Taken together, the texts for Palm/Passion Sunday provide something of a contradictory message. On the one hand, we celebrate Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem as the crowds welcome him with hosannas; but on the other hand, we’re presented with the gut-wrenching details of the Passion narrative -- and by the time Jesus appears before Pilate the people have turned on him and demand blood. It might seem difficult to reconcile those disparate reactions from the assembled masses... except for the fact that this is exactly the nature of human behavior in large groups.