{
  "$type": "site.standard.document",
  "bskyPostRef": {
    "cid": "bafyreigft7qn2y6tbpr6hw7uag2fl4prpirxcczl76rqym6j3tutcb6ixa",
    "uri": "at://did:plc:3ijl2lfgs5xl5myp32a3sskl/app.bsky.feed.post/3mhxkej4kv2j2"
  },
  "coverImage": {
    "$type": "blob",
    "ref": {
      "$link": "bafkreibdvynj56vz3dmjpqsdqutpr2lvwedbfl27q54cyz57vy2sldsgee"
    },
    "mimeType": "image/jpeg",
    "size": 262328
  },
  "description": "A Prayer for the Week and Resources for Palm Sunday, March 29, 2026",
  "path": "/for-palm-and-passion-sunday-in-the-midst-of-war-letuspray/",
  "publishedAt": "2026-03-26T11:56:56.000Z",
  "site": "https://www.reyes-chow.com",
  "tags": [
    "LetUsPray",
    "The Revised Common Lectionary",
    "The Narrative Lectionary",
    "This time last year, I was in Palestine",
    "spending Holy Week in Jerusalem",
    "Gift Subscriptions",
    "Group Subscriptions",
    "RCL Year A Readings (NRSV)",
    "Psalm 118:1-2, 19-29",
    "Matthew 21:1-11",
    "NL434 Readings (CEB)",
    "John 19:16-22",
    "John 12:12-27",
    "Psalm 24",
    "Vanderbilt Revised Common Lectionary",
    "The Narrative Lectionary from The Working Preacher",
    "Subscribe now"
  ],
  "textContent": "****Weekly #LetUsPray****\n\nI offer this weekly #LetUsPray as a way to stay anchored amidst the turmoil of the day. Paid subscribers have access to liturgical resources and sermon prompts based on the week's readings from The Revised Common Lectionary and/or The Narrative Lectionary.\n\nThis time last year, I was in Palestine. And after spending Holy Week in Jerusalem, Palm Sunday will never be the same. I was leading a Delegation with Sabeel, and the first thing we did after crossing the border was to join thousands of others in the Palm Sunday procession.\n\nIn many ways, it was surreal. At one point, I said to one of the delegation, \"We are about to actually enter Jerusalem while waving palms.\" Now I have no need to know that \"this is exactly where Jesus walked,\" but to be Jesus-Was-Here adjacent was pretty cool. All those years of waving our skinny palm leaves while standing in pews pales in comparison to the monstrous palms that we waved as we made our way from the Mount of Olives to the Old City.\n\n0:00\n\n/0:07\n\n1×\n\nPalm Sunday, Jerusalem, 2025\n\nIn some ways, it was like the Palm Sundays I have known all my life, where just underneath the parade and jubilation, there was pain, injustice, and pending suffering about to be inflicted upon the people by an empire grasping for life. Only this time, we did not have to use our imagination, speak in colorful metaphors, or convince folks that all was not as it seemed.\n\nThe evidence was all around us...\n\n  * **Exclusion:** What you cannot see from the feature picture is that most of the people in the processional are internationals. Absent were the thousands of Palestinian Christians who applied for permits to enter East Jerusalem for Holy Week and were denied by the Israeli Government. Now, before anyone tries to rationalize why they would deny Christians to enter the Holy City during Holy Week, the answer is simply, \"Because they can.\"\n  * **Intimidation:** As you can also see in the photo, Israeli Occupation Forces were constantly surveilling the march from the rooftops and the ground. The biggest weapons of occupation are not the guns, but the intimidation. And yes, the answer to the question, \"Why?\" is again, \"Because they can.\" And yes, the banner is complete with the white Jesus on a donkey. Colonizers gonna colonize.\n  * **Foreshadowing:** While the Israeli government would like the world to believe Israel is the only country in the region where all faiths are welcome and can practice freely under occupation, this is simply not true. Not only are there Christian celebrations in other countries, but Holy Week in Palestine is the most violent time of the year for Christians. This walk felt a little like an act of defiance, because soon, the threatened authorities would clamp down. During our time, we saw people beaten, harassed, and arrested for simply trying to go to church on Easter. Do not believe the propaganda. We were there and the violence is real.\n\n\n\nPalm Sunday holds in tension both our joy at the coming of some kind of \"savior\" and the reality that this savior does not show up in the ways we had wanted or expected. And once the realities become evident, it is too late. The Jesus who comes to challenge authority and lift up the oppressed is killed; not because he had to be, but because the empire saw him as a threat that had to be eliminated. And sadly, the crowd that was cheering for him just days before would now call for his death.\n\nIt is with the holy and the horrible of the day churning in my soul in a time of war that I offer this week's prayer.\n\n### For Palm and Passion Sunday in the Midst of War #LetUsPray\n\n _Holy One, the world is filled with\nbeauty and brokenness\nsorrow and celebration\nand the holy and the horrific_\n\n _As we tenderly hold the tensions of life\nfrom the depths of our struggles\nto the heights of our joy\nremind us that you are here_\n\n _And in a time of war\nwhen humans are killing humans\nwhen land is ravaged\nand when hatred is multiplied\ngrant us the humility to know\nall are worthy of Your love_\n\n _**For the nations of the world, we give thanks**\nfor the beauty of their land\nfor the complexity of their people\nand for the richness of their history_\n\n _**For the nations of the world, we lament**\nthe ease with which we justify bloodshed\nseeking of domination over one another\nand stoking the fires of generational hatred_\n\n _**For the nations of the world, we hope**\nthey will reexamine the futility of war\nthey will seek the global common good\nand they will choose the way of peace_\n\n _and_\n\n _**For those who hold power, we give thanks**\nfor answering the call to public service\nfor their steadfastness in times of chaos and strife\nand for the communities that share them with the world_\n\n _**For those who hold power, we lament**\nthe gluttony that fuels oppression\nthe hubris that emboldens violence\nand the cowardice that corrodes character _\n\n_**For those who hold power, we hope**\nthey will have the courage to change directions\nthey will bless, feed, and clothe their enemies\nand they will choose the way of peace_\n\n _and_\n\n _**For those caught in the in-between, we give thanks**\nfor glimpses of joy in between the bombings\nfor communities that bear one another's burdens\nand for visions and dreams that are stronger than war_\n\n _**For those caught in the in-between, we lament**\nparticipating in acts of war and violence\nallowing hate and judgment to infest our souls\nand cherishing borders more than siblings on the other side_\n\n _**For those caught in the in-between, we hope**\nthey encounter the holy more than the horrific\nthey live to love the many generations to come\nand they soon know the day when peace has prevailed_\n\n _For these things I pray_\n\n _— AMEN_\n\nPeace,\n\nNOTE: The Amalgamation is undergoing a mini glow-up. You can now purchase Gift Subscriptions **_and_** Group Subscriptions. Paid Subscribers will soon be able to gift subscriptions to friends, family, barristas, or congressional representatives :-)\n\n## LITURGY AND PREACHING PROMPTS\n\n#### Sunday, March 29, 2026: _Palm Sunday_\n\nRCL Year A Readings (NRSV)**:** Psalm 118:1-2, 19-29 | Matthew 21:1-11\nNL434 Readings (CEB)**:** John 19:16-22 (Opt.: John 12:12-27) | Psalm 24\n\nIn writing liturgy, I attempt to be economical with words while addressing the events of the day in ways that help people find grounding in their faith. For readings, I refer to the Vanderbilt Revised Common Lectionary **(RCL)** and The Narrative Lectionary from The Working Preacher **(NL)**. Paid Subscribers should please feel free to use any of the liturgical resources with or without attribution.\n\n### This post is for subscribers only\n\nBecome a member to get access to all content\n\nSubscribe now",
  "title": "For Palm and Passion Sunday in the Midst of War #LetUsPray",
  "updatedAt": "2026-03-26T11:56:56.821Z"
}