Hosanna Is a Crowd Song
Lent Devotion by Rev. Lea Matthews
St. Paul & St. Andrew United Methodist Church
“Now a large crowd spread their clothes on the road. Others cut palm branches off the trees and spread them on the road. The crowds in front of him and behind him shouted, ‘Hosanna to the Son of David! Hosanna in the highest!’”
This coming Sunday is Palm Sunday, and on Palm Sunday, Jesus doesn’t enter Jerusalem alone.
Yes, he’s riding on a donkey, humble and unarmed. But he is surrounded. A crowd gathers. People spread cloaks on the road. Branches are cut and waved. Voices rise together, crying out, “Hosanna! Save us!” And when Jesus enters the city, the whole place is stirred up. Folks keep asking, “Who is this?”
Palm Sunday isn’t a solo act of courage by Jesus. It’s a collective moment in the movement of ordinary folks who decide, together, to show up, to take a risk, to make a way for love, and to demand a new and just way.
The crowd matters.
In Matthew’s telling, the people are more than passive observers. They participate, offering what they have. A coat. A branch. A voice. A body in the street. Their shared action becomes a public declaration that another kind of power is possible, one not rooted in domination, but in solidarity. It’s no wonder that the city is shaken. When people move together, small actions can become a formidable force.
I see that same kind of holy crowd every single week.
At Miracle Mondays, a weekly resource fair and respite center in its fourth year, the work happens because resources and people are gathered in one place. It takes forty people to show up on Sundays to prepare, to receive and sort clothing donations for the free store on Mondays. Then on Mondays, more than 30 people come togetehr to prepare breakfast, offer legal support, craft and play, translate and support, distribute supplies, enroll in benefits, and sit with people who are tired, scared, and hopeful, all at once. Partner organizations bring what they can. Venezuelans and Immigrants Aid, Bronx Legal Services, Co-Counsel NYC, Immigration Law and Justice New York, Days for Girls, the JCC, B’nai Jeshurun, D3 Open Arms, the Manhattan DA’s Office, and more, each show up with their particular gifts so that our immigrant neighbors can be met with dignity, instead of indifference. It only works because so many choose to show up, to bring their piece to the whole.
Sacred Court Support came together the same way, out of real and urgent need, voiced by the immigrant community and responded to in collaboration and partnership between St. Paul & St. Andrew, HIAS, Co Counsel NYC, and B’nai Jeshurun, following the direction of accompaniment groups already in action, who shared their expertise and asked us to replicate the model. From there, more than fifteen referring partner organizations and community based groups joined in, all already responding with care and concern to people facing court and check ins alone. Now more than three hundred trained volunteers accompany our friends each day, sitting beside them in spaces designed to isolate and intimidate. No one should have to face that alone, and because of this growing community, fewer people do. It’s incredible.
On MLK Day this year, the partners and volunteers of Sacred Court Support gathered, not to organize or plan, but simply to be together, to feel what we already know in our bones, that we’re stronger when we are not scattered, that despair loosens its grip when we remember we belong to one another. We ate good food, listened to good, live music, played games, and talked. It was powerful. And my gosh, we all needed it.
It was a Palm Sunday moment in our movement.
We don’t whisper hosanna in private. It’s a cry we learn to shout out together. “Save us,” yes. But also, “help us save one another!” Help us make a way when systems refuse to. Help us practice the kin dom of God with our bodies, our schedules, our resources, and our courage.
The crowd in Jerusalem had no clue how costly the road ahead of them would become, but they knew something important. Love is not meant to be carried alone. Liberation is never a solo project. God’s movement in the world often looks like people finding one another and deciding, again and again, to show up, and to stay.
This Lent, as justice is under attack and vulnerable communities are targeted, Palm Sunday reminds us that faithful resistance has always been collective. Jesus still comes among crowds who are brave enough to gather, generous enough to share, and bold enough to believe that another world is not only possible, but already trying to break through.
And we, by God’s grace, get to be part of that crowd
You make our collective work possible by your witness for justice every day in your church, community, and Annual Conference. MFSA does not receive any financial support from the United Methodist Church's giving channels. 100% of our budget is funded through your membership dues and your generosity in giving.
Rev. Lea Matthews (she/her/hers)
is the Associate Pastor at St. Paul & St. Andrew in New York City. Lea has been called and is committed to doing her part of the intentional and intersectional work of actualizing our collective liberation. As an ordained deacon, her ministry focuses on growing souls, building inclusive and supportive community, and expanding and deepening faith-life beyond worship. Lea is the Founder and Director of Miracle Mondays, a weekly resource fair and respite center for immigrants and new arrivals. She is a Co-Founder and on the Leadership Team of Sacred Court Support, a collaborative training and accompaniment program to immigration court and ICE check-ins. She is also a consultant with the Interfaith Center of NYC, working collaboratively with faith leaders from diverse houses of worship to support refugees and asylum-seekers in the city.
She serves on the Board of Ordained Ministry of the New York Annual Conference, as well as the Metropolitan District Committee on Ministries. She is Co-Chair of the Standing Commission on Queer Equity, Inclusion, and Celebration for the Conference. Outside of the Methodist Connection, she serves on the board for Village Campus Ministry, which supports progressive, ecumenical campus ministries in Manhattan. And since 2016, she has worked at Union Theological Seminary, supporting students professionally and pastorally in peer groups.
Lea received her Master of Divinity from Union Theological Seminary, with a concentration in Biblical Studies and Pastoral Care. She holds a Master of Education from Lehman College and a Bachelor of Arts from San Francisco State University, where she studied literature and human sexuality. Lea taught English Language Arts in the Bronx Public Schools for a decade, before entering the ministry. She lives in the Bronx, with her wife, Rachel, and their teenage daughter, Nora, with their beloved dog and dismissive cat.
Lightning Round:
Favorite Food: Fried chicken, mashed potatoes and collard greens, y’all!
Little Known Fact: I’ve fallen in love with my Hobonichi Daily Journal
Unwinding Activity: Reading queer romance novels
Words to Live By: “Do justice, love kindness & walk humbly with God.”
St. Paul & St. Andrew United Methodist Church in New York City is a progressive congregation on Manhattan’s Upper West Side committed to radical welcome, spiritual growth, and justice in action. The church describes itself as an affirming and celebrating community where people of all backgrounds are valued for who they are and the gifts they bring. Through worship, community life, and outreach, they seek to follow Jesus into the life of the city and increase the presence of love and justice in the world.
A Reconciling Ministries congregation since 1991, St. Paul & St. Andrew has long advocated for LGBTQ+ inclusion, racial justice, and environmental stewardship. Rooted in nearly two centuries of ministry in New York City, the congregation continues to nurture progressive Christian leadership while building partnerships across faith traditions and community organizations. Their faith is expressed through dynamic worship, community engagement, and a shared commitment to creating a more just and compassionate city.