the-second is that when

he gets: there, if his friends don't acknowledge. him, someone else will
because he» represents: the: God's truth, ‘ an igen ao

“First 3 “periphery. to center, There is’ a-venerable religious
tradition in this culture which. might.bei called “spiritual marginalism.”
[tis deep-and it is> profound. Simply defined, it is the placement of
faith, religion: things of. the spirit onthe: margins.of life: -It-has-its
roots. in the old: Greek notion that. there is a fundamental: difference
between things of the spirit, and: things: of the: world... that. -religion-is;
essentially, other: worldly. Spiritual -marginalism-separates religion from
life and keeps it. in its own compartment; safely remote from the mundane
realities of living life in the world... -It allows you to believe in Jesus
Christ. and. then deny his Lordship: by .the-way. you live. =

It is expressed inthe notion that religion and politics don't mix -
which usually means religion and: life. don't mix... An’ operational:
assumption in this culture is that things of: the spirit and -things-of this
world are separate: «that. beliefs about: God and positions on: the school.
budget, public: housing, health care, Jand=care for the: poor; are “two:
distinct and different. matters. ps :

In: the :-Middle ‘Mees, Monasticism, for all its grace and beauty and
high discipline, represented a mentality which said you: cannot live a
faithful life in the. world. If: you: were really serious about your faith
you must withdraw from life to the monastery or convent.

One of the. points. the: Protestant Reformation made: is thatthe Gospel
must live in the midst of the world, radically, wholly;without=
reservation, because that is where its Lord. lived: Religion must: be as
worldly as he was, as involved in life, as open to°the joys and ambiguities
and. tragedies of life. -lived. fully.in ‘this world. :

‘Now it is ‘not easy. ‘to ‘live a “peligious life in ‘the world. The
Monastery is, in many ‘ways; enormously appealing: not too exciting but
safe: rigorous, but predictable... It. is, I: would submit,: far’ easier ‘to
pontificate about: family: values and the issues: of: contraception: and
population control from the safety. of a chapel’ in Rome, than it-is at Old
St. Joseph's: Church which lives: ‘thoroughly-inia world. of: terrible :
ambiguity, on the edge of..Cabrini Green. :.whose. parishioners ‘are unmarried
mothers in a sub-culture: where. Marriage: isi not<always viable. and: for: -whom
another. child. means utter disaster. How: much*easier:.to retreat to: the
safety. of. traditional positions. onthe matter. of sexual. morality, sexual
orientation, than to: live inva world where people struggle with those -
issues and suffer. and. sometimes die. because sof the. culture's unwillingness
to be honest, : : : :

; The contemporary equivalent of, the. medieval monastery is: the
privatization of religion: the removal of faith. from the public’ sphere to
the safety. of the human heart; the retreat from the dirt and ambiguity of po
life-in the city.to the safety and: serenity of, life in. the individual
soul.

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And. you could do-it, except | for -Palm<:Sunday:

On Palm Sunday, -the: day Jesus. came:to. the? center: of. the city, we must
not. retreat, taking our: faith. to the safe irrelevancty: of a monastery, even
the. privacy of our own’ souls: That is the first observation. “-The ‘Second
is that if the friends of Jesus: don't welcome: him: to’ lifes. ‘others will.”

When: Professor Harvey Cox wrote The Secular City two ‘decades

ago,--he. proposed. that. religion-had already. become a ‘private affair: that
the city was totally secular; that. faith had: to do only withthe personal
interiors of the individual heart. :

: But. Jesus ‘said, "if. these are silent. the very. stones: will cry out."
So, lo and Behold, we discover that the city isn't-so-secular: safters ali?
In, fact,: twenty years, later Professor: Cox cwrote another book. Religion in -
the Secular City... "The city today does not prevent people ‘from - being. == -
religious, "he said, "From the shipyard masses: of. Gdansk to the burgeoning
Baptist churches of Houston, to the:sects: of the: slums, religion: appears to
thrive. [p. 807-81] : . LESS oes

<o. Dan: Wakefield,-whose: book;,: Returning, chronicles his rediscovery of
the church and faith in the midst: of Tife;: wrote a feature for the New York
Fimes Book Review recently. under the intriguing title "And Now a Word from
Our Creator." ‘The article traces “the growing number of new’ literary works
in which God, who for. so long seemed absent if. not’ dead! as°a subject: of”
concern in serious fiction,... has returned. as a force or 'character! in”
the actions: {New York Times Book Review, 2/12/89]

So if. his friends lose. their nerve, someone: else: will shout:* And if
his followers forget his name the authors: and poets: and musicians and
artists will call it out; And if the church in the city retreats: from. the:
strenuous: challenge of following him, his premise is that the very stones ~
will cry. out.

God has alternatives. © In the tradition: of the church it is the
children. who are -shouting.Hosannas. In a novel;:Clowns ‘of God; Morris West
portrays the. return: of Christ in which “he holds a Down's Syndrome: child;
serving her the bread and wine of Communion and saying, ‘I. gave this mite a
gift I denied to-all of you ~ eternal innocence: She will never offend me,
as all of you have done. . She will never pervert or destroy the works of my
father's hands: She is necessary.-to you. She will evoke ‘the kindness. that
will keep you human... She: will. remind you every daythat I. AM WHO I: AM.!"
[Cited by Diane Komp: in Theology Today; 10/88: in Context, “Martin
E. Marty, 3/15/89] :

God has alternatives. The little ones... the innocent ones.::-If'-we
heglect.to bear’ witness the artists and writers will remember: If we:
forget. to sing, the musicians will: take up the. refrain. And if all else
fails, the stones will cry out.. For we are today talking about the reality
of God in the middie of life: :

But how-sad to miss it... How sad to be at the wrong place when he :

comes. How. sad if our reserve and polite restraint. prevented: Us: from
welcoming him. How sad if our Presbyterian prudence and caution kept--us

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busy evaluating and measuring the possible scenarios and“ plausible®
outcomes. “How very sad if we missed. this invitation. to welcome God's son
‘to the city, to our hearts: and minds: and: souls;-if we missed the
opportunity to live life, not- measuring it out day by- day; bute living? it’
extravagantly. and elon iousiy and fully, Py visking ity by: giving | our heart
to: him and his Kingdom. : : : O88 :

He came=-to-the city. And he forced the issue. So -he comes to
our cilysrcand to: the very center of your life. and nine; noo more content
to.-stay-on the periphery of your. life than ‘he was” willing to. stay: away. from
Jerusalem: : :

~The invitation today is to welcome him:Now F do not: presume to know
what that might mean: for you. Tt might be that: you need: to. bring: Jesus
‘Christ in from: the margins of your: Tite: vey ‘Joining: the church by publiely
declaring. your Alieglance: BS - Supe eee LES

At night | mean that you need to: do something extravagant Like giving
away money, by doing something you've: never done before for.-him, ;

; It: might. mean changing. your: life; your. vocation, your attitudes,.or
your behavior. It might mean that--you: become-a vocal advocate of Jesus'
agenda, a partner in his revolution to. change the’ world: into’a: Kingdom of.
justice and: peace and compassion... It might mean extending love and

: kindness to: someone.:you have: been ignoring: an:your: wounded pride and : ae
resentment. : fete : i : ae ead

1 do not-know what it might mean for you) -But: Ido know that-on-this
day he came to the city and that the invitation is ‘to.welcomehim— ‘King =
Cord: —:Savior.<-The ‘invitation is:to:do ted uncharacteristic - to rip
the coat: off: your: back and lay it inhis: path.. : And to Join ay chorus: of
voices: shouting: = singing | =~ Jaughing: wes : ; ;

Blessed: is-the one who comes’-in. the name of the Lord.
Peace in: heaven. and. om earth.

Amen.

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