On Palm Sunday
Jesus was certainly
the hero of the hour –
practically carried, shoulder-high,
into Jerusalem
by crowds who shouted, cheered
and waved palms,
parting before him
in a sea of welcome.

This was truly an ancient equivalent
of a modern-day ticker-tape parade!

How could it possibly be
that only a few days later
these same people
were chanting as one voice,
“Crucify him!”?

How could people be so fickle?

Surely, two thousand years later,
people are no longer like that,
and crowds could not be swayed so easily?
Or could they?

And yet
you only have to follow soccer on TV
to know that people today are every bit as fickle
as they were in Jesus’ time.

It only takes a run of defeats
to cause “loyal” supporters
to forget all about
a wealth of silverware accumulated
and a string of leagues won.

I sometimes wonder
whether soccer managers
might have a unique insight
into how Jesus felt
as he stood before Pilate,
hearing crowds chanting for his execution?

Times have certainly changed …
… but sadly,
human nature hasn’t.

© Claire Murray, 22nd March 2016