Only a precursor

More than 2,000 years ago, Jesus Christ rode triumphantly into Jerusalem amid the shouts of hosanna and amid the splendor of palm fronds swaying at the hands of zealous Hebrews. It looked like a fitting finale to His three-year ministry, the first time Jesus was directly referred to as king notwithstanding the awkward scene that unfolded. Kings are supposed to be striding elegantly on war horses, not sitting on top of a borrowed donkey. As history would have it, this event that Christians would since refer to as Palm Sunday would be Jesus' last fling with glory. In the tumultuous week that followed, He would be betrayed by one of His own, denied by His most vocal disciple and deserted by the rest. Of course, it did not end there. But that would be going ahead of the story. The lessons of Palm Sunday are there for people to learn. How fickle human minds can be and how swiftly they can swing to the other extreme of the pendulum. This brings to mind a controversial editorial by the influential New York Times entitled “Dark Days for Philippine Democracy”.

The Times made no bones about how Pres. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has completely lost touch with the ideals that inspired the “people power” movement. It also pointedly stressed that while Pres. Arroyo is “no Ferdinand Marcos, at least not yet”, she is “reviving bad memories of crony corruption, presidential vote-rigging and intimidation of journalists”. Of course, Malacañang's apologists would rush mindlessly into her defense. What else did we expect them to do anyway? In the mind of those who continue to serve in her Cabinet, she can do no wrong and all those who criticize her are either destabilizers (in the case of domestic critics) or simply misinformed (in the case of foreigners like the Times).

One cannot help but be homesick for Jesus in the face of GMA's antics. The contrast is of course obvious, with due apologies. Jesus did not lift a finger to set the stage of His declaration on Palm Sunday. To this day, Pres. Arroyo has been hounded by accusations of impropriety (at the very least) over the “Hello Garci” scandal and electoral fraud, all in her desire to remain in office. A contrasting fate awaits them though. While Pres. Arroyo will one day step down, whether she likes it or not, Jesus will take His rightful place forever. There is one thing that is reassuring to all who have welcomed Jesus in their hearts. For those who believe, Palm Sunday is only the precursor of the final one.