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Beloved Community,
The picture that accompanies this Mid Week Update is from Palm Sunday, 2016, in Nuremberg Germany. Bruce and I had attended worship that morning and much to my disappointment, the church barely observed Palm Sunday. There were no palms, no processions, nothing that would lead me into Holy Week. As we walked back to our flat, we heard music playing and lots of excitement and some singing, too! Soon, we encountered a Palm Sunday PARADE outside, with a congregation singing and playing instruments and happily attaching their palm branches (which were HUGE and adorned with colorful eggs) on the statue in the neighborhood where we were staying. THIS was a congregation that certainly WAS observing Palm Sunday!
We stopped to take some pictures, but soon found ourselves chatting with their pastor, who spoke a bit of English. He acknowledged that many of the German churches overlook the pageantry of Palm Sunday, but that his congregation loved it....and clearly they did.
Palm Sunday is an invitation to an entire week....a holy week....where we remember Jesus' entry into Jerusalem, the final supper with the commandment to love one another, and his death at Calvary. I encourage you to keep this holy week....to consider the texts for the days and to gather with your community of faith (details above) for worship.
We will begin Holy week on Sunday with a procession, as we do....waving our palm branches, shouting our hosannas and following Jesus.
See you in church,
Pastor Julie+
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