Yesterday it was Palm Sunday, the mention of which brings images of blazing sunshine, palm leaves being thrown to the floor and Jesus on a donkey riding in in glory. Well guess what.....Not a glimpse of Sunshine here, just frost and snow. I have grown accustomed to the concept now, that taking on this challenge this year means that I am to suffer in the cold. This does somehow feel appropriate. Though yesterday we celebrated Jesus riding in as "King of the Jews", we must also remember that Jesus must have had mixed emotions. He knew his moment in glory was not to last. So as I processed into the Chapel with joy in my heart, the cold rising through my feet until they were numb was a gentle reminder that Jesus too must have had these conflicting emotions.
Holy Week is a journey through Christ's suffering. In our hearts and heads we must examine our lives and our motives. I have been learning very quickly how peoples attitudes change when you do something different. Being Britain everyone is too polite to do anything but questionably stare at you, as if you are slightly mad and need their pity. Others just give you a glare as if to say, do you not know better or you are not as good as us. No matter how hard we try, we find people who are different a challenge. We seek familiarity and hide in it. However breaking through the barriers and allowing people to see difference as something to be embraced is something as Christians we all have a responsibility to do.
Soon after Jesus rode in in his glory, people in the hierarchy saw his difference as a challenge to them. Instead of embracing his humility they fought it. They did not spare the time to understand him, instead they condemned him to death. Every time we walk past the person in the street behaving slightly differently and judge them we are complicit in what happened to Jesus. Just as when we welcome in the stranger to our house, we are welcoming Jesus in too.
Walking barefoot has highlighted for me how judgemental I can be. It is easy to condemn others before you understand them. It is easy to look at me and say I am mad, poor or just plain stupid, when you do not know why I have bare feet. I am vulnerable and I seek to be understood. How many other people feel like that and do I do enough to listen?
As I have said before, this is all for a good cause (other than making me realise what I do wrong). I am raising money for Us. I am hoping that I can make a positive change to some lives. Please donate via my just giving page:-
http://www.justgiving.com/Hannah-Phillips7
A big thank you to everyone who has donated so far, a grand total of £351 has already been reached.
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