Hosanna for All Creation: A Palm Sunday Reflection on Solidarity and the More-Than-Human World

A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road.  The crowds that went ahead of him and that followed were shouting,
“Hosanna to the Son of David!
    Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!
Hosanna in the highest heaven!”
(Matthew 21:8-9, NRVSUE) 

Palm Sunday is one of those Sundays that gives those of us who preach about Creation justice a lot to work with. You have leafy branches of trees playing a pivotal role. You have animals pressed into duty to transport Jesus into the city. Some versions of the story even give us the fantastical Creation imagery of rocks crying out in praise if the people were to be silenced. This is a text filled with vibrant images of the more-than-human world. And yet, in the midst of these beautiful images we can’t lose sight of the fact that there is another element of Creation at work here: the human element. 

Jesus enters into a city filled with people longing for good news. His reputation precedes him and the crowds rush out to see the Messiah. Though they are likely caught off guard by Jesus’humble appearance, the longing for liberation is too strong. They cry out “Hosanna”, literally “Save us!”. This isn’t a mild greeting for a visiting dignitary. This is a desperate cry to a hoped for savior. The people of Jerusalem have lived under the boot of Rome, their land occupied, their wages taxed, and their resources depleted. Violence has become a regular part of their lives, a means of control. The potential and promise of the Prince of Peace arriving in their midsts is too strong of a draw. And so they flood the streets, begging for the new world that Jesus will usher in to come quickly. 

Palm Sunday is an invitation to solidarity. It is a chance for us to lift our voices along with all of the members of Creation, human and non-human, who are longing for freedom from war, exploitation, and violence. It is a reminder that Jesus counters the violence of empire with peace but not passivity. It is a reminder of the ways in which we all find ourselves entangled in the greed, oppression, and extraction of cruel systems while amplifying the voices of those hurt most. In these times when so much feels unstable and uncertain, sometimes it feels like the best that we can do is scream “Hosanna!” for the sake of all of God’s Creation. 

Derrick Weston
Director of Theological Education and Formation
Creation Justice Ministries