Media Advisory
Michigan Christians to Unite Across Denominations in Public Witness at State Capitol on Palm Sunday
Ecumenical Procession Will Lift Up Matthew 25 Values: Feeding the Hungry, Healing the Sick, Welcoming the Stranger
What
Palm Sunday Path Michigan is an ecumenical procession and public witness uniting Christians from across the spectrum of denominations in a peaceful, visible affirmation of the values Jesus calls us to in Matthew 25: feeding the hungry, healing the sick, and welcoming the stranger. This is not a protest. It is a witness to what faith communities stand for together.Following the procession, a gathering on the east lawn of the Michigan State Capitol will include a 90+ person choir and speakers from different denominations.
When
Palm Sunday, March 29, 2026, at 3:00 p.m.
Where
Procession begins at Pilgrim Congregational United Church of Christ (125 S. Pennsylvania Ave., Lansing, MI 48912) and moves west along Michigan Ave.
Procession concludes at the Michigan State Capitol (east lawn) with a public gathering.
Who
Clergy and congregations from across Michigan representing a number of Christian denominations (and no denomination) including the Episcopal Church, United Church of Christ, United Methodist Church, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), and Presbyterian Church (USA).
More than 1,000 Michiganders are expected to participate.
Why
In a politically polarized swing state, Michigan Christians are choosing visible unity over division. We’re choosing compassion over fear. Palm Sunday Path Michigan is part of a nationwide movement (16 states stretching from New Jersey to Oregon, visit palmsunday2026.com for list) in which Christians are putting their faith into public action — not to oppose and focus on what we’re against, but to affirm and articulate what we’re for: we stand for healing, welcome, and care for the most vulnerable.
Visuals
Large, one-mile ecumenical procession from Pilgrim United Church of Christ to the Michigan State Capitol
banner
90+ person choir
palm branches
clergy in vestments from multiple traditions
liturgical cross
families, young people, and community members walking together, many with signs
Large Public Gathering on East Lawn of Capitol
crowd (those who processed and those who join at the capitol) with palm branches, signs, banner
90+ person choir
speakers
during the program, the participants will lay down their palms on the capitol lawn, symbolically connecting to Jesus’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem
Available Interviews
A representative leader from each denomination involved in statewide planning will be available for interviews, many of whom are also featured speakers at the event, in addition to any participants who are willing to be interviewed. An on-site media contact is available to connect press representatives with denominational leaders and press members who contact them ahead of time (see below) will have access to their cell number for texting requests and coordinating among the crowd.
Background
Palm Sunday Path is a movement spanning from New Jersey to Oregon calling Christians to put their faith into visible, public action grounded in the teachings of Jesus in Matthew 25. On Palm Sunday, March 29, Christians in state capitals and cities across the country will process together, echoing Jesus’s own entry into Jerusalem: a public act that drew a deliberate contrast with the powers of his day.Palm Sunday Path Michigan is a coalition of congregations and faith leaders spanning five denominations, united not by what they oppose, but by what they affirm: that the Christian faith calls us to feed the hungry, heal the sick, and welcome the stranger.
The Palm Sunday Path is an idea that began in Minneapolis. There, people of faith have been working together as Faith in Minnesota supported by ISAIAH, a community organizing group. Late last year, they were inspired to create a national vision for people seeking to promote actual gospel values in contrast to Christian nationalism, from which Palm Sunday Path was born.
Media Contact
Rachel Rose
Director for Communication, Episcopal Diocese of the Great Lakes
616-319-2006, ext. 14 (business hours only)
rachel@greatlakesepiscopal.org
(email to request outside-of-business hours phone number)
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