When I was young, I used to love to watch the old western television shows. I especially liked the ones in which the town was being ruled by the corrupt sheriff and the townspeople were at their wits end and had about given up hope for a hero to ride in and save them from their plight. Ah, that is the great thing about old westerns, for soon here comes the hero riding in on his beautiful horse (usually a white one). The hero is quick to take on and whip the bad guy sheriff and the townsfolk are saved from the sheriff’s wrath, set free, and live happily ever after.
Well, that is exactly what the people of Jerusalem are experiencing in our Gospel reading today. On the day that Jesus rode into Jerusalem, the Jewish townspeople fully expected Him, as the Messiah, to ride into town, overthrow the Roman rulers, kick them out of Israel forever and set the people free from their Roman captivity and slavery to Emperor Caesar and his army.
See, most of the Jewish religious leaders had interpreted the Messianic passages in the Hebrew Bible to mean that the coming Messiah would be a warrior-king. They believed that He would indeed come, physically conquer the Romans, and take back Israel for the Jews for all time. They were focused on their physical, national needs. That is the reason for all of the palm leaves that the people were waving on the day Jesus arrived in Jerusalem. The palm branch was a symbol for Israel. The waving of the palm leaves by the people was a sign of nationalism and patriotism for the Jews, just as our waving the American flag in parades is a show of national patriotism for us.
So here comes Jesus into Jerusalem riding not a majestic white horse, the mount of a warrior-king (that will happen later at His second coming), but rather He comes into town riding a lowly donkey! What was that all about? I mean, if I were Him, I probably would have made my entrance more spectacular. Somewhat along the lines of Imperial Majesty Bokassa I of the Central African Empire.
On December 4, 1977 in the capital city, Bangui, Emperor Bokassa I made his “triumphal entry” to take his throne. The price tag for that one single event 28 years ago was a staggering $25 million dollars. His “triumphal entry” began at 10:10 AM when the blast of trumpets and the roll of drums announced to all that his Majesty was approaching the city. The procession began with eight of Bokassa’s 29 children passing down the very long royal carpet to their seats. Following right behind them was the heir to the throne, Jean Bedel Bokassa II, dressed in a white admiral’s uniform with lots of gold braid. He took his place on the red velvet pillow to the immediate left of the throne. Catherine was next. She was Bokassa’s favorite of his nine wives and was dressed in a $73,000 gown, strewn with pearls.
Then his Imperial Majesty arrived in his coach decorated with golden eagles and drawn by six matched Anglo-Norman horses. The Marine Band struck up the hymn “The Sacred March Of His Majesty” and Emperor Bokassa I strode forth. What an impressive sight he was. He was cloaked in a robe weighing 32 pounds that was decorated with 785,000 pearls and gold embroidery. He wore white gloves and pearl slippers. On his head he wore a crown of gold laurel wreaths, similar to those worn by Roman consuls long ago as a symbol of the favor of the gods. Bokassa I came to his $2.5 million eagle throne, seated himself, removed the laurel wreath and, like Napoleon 173 years earlier, placed the $2.5 million crown, topped with an 80 carat diamond, on his head. Now that’s a “triumphal entry”, don’t you think?
Well, Jesus didn’t seem to think so. All of the conventional wisdom of His time dictated that He should have entered Jerusalem “Bokassa I” style. But Jesus chose to enter Jerusalem riding a donkey. What is it Jesus is trying to teach us? Was it merely by chance and lack of the availability of a better ride, that brought Jesus into town on a young donkey? Matthew tells us that it was by no mere chance or bad luck that the Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem took place on the back of a donkey. This had all been prophesied 500 years earlier in the Hebrew Bible, in the Book of Zechariah. Hear again verse 9:9, “Rejoice greatly, O Daughter of Zion! Shout, Daughter of Jerusalem! See, your King comes to you, righteous and Having salvation, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.” This was no mere accident. This was part of God’s Master Plan. But again, why a donkey? Let’s look at some background to find the answer.
How do you think it felt to be a Jew in first century Israel? Perhaps to be a Jew in that time was like being French in occupied France during WWII, except that in Israel it was the Romans, not the Germans, who were the hated masters of the country. The Jews hated the Romans and, as I said earlier, they were waiting for and expecting an all conquering Messiah-King to come and boot the Romans out. God had done it before, so why shouldn’t He do it again?
In 167 BC, the Jews had successfully risen up against the hated Seleucid ruler, Antiochus IV. They had become a free nation again. But in 63 BC the Roman general, Pompey, was invited to settle a dispute between two rival claimants to the throne of Israel. Rather than settle the dispute, Pompey seized the opportunity to conquer Israel. He did and from then on Rome had imposed its rule on Israel.
So here we find the Jews placing all of their nationalistic hope on a warrior-king. Jesus’ solution was a different one, indeed. He was a King, for sure. But His mission was to be a Servant-King and give His life for His followers. By using a donkey, Jesus was making a statement.
In those times, a donkey was ridden by judges and kings while traveling on errands of peace. The horse, in contrast, was ridden in battle or to signify power and strength. Jesus chose a donkey to signify that His kingdom is a kingdom of peace rather than a kingdom of war and domination. Jesus’ kingdom is not a kingdom of fear, but of love and servanthood. His kingdom is not like those the world is used to, where the ruler lords his power over the people, but one in which the ruler serves his people.
People will be attracted to Jesus’ kingdom if we, His followers, will live the life we preach. Let our prayer this day be that we shine the Light of Christ into this world. St. Francis of Assissi once said, “Preach the Gospel all the time – and use words when necessary.” The message we can take home from the story of the “Triumphal Entry” is that we are called by God to love Him and our fellow man and, because of that love, we should be extremely willing to serve God and one another.
Jesus came riding on a donkey. His message is, “The battle with Satan is over. I have won.” We, His followers, share in that victory.
Jesus came once riding a donkey in peace and humility. We are told in the Book of Revelation that He will return “riding a white horse” as the Conquering King to defeat Satan and his followers and thus ending the war once and for all. For now, His message is that the battle is already won, peace and salvation are ours, and are available for anyone who will accept Him and His work on the cross.
Go into the world and spread His message of hope, peace and love. Amen.