CORONA, HOSANNA and HALLELUJAH

CORONA, HOSANNA and HALLELUJAH

As I pen down this article, the world statistics of Covid-19 stand at a total of 1,781,383 cases and  108,880 deaths. We are under a lock-down – a period of absolute nothingness such as we have never experienced before. The graphs around the world are neither favourable nor reassuring. Our generation, especially the millennials, are being forced into a sudden pause that stagnated our fast-moving and busy lives. None of this is good news. Of course, we try to unlock the lock-down with sugar, spice and everything nice, but not all sections of society have the privilege to “celebrate” the curfew. Amidst all the gloom and doom and the depressing dubiety, a big section of Christendom is still recovering from the unprecedented crisis of observing the Holy Week at home. Is everything around in shades of grey as we perceive them, or are there rays of hope to which our eyes are blind?

Palm Sunday or Hosanna Sunday, celebrated by some Christian communities, passed uneventfully last week. I heard many sighs of despair, “Oh enna oshana njayarazhchaya! Veettil thanne…” (What Palm Sunday when stuck at home?) This made me ponder how much we have institutionalized the events that happened in the week from the triumphant entry of Jesus into Jerusalem, to the Resurrection. None of them happened in a church building. It was on the roads, mountains, courts, a cross and a grave. When Jesus entered Jerusalem riding on a colt, people laid their cloaks and palm branches on the roads to welcome Him as a king, crying “Hosanna in the highest”. Hosanna originally meant “save please” in the old testament, but over the years the meaning subtly shifted to “hooray for salvation”. Here the second meaning was implied, but had they accepted him and pleaded for salvation, this triumphant welcome would have been more meaningful- but Jesus knew that the same crowd will shout to crucify Him in a matter of few days!  It was not the grandest entry that an earthly king could get. And a donkey was hardly the majestic animal that a king would choose to ride on. Yet an old testament prophecy (Zechariah 9: 9) was fulfilled through this rather bizarre procession – “Behold your king is coming to you; He is just and endowed with salvation, Humble and mounted on a donkey, Even a colt, the foal of a donkey.”

This reminds me of the verse in 1 Corinthians 1:27 – “But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong.” Choosing the colt of a donkey, an animal considered as dim-witted, ugly, despicable and menial, Jesus showed the world that He cared about the weak, the poor, the foolish, the despised, the sick and everything and everyone contrary to what the world considered popular and acceptable. Not only did He care, but He also chose them and granted them the salvation that only He could provide. Can you imagine the elation of the poor colt when he knew he was chosen by the Lord of Lords and King of Kings? If we have realized how worthless and wretched we were when Jesus chose us, and have experienced the inexplicable joy of salvation, then it is not too hard. If we have not realized, then it is time for us to cry “Hosanna” in the same order of meaning mentioned above.

Maundy Thursday to the Resurrection Day was a continuum. Although there are some theological confusions regarding the exact days when these events happened (for example there is a possibility that Good Friday was not on a Friday at all, but rather on Thursday!), these days, like the places where they happened, fade into unimportance when we consider the larger picture. Jesus having the Last Supper with His disciples, knowing the agony that awaited Him, knowing that His betrayer dined with Him and yet having a time of fellowship which would have given the disciples lifelong memories. He reaffirmed His servant leadership by washing their feet and gave them a lasting commandment to love. It is no wonder that He broke bread and asked them to do it in remembrance of Him. How could the disciples ever break bread and drink wine later without remembering those beautiful moments of fellowship with their Lord? Do we have such intimate moments of fellowship with Him? Do we remember such beautiful moments during our frequent Holy Communions? Do we carry on this tradition of humility and love above other things?

And then came the day of the greatest sacrifice known to human race. It was destined to be on a Passover day because Christ was the Passover Lamb who had to be sacrificed once and for all (1 Corinthians 5 :7b). Passover commemorates the time when God passed over the houses of Israel  when he killed all the first born in Egypt, because the Passover lamb’s blood was smeared on the houses of Israel. The Passover lamb was one which was perfect, unblemished and spotless, and had to be examined multiple times for quality assurance. Likewise, Jesus was sinless, guiltless and perfect, and multiple court assessments could not change His status. And the guiltless blood that He shed could be sprinkled on whoever was ready to accept His sacrifice so that eternal death sentence for their unrepentant sins could be passed over. It is ironic that Good Friday translates to “Dukha Velliyazhcha” in Malayalam. For those unfamiliar with the language, dukham means sorrow, so the overall meaning translates to Sorrowful Friday! Quite contradictory at a cursory glance. Yet there is profound meaning when you dissect both the names separately.

Good Friday commemorates the brutal torture and punishment of Jesus, which culminated in his crucifixion at Mount Golgotha in between two robbers – the guiltless among the guilty. This fulfilled the prophesy of Isaiah that “He will be numbered among the transgressors” (Isaiah 53:12b). The Bible says that anyone who is hung on a pole is cursed. (Deuteronomy 21 :23, Galatians 3:13). Jesus took on Him the curse of our sins – a curse which deserved no lesser punishment than the worst possible death, and crucifixion met the purpose.  The Jewish Law required an annual sacrifice of a pure and unblemished animal as atonement for their sins – but animal sacrifice was never enough to provide anybody eternal forgiveness. Jesus became the sacrificial lamb for the atonement of Jews as well as the entire mankind once and for all, so that anyone who accepted Him had eternal redemption from the punishment they deserved for their sins – a death far worse than physical death. Apart from the manifest external torture and death that Jesus willingly accepted, He also had to endure a far greater agony of being forsaken by God the Father as He became soaked in the sins of the whole world, and this is what made Him cry out – “My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?” (Mark 15:34). He faced the wrath that we deserved and set us free from the bondage and punishment of sins forever, and all we have to do is repent and accept. This is definitely good news for us – and the Friday which brings us this good news is definitely a Good Friday!

Of course, having known and experienced the unconditional love of Jesus, how can our hearts not bleed when we see the agony that Jesus suffered in silence for us? How can we not empathize with His sorrow, both physical and spiritual? When the depths of the words of prophet Isaiah strikes us – “But He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities, the punishment that brought us peace was upon Him, and by His wounds we are healed.” (Isaiah 53:5) – when we visualize His back furrowed by the sharp Roman whips, the nail pierced hands, the sour wine  that He drank for His extreme thirst,  when we imbibe the pain of betrayal and the agony of being forsaken by His loved ones and God the Father, how can we not be sorrowful? The message that Jesus gave this world is one of hope, and there is no room for persistent sorrow when we know His purpose. Sorrow is of two kinds – Godly and Worldly. The Bible says in 2 Corinthians 7:10, “Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regrets, but worldly sorrow brings death”. When Peter spoke to the Jews about the message of the cross on the day of Pentecost, about three thousand of them were cut to the heart, and immediately repented and accepted the good news – the wonders of Godly sorrow! There is no better character in the Bible who exemplifies the effects of worldly sorrow than Judas the betrayer – he committed suicide, but unfortunately his sorrow does not end there! Did this Sorrowful Friday bring godly sorrow to your heart? Did the good news of Good Friday overwrite the sorrow?

As I am typing this paragraph, it is already the Resurrection day! I could not bridle my words which started on this Good Friday, because the message is too vast to contain in a few words! Moving on from the repentance brought by Sorrowful Friday and the receipt of good news on Good Friday, we have reached the day that boasts of joy, hope, victory and future glory (I am not sure if eggs have a place here!). Jesus defied convention but fulfilled prophecies when He rose up on the third day from His grave! Death was nullified! Grave was defeated! The stone was rolled away! That is when the verse “Where O death, is your victory? Where O death, is your sting?” (1 Corinthians 15:55) makes sense to us. Jesus resurrected to life after three days and broke the chains of fear of death. It was also a reminder that physical death is not the end.  The Bible in Hebrews 2:15 says that Jesus freed those who were enslaved by the fear of death all their lives. Definitely it gives immense joy and hope to know that our Saviour is a victorious God who is alive, active, powerful and is constantly interceding for us at the right hand of God. Before His ascension to heaven after around forty days from the resurrection day, He deliberately and powerfully reinstated the faith of His flock – Mary Magdalene, Apostle Peter and Apostle Thomas to name a few. He promised a counsellor, the Holy Spirit, to those who believe in Him, to strengthen, guide and lead them in their walk. He commissioned them to go to the ends of the earth to preach the good news. He had promised a glorious day much later in future when He would come back to gather His elect – a time when we will be called for everlasting joy, fellowship and worship in His presence. A day when we can shout praises to Him along with thousands upon thousands of angels and fellow believers. Until then, we just have to soak up all that grace, mercy, hope and unconditional love, strengthen our faith, and cry “Hallelujah!” (which means praise the Lord) in awe and wonder.

Let me come back to where it all started. Yes, we are fighting a deadly virus. We are under a lock down- a passive fight equally strong as the active fight by our health care workers and other essential service providers. We have been pushed off our comfort zones to uncomfortable and untrodden paths. The days of the Holy Week passed on like any other lock down days except for those who observe some traditions. Many complain that they could not get the ‘feel’ of these days as they could not attend their churches. Amidst everything that we negatively perceive, I feel this has been the biggest wake up call for our generation. This is the time to realize that the concrete walls that we have built around us cannot contain us or define us. We are much more than all that we thought was indispensable for our lives. The message of the Passion week is all about the passion of God for the human kind He created. We don’t need buildings, books or anything tangible to fathom this message and let it transform us. The events of this one week that rewrote the future of mankind, did not happen at one place or time. Similarly, the transformation that these events can bring to anyone who believes cannot be restricted by place, time, country, or anything that is finite. The hope and joy that the message of the cross paints on our hearts, could not be wiped away by the worst calamities and wars in the past two thousand odd years;can a virus do that now? This message and this transformation are not to be remembered once a year, but every second of our lives. Isn’t it time we open our eyes to see these rays of hope? There is Corona which is definitely bad news, albeit temporary. There is also enough reason to sing Hosanna and Hallelujah, because there is a more definite good news to carry us forward in these uncertain times.

Happy Resurrection Day!