Dear Friends,April 2, 2009
There’s something about palm branches that lend themselves to celebration. There’s just no celebration in waving oak or birch branches is there? But for those of us who live among palm trees we know they’re about having a good time … well, most of the time. Hence here in Congo Palm Sunday is a BIG celebration of singing, marching, and lots and LOTS of palm branches.
Palm branches are an integral part of life in Congo. The tree itself has dozens of uses but I’ll limit this to the palm branches or fronds which themselves come in hand for lots of different things.
After an extended absence, our Congolese friends make us a “Welcome Back” arch out of braided palm branches. They stick in a few flowers for color. Everyone who goes by seeing it smiles and knows there’s new joy in the household for a traveler has come home.
Palms make a quick and cheap shelter for worship when there’s no church or when there’s an overflow crowd. How many hours have I sat under the shade of a palm frond roof in “Matondo” (Thanksgiving) services where there were hundreds of worshippers.
Palms are absolutely a must when celebrating a wedding or birth or even Baptism. The branches are assembled in abundance all around the yard or outside of the house.Here a special palm canopy was made for baptism candidates to pass through as they came from the river.
Palm fronds can be made into baskets in a matter of minutes. If you come upon some fruit in the forest, whack off a palm frond, weave a basket and carry the load unencumbered.
But there is also time when palm fronds tell of deep sadness. When there is a death in a household, a single palm frond is staked forlornly in the ground by the house or road. Not long ago I was riding with our Congo church leaders to visit a farmwhenwe came upon such a palm branch staked outside a house not far from the farm we were visiting. During the visit my colleagues,who were all pastors, asked the farm manager lots of questions about who had died and how. I was impressed that as we headed home, they stopped to pay their respects to these total strangers and leave them a small gift. In Congo, it would have been too arrogant for them to have just driven by.
So in Congo, we commemorate Palm Sunday fully; the joy of the crowds and the sorrow of our Lord for his city and people. Thank you for your part in bringing the gospel to this country. Perhaps this will help you worship this Sunday in your chilly world devoid of palms.
Wayne Niles