Palm Sunday Air Strikes in Gaza: Between the Hosannas and Alleluias

Two hours after reading of this air strike in Gaza, I attended Palm Sunday worship at Brecksville UCC outside of Cleveland, Ohio. I waved my palms with other congregants and sang “All Glory, Laud, and Honor” as children paraded around the sanctuary. And then I listened as the pastor read the entire Passion story. From the triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem, to the Last Supper, Judas’ betrayal, and Christ’s arrest, trial, crucifixion and burial we recalled the path Jesus trod during these days we call “holy”.

I was so grateful that our worship glimpsed past the joyous hosannas and took time to remember the events that followed. Too often, we jump from the hosannas of Palm Sunday to the alleluias of Easter and fail to look at all that happened in between. We look away from the suffering.

As I sit heartsick about the air strikes in Gaza this morning, I cannot look away from the suffering. This is not the first time this hospital has been struck by Israeli bombs since October 2023, nor is it the only place in Gaza once again enduring such devastation and death since the ceasefire ended in mid-March. The number of Palestinians killed in Gaza since the start of this war now exceeds 50,000. According to the United Nations in January 2025, 92% of Gaza’s housing has been destroyed or damaged. Illness and injuries are widespread. Famine lurks while all aid is blocked. And still the madness continues, with no real peace in sight.

The Passion story of Jesus tells us that the disciples fell asleep in the Garden of Gethsemane even as Jesus was about to suffer unto death. It reminds us of Peter’s shameful denials. It narrates the unwillingness of the people to stop the violence of Jesus’ crucifixion.  

Let us not fall asleep, but keep our eyes open to the genocide unfolding in Gaza. Let us not deny what the example of Jesus’ life so clearly summons from us: a powerful love of neighbor that knows no bounds, a compassion that grieves the suffering and loss of others, a prophetic courage that names injustice and demands another way. Let us not be among the crowd that allows the violence to go on, but let us condemn such violence when we see it and refuse to be silenced.

Let the hosannas ring out and the alleluias of Easter eventually be sung. But first: Christ’s Passion and suffering must be remembered.  And the world’s suffering too.

The Reverend Shari Prestemon began her service with the national ministries of the United Church of Christ in January 2024. As the Acting Associate General Minister & Co-Executive for Global Ministries she has the privilege of supporting several teams: Global Ministries, Global H.O.P.E., Public Policy & Advocacy Team (Washington, D.C.), our staff liaison at the United Nations, and our Gender & Sexuality Justice Team. She previously served as a local church pastor in Illinois and Wisconsin, the Executive Director at Back Bay Mission in Biloxi, Mississippi, and the Minnesota Conference Minister. Her call to ministry grew, in part, from early Global Ministries experiences, especially service as a Peace & Justice Intern in Dumaguete City, the Philippines.