The slogan “Make America Great Again”, used in a certain Presidential campaign, grasped at the heart of many people throughout the world. One of the reasons it was so influential was because it spoke of a golden era, and era of wealth and prosperity – of hope.
Samuel Pullenger
The world feels like it has changed in the last few decades. Things are not as predictable as they used to be. In some ways this provides massive opportunities, but in others it increases the risk and creates fear. We fear things that we do not understand. Often, our response to things changing, or to things we do not understand is to retreat to the comfortable, to pine for the way things used to be. And yet, as we know and continue to see, hope cannot be found in a President who offers M.A.G.A., hope cannot be found in a Prime Minister or government party.
As I sit and read through the newspaper which comes every week, seeing the continuous issues that the council has to deal with, the ever deepening debt, the water delivery plan, the waste-to-energy submission, and many more; as I read about the call outs that police attended throughout the past week, it is clear that we cannot place our ultimate hope in these human institutions. This is not to say they are not helpful or necessary, rather, that these institutions are not made for us to place our hope in. They cannot stand up to that kind of expectation.
This coming week is Holy Week in the church calendar; the week that leads up to Easter. At the beginning of the week (Sunday) we celebrate Palm Sunday, which is when Jesus enters Jerusalem riding on a donkey. This triumphant entrance in the Bible, is written as a faux Kingly entrance into the city. The people all place their palm fronds down on the road to honour Jesus as the King entering Jerusalem. And yet, by the end of the week, Jesus will be handed over the Romans to be crucified by these same people. What went wrong? What changed in this one week?
Easter
Expectations. The Jewish people were expecting a military, war-waging king to drive off the oppressive Romans to make Israel great again. But this was not what Jesus came to be. This was not the hope of the Kingdom of God. Jesus is King, but not of an earthly human institution like the Jewish people expected. The hope we find in Jesus is that God became human, so we might find fulfilment through him. So, when Jesus rose again, three days after his crucifixion, Christians believe, this opened a way for all people to find peace and fulfilment.
Like the crowd who had misplaced expectations of Jesus, it can be so easy to become disillusioned, disheartened or even angry when our expectations in a political figure or council are not met. I want to invite us, instead, to seek to see the person behind the institution, a person who is just like us, with hopes and dreams, seeking to better the lives of those they have been called to serve. To pray for them and seek their well-being as members of our community. And may we re-place our hope in the one who can meet that profound responsibility, Jesus.
On Friday we will be having a Walk of Witness beginning at St Patrick’s Catholic Church and ending at St John’s Anglican Parish. This walk will go through town, stopping at several spots to pray and reflect on Jesus’ death. And then, on Sunday there will be services in many of the Churches in Te Awamutu celebrating Jesus’ resurrection. You are invited to come and join any one of the services or the walk.
