On Palm Sunday in Jerusalem, crowds still gather on the Mount of Olives and process into Jerusalem. This centuries-old tradition draws pilgrims from all over the globe, who walk the streets where Jesus rode the donkey, a tradition perhaps tracing its roots as far back as the fourth century.
Last year, a story in the New York Times reported: “Hundreds of Christians from around the world marched from the Mount of Olives into Jerusalem to mark Palm Sunday, retracing the steps of Jesus 2,000 years ago….A few dozen Israeli police stood by, a small fraction of the forces on duty in recent weeks because of Palestinian unrest.”
“Unrest?” An interesting way to describe protests against the announcement of even more settlement construction in the Palestinian West Bank.
“Unrest?” An odd word for protests against Israel’s refusal of permits for people from Bethlehem to travel to Jerusalem for the procession, a denial of their centuries-old tradition.
“Unrest?” Christians from around the world didn’t need any permits to walk Jesus’ route; they just showed up by the busload on the top of the Mount of Olives. You and I would not need a permit. Our American passports would do the trick. But the locals, the descendants of those who waved palm branches for Jesus, were required to get permits to be there. And then their permit requests were denied. Even though the Mount of Olives is in East Jerusalem, the Palestinian part of Jerusalem.
No wonder there was “unrest.” For the residents of Bethlehem, in the West Bank, permits are required to travel to East Jerusalem, another part of the West Bank, because Israel has set up checkpoints at every road leaving Bethlehem. No one enters or leaves Bethlehem without a permit, without waiting in a long line, submitting to searches and questioning.
You’d think that Palestinians traveling from a West Bank town, through the West Bank, to another town in the West Bank, would not have to go through Israeli checkpoints. But the settlements have been built between all the towns of the West Bank and so Israel has set up the checkpoints to protect them from the Palestinians, whose land was taken for the settlements.
In fact, if Jesus were traveling today, from Jericho to the Mount of Olives and into Jerusalem, he would have to pass through at least two checkpoints and the Israeli settlement of Maale Adummim. Then, just before getting to the Mount of Olives, he would bump up against Israel’s 25-foot-high wall at Abu Dis (see photo),
Even though Jesus would never leave the West Bank, he could not make it to Jerusalem.......even in the unlikely event that a rabble-rouser like him would be granted a permit.
The map shows how the settlements (blue) break up the West Bank and make travel between Bethlehem, East Jerusalem, and Jericho (to the right, off the map) so difficult.
God, you sent your son to bring good news—your dreams for our future, of hope, health and abundant life. But we are too afraid to let go of the life we know to follow your way. As we remember Jesus’ life death and resurrection this Holy Week, embolden us to be good news for your people today. Amen.
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