Passion Sunday

In the liturgical life of the church, today is an odd day--a day of joy and celebration, but also a day when the knowledge of the events to come cast a shadow.  Known as Palm Sunday, we celebrate Jesus' triumphant entry into Jerusalem.  He rode into the holy city on a donkey, with the road lined with people waving palms and shouting "Hosanna".  But his entrance into Jerusalem at Passover was also the beginning of the last week of his life.  So, even as we wave palms today and sing "Hosanna" we also are aware of the events that are soon to follow--an arrest, a trial, a conviction, a crucifixion and a burial.   

In keeping with our commitment to justice, we used Eco Palms today at West.  According to the PCUSA web site

Typically, palm harvesting is done by community members hired by local contractors, who then sell palms to large floral export firms. Payment is based on volume, so the harvesters are motivated to gather a large number of palms without regard for the quality. As a result, up to 50 percent or more of the palms are later discarded because of poor quality. This method risks the rapid depletion of the forest's rich biodiversity, including the many bird species that migrate to these regions during the winter.

Many palm producing areas in Central America are important biosphere reserves where palms are part of the natural forest.

Growers of eco palms are paid based on quality of the harvest, which in more environmentally sound because it limits the number of palms harvested.  Furthermore, because growers of eco palms do the sorting and packaging rather than sending them off to a distant warehouse for these tasks, the growers themselves receive more income from the harvest.