Palm Sunday | "What Is All This Noise?" 6PM | Rev. Dr. Otis Moss III

59:42 When you discover that which does not belong, I ask that you would remove it and cast it into the sea of forgetfulness, as far as the east is from the west, that it may never return again. Let the words of my mouth and meditation of my heart be acceptable in thy sight. Lord, you are my strength.

1:00:05 Without a doubt, you are certainly my redeemer. Holy Spirit, do thy will, do thy will, the Holy Spirit. we offer this prayer in the mighty, wonderful, magnificent, blessed, healing, liberating name of Jesus, who is the Christ, and the people of God who love God may say amen. I want to draw your attention to Matthew chapter 21, the 21st chapter in the Gospel according to Matthew. Beginning with verse 1, we read from the New Revised Standard Version, and it reads as follows. When they had come near Jerusalem and had reached Bethphage, at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples, saying to them, go into the village ahead of you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied and a colt with her.

1:01:13 Untie them and bring them to me. If anyone says anything to you, just say this, The Lord needs them, and he will send them immediately. This took place to fulfill what had been spoken through the prophet. Tell the daughter of Zion, look, your king is coming to you, humble and mounted on a donkey, and on a colt, the fowl of a donkey. The disciples went and did as Jesus had directed them. They brought the donkey and the colt and put their cloaks on them. And he sat on them. A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. The crowds that went ahead of him and that followed were shouting, Hosanna to the Son of David. Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.

1:02:27 Hosanna in the highest heaven. When he entered Jerusalem, the whole city was in turmoil asking, who is this? The crowds were saying, this is the prophet Jesus from Nazareth in Galilee. Another translation in verse 9. the crowds that went ahead of him and that followed were making a lot of noise. The crowds that went ahead of him and that followed were making some noise. Hosanna to the son of David. Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest. When he entered Jerusalem, the whole city was in turmoil, asking, who is this?

1:03:23 And the crowds were saying, this is the prophet Jesus from Nazareth in Galilee. And the crowd was making a whole lot of noise. May the Lord add a blessing to the reading and hearing of God's holy word. You may be seated in the presence of the Most High God. I want to, for the time that we have together on this day, for us to deal with this topic, this idea of what is all this noise?

1:04:01 What is all this noise? If you'd be so kind as to turn to your neighbor at this time, turn and smile at your neighbor. No, really, just smile. There you go. You've got to smile back, too, if your neighbor would smile at you. and say to your neighbor, say neighbor. Oh neighbor, what is all this noise? Amen. Amen. Now find another neighbor, maybe the same one. I'm not sure.

1:04:32 Even if they don't want to look at you, you just look at the side of their head, I guess. You know what I'm saying? And say neighbor, oh neighbor, I don't know about you, but there's sometimes I got to make some noise.

1:04:54 Every once in a while, somebody ought to make some noise. Beloved, we are in the middle of March Madness.

1:05:16 For the uninitiated, March Madness is one of the greatest collegiate basketball tournaments for women and for men. And I must mention this day that the University of Illinois... will be in the final four. It goes without saying, based on the reaction, I did not need to say somebody make some noise. The call and response manifested organically as a result of the recognition of a local public university. For many who follow sports, whether it is basketball, football, tennis, or what in the United States we call soccer, However, sports writers use a particular phrase to indicate, highlight, or evaluate a team that has potential, power, or a unique set of skills.

1:06:20 The phrase is simply this, that such and such team is going to make some noise in the tournament. If I may say it this way, for those who follow the tournament, you'll see what I'm saying, that Howard University and Prairie View A&M, based on my observation, will make some noise in the tournament. Another way to phrase it is a young gifted tennis star by the name of Coco Golf is poised to make some noise in the tennis world. Based on last year's record and the leadership on the field by quarterback Caleb Williams, the Chicago Bears are set next year to make some noise in the NFL. The phrase used in sports indicates a team or an athlete who will rise above expectations or possibly take down an athletic dynasty.

1:07:24 In music, an artist who is finding their footing, expanding their reach, creating a new audience is often framed as someone who is making noise in the music world. In literature, a relatively unknown writer, one who has not received their due, such as a Percival Everett or Tanariva do, is framed as a writer who is likely to make some noise in the literary world based on the strength of their work. In politics, the likes of a Brandon Johnson or New York's Zoran Mondani, who has refused to be boxed in by traditional conservative frames of politics, are often labeled by other people as they are going to make some noise. On March 25th of this year, the United Nations, under the leadership of Ghana, along with a coalition of African, Asian, and Latin countries, decided to make some international noise. On March 25th, a U.N. resolution was placed into record that will forever alter how the world views the transatlantic slave trade.

1:08:42 The U.N. resolution, without equivocation, said, quote, the trafficking of enslaved Africans and racialized chattel enslavement of Africans as the gravest crime against humanity. The resolution goes further by stating that reparations is a moral act to reconcile such a crime against humanity. 123 countries voted for this resolution. 52 countries abstained from the resolution, primarily in Europe. And only three countries on the planet voted against the resolution. One was the United States.

1:09:37 Two was Israel. Three was Argentina. But let us not be distracted by a minority report. But know that countries that were once ignored or not recognized by the United Nations rose up and decided to make a little noise. I'm glad there are still people of moral courage that are willing to make a little noise. And for those who are unfamiliar with the African American spiritual tradition, Attending worship today, this may be the first time, and it may be a little disorienting for you. Be advised, you may be seated in a section where individuals may be anointed to create sacred cacophony of sounds directed by an encounter with the Holy Spirit. In other words, you may be sitting next to somebody who wants to make a little noise.

1:10:38 Noise within the African American tradition is part of a theological and spiritual encounter with the sacred. Years ago in ministry, I was in dialogue with a parishioner in Georgia who was a kind but also very conservative individual who was part of a self-appointed committee. And they were disturbed that since Monica and myself had arrived at the church, that something happened where there were unrehearsed organic outbursts and liturgical disruptions were becoming normative in the church. Disruptive, disorderly, uncontrollable outbursts that unnerved this individual and distracted from what this small committee believed to be proper worship. They were upset with some of the words that were coming out of people's mouths. Words such as, thank you, Jesus.

1:11:36 Say that. Amen. Uh-huh. That's right. Tell it. But the one that bothered them the most was when someone would say, you better preach. In a committee meeting, she expressed her consternation, stating the words, these words, What is all this noise? Thankful, I am thankful the committee did not think shouting was grounds for pastoral dismissal. But a marker of health and spiritual growth. Noise, sound, often carries multiple meanings. And if you are not attuned to the culture and traditions, you'll miss out on the meaning, the beauty, and blessings that also are defined within the noise. So come with me on this Palm Sunday as we stand and look in this scripture as Jesus is in the town of Bethphage on the Mount of Olives where Jesus is standing upon the hill looking down at Jerusalem. He dispatches two of his disciples, go into the next town and find a donkey and a colt.

1:12:47 If anybody tells you, what are you doing, says anything to you, just say to them, the Lord needs this donkey. And so he states with clarity that they are to go into the cities. And we notice here that Matthew is attempting to connect this moment to the Hebraic tradition, the prophets and the beauty of the Torah. Because as Jesus is on this donkey, coming down from the Mount of Olives, and then when people see in the distance this man who has allowed those who are lame to walk and the blind to see has resurrected those that everybody else said dead, people are beginning to make noise. They begin to shout and quote Isaiah and Zechariah, letting everyone know that Jesus is the fulfillment and the answer to the prayers of a people who have been marginalized for generations.

1:13:47 A Messiah, a prophet, a leader, a rabbi, a non-violent revolutionary named Jesus is about to enter the holy city of Jerusalem. The city where Rome had a watchful eye on many of the ordinary citizens And preachers were fearful to speak out because they wanted to keep their jobs. Jesus is laying claim to his Jewishness and his opposition with those religious people who quiet themselves or ignore the suffering of God's people. He is coming into Jerusalem, to the holy city, to bring a new theological narrative, which is actually an old narrative. And this narrative is that God loves you and God sees you. We are God's people, not emperor's subjects.

1:14:44 Our loyalty rests with God. It is the response of the people that blesses me. The people, when they see Jesus, decide to cut down palm branches, place cloaks on the ground, and begin to make some noise. The noise. What is it? Who is making this noise? Why are they making the noise? The noise is being made by the people, those people who have heard and witnessed the work of God. This is appropriate behavior for a witness to make some noise. For when you are a witness to God's work, to God's goodness, you ought to at some point in your life be willing to make some noise. So why are they making this noise? One must understand this, that the noise is connected to sonic resistance. They are declaring sonically that God is in our midst. You see, to explain this, that one must understand the history of black sonic resistance. The sonic theology speaks to God's activity that could not be destroyed as a result, as a result of the transatlantic slave trade. This is the power of our song, and this is the power of our witness. As I'm talking to you right now, there is a call and response that will happen sometimes. If there was somebody on the keys, but they're not on the keys right now, if there was somebody who was on the keys, they would understand the call and response that I'm trying to talk about. You see, there's something that happens within the African-American tradition known as call and response. That when you hear the preacher or someone speaking, someone speaks back.

1:16:37 But what you must understand is that the call and response, that there is something within the sound in between. Because that particular sound does not begin in America. That sound comes all the way from West Africa. That when the piano responds when I give space, something happens in the midst. That when I stop and the piano talks, there is a sound, but that sound is not a European sound. That sound comes from the transatlantic slave trade and all the way back to West Africa. So when we have a sound that goes back and forth, it is not solely something that is emotive, but is also speaking a sonic theology at the same time. This is an ancestral idea that has been passed down from generation to generation. And the reason that people shout when there is a conversation of call and response between preacher and also musician is because that sound that we hear we know could not have been destroyed by the transatlantic slave trade.

1:17:44 Our ancestors were not just shouting because they were saying you are talking about Jesus. There is also a double entendre that in other words beneath the sound there is a theology or spirituality that is being spoken at the same time. You are shouting that God kept you, but you are also shouting that no matter what systems that tried to destroy us could not destroy the culture that is inherent with us. So when you show up to church and you hear the sound of the organ or the piano, you get excited that what man meant for evil, that God could make something good. And you hear that sound over and over again within the African-American tradition. No matter if you're in church or even if you're out of church. Some of you all go to concerts that are not in church. And you will hear the musician begin to echo the sounds that come from church.

1:18:41 But those sounds that come from church are actually out of the great migration. Because if you were to move from Chicago and make your way down to Memphis, and then from Memphis down into Mississippi, you will have the same sound. But the sound that came out of Mississippi made its way from the Atlantic and actually came from the Cinegambia region. In other words, what people tried to destroy could not be destroyed because of the resilience and the sonic resistance that comes out of our tradition. I'm talking to somebody here. You know that there is resistance and power within our sound. And so what we notice here is that the people in Jerusalem are making noise. There is a sonic resistance that is happening because when they see Jesus, they are speaking that he is the king of kings. Not the emperor, not Herod, but this is the king of kings.

1:19:44 Now, what happens is going to make you shout. Because when I saw this to realize that they were not just doing sonic theology or sonic resistance, but this noise is connected to embodied practice. Embodied practice. They did not believe that you just need to say something or shout something to indicate your relationship with God. They also said that your body must be a part of this particular connection with God. It is called embodied practice. That is why they went and cut down palm trees. They had to go and find palm trees, cut those palm tree branches down, and they began to wave the palm branches. But hold up here. They could have cut down any tree, any leaf, but they chose palm trees. They could have gotten some olive trees.

1:20:37 That would have been nice. They could have cut anything down. But the palm tree has a theology connected to it because the palm tree is connected to what is known as the festival of the booths or the festival of the tabernacles. The festival of the tabernacle was when you built a tabernacle after you left Egypt in an indication that God still covers you even though you are in a homeless situation. And you always had some palm branches that were the ones that covered the roof of the tabernacle. You're still missing what I'm saying. They used a palm tree because a palm tree is different from every other tree. You see, when a palm tree goes through a storm, it acts different than every other tree. When other trees go through storm, you see branches laid out everywhere. But palm trees don't go through storms the same way that every other tree does.

1:21:36 Because palm trees decide to bend when they go through a storm and then bend back into shape. And when they were waving their palm branches, they were saying, Lord, we know we've been through a lot. But you put something in us that allows us to bend. And when the storm is over, we're back into the same position that we were before. But wait a minute, I'm about to shout you right now. You see, palm trees, when they go through a storm and they bend in the storm, when they bend back into their right position, they're actually stronger and have more flexibility for the next storm. You missed your shout. God wasn't trying to destroy you. God was just working you out for your next storm. And there's somebody in here that needs to give God praise that you've been through some things, baby. You can bend, you can bend.

1:22:33 But when the storm is over, you come back into shape. Is there anybody in here that can give God thanks? Take your palm branch, put it up in the air, and say, Lord, I thank you that you've given me bending testimony. This is embodied practice. In other words, they were utilizing their body to be able to demonstrate their relationship to God. It is called embodied practice. They were using their noise as sonic theology, but also sonic resistance to simply say that the emperor is not the one who is in power. It is God who is in power. And so here the people are as Jesus is coming into Jerusalem. And I'm about done. May the Lord bless you and keep you.

1:23:25 But can I give you one more thing? That this noise, yes, is sonic resistance. This noise is connected to embodied practice. But this noise is connected to eschatological ethics. Now, some of y'all look at me like, what you talking about, eschatological? I don't know what you mean. when the big seminary terms you use in eschatological, please break it down for me, Reverend. I need to know what eschatological is. All eschatological is is simply this. It is what God is going to do in the future, that God has already worked things out in the future. But you've got to trust God in your present, knowing what God is going to do in the future. So you don't wait for the battle to be over. You start your shout before the battle even starts.

1:24:22 In other words, you got to make some noise right now. Do I have any help right now? Can anyone give some premature praise of what God is about to do in your life? Eschatological ethics. Okay, let me help you out. Only a couple of y'all got it. So, it says eschatological ethics, which means that they recognize that God has already shaped some things that will be revealed later in the future. They understand, because of eschatological ethics, what they are saying by lifting up their palm branches, by the noise that they're making, they are making a declaration that the people in power are only in power on a temporary basis. Thank you. by making the noise, they are saying the real authority isn't the one in the white, I'm sorry, in Rome.

1:25:29 The real authority is the brother on a donkey coming into Jerusalem. The real authority is the one who can raise the dead. The real authority is the one who can feed 5,000. the real authority is the one who can straighten up a bent over woman the real authority is the one who can heal a person who has an issue of blood the real authority is a man by the name of Jesus and they're saying I will not bow down to Herod I will not bow down to the emperor I will not bow down to Rome the only one I'm bowing down to is a man by the name of Jesus and I stop by here to Trinity to let you know, give you some eschatological ethics. We are not bowing down to somebody in Pennsylvania Avenue. We are not bowing down to any party. We're not bowing down to any fascist.

1:26:28 We're not bowing to any king. We're not bowing to any monarch. We're not bowing down to any feudal lord. The only one we're bowing down to is a man by the name of Jesus. And they tell me that angels will pass at the name of Jesus is there anyone in here that knows that there's only one King knows there's only one with power this is eschatological ethics So when you have eschatological ethics, when you have an embodied practice, when you have sonic resistance and theology, you are able to stand in the midst of a moment and say to you, God, I give my body, I give my mind, I give my spirit over to you.

1:27:29 I refuse to allow negativity of this modern culture to become my teacher, my guide, my griot, or my rabbi. I worship to remind myself that I am a child of the Most High God, that I am your creation. I am designed by you and I have been blessed by you. So when I come into worship, I may make a little noise because you don't know the hell and high water I've been through. You have no idea.