Fair Trade Fronds for Palm Sunday
April 4, 2009 by Sandy Mitchell
Filed under Gardening
About 2,500 congregations from every major denomination this weekend will use fair-trade palm fronds in their annual celebration of Jesus’ arrival in Jerusalem in the days before his crucifixion. They say it’s the Christian thing to do.
The University of Minnesota’s Eco-Palms program ensures the leaves were harvested in Mexico and Guatemala in an environmentally sensitive manner by workers getting paid a fair price, and organizers say they’re getting more orders than ever.
What began with just 22 churches in four states buying 5000 fronds has grown to include more than 2500 congregations in 49 states buying around 650,000 fronds.
Christians use palm frond on Palm Sunday, the Sunday before Easter, to depict the Jesus’ arrival in Jerusalem just days before the crucifixtion and ressurection. Onlookers covered his path with palm fronds, indicating a dignitary was approaching.
(photo credit: Newscom)
