Christmas Play, 2013 Mary, the Mother of God
(Stage directions are in red)
Introduction (Catherine )
If you have ever visited the great city of Rome, in Italy, you may have noticed as you’ve wandered about the city that high above you, particularly on corner buildings at intersections, are sacred images of Mary. These images, many of which date back hundreds of years, were believed to bring protection to travelers, and these images were also associated with miraculous happenings on particular streets. But mostly, these images of Mary watched over the ordinary lives of those who lived around them. And in the centuries before electricity, oil lamps lit these images, and provided the only public lighting in the city.
In Fredericksburg, Ben’s parents had their own sacred image of Mary. Mary sat, quite unobtrusively, on a bookshelf in the den, quietly watching over the activities in that room. This image of Mary saw our children grow up, watched over Beth and DuVal as they aged, and silently witnessed DuVal’s death several years ago.
And now this image of Mary resides in our house, and watches over us from her place on the window ledge in the kitchen.
Long before images of her appeared in Rome, Mary watched over the life, death and resurrection of her first born son, Jesus.
Luke tells us that when Mary and Joseph presented Jesus in the temple when he was eight days old, Simeon blessed the baby and then said to Mary, “This child is destined for the falling and the rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be opposed so that the inner thoughts of many will be revealed—and a sword will pierce your own soul too.”
And Mary’s soul was pierced by worry as the ministry of Jesus in Galilee became increasingly controversial. Mary’s soul was pierced as she stood at the foot of the cross, watching her son die a gruesome death, and then, as tradition has it, she held her dead son in her arms.
Surely, Mary never forgot the tragedy of her son’s death. And yet, I believe that in the solitude of her old age, as Mary looked back over her miracle filled life, that the miracles she experienced as a young girl in Galilee and the miraculous birth of her first born son were the things she treasured most and pondered in her heart.
(Open the little doors so that Mary will be visible.)
Scene One The Annunciation (Luke 1:26-38)
Hymn 265—The Angel Gabriel–everyone sings, remaining seated.
( Mary as an older woman comes out of the sacristy door as congregation sings Verse 1. She comes to the center aisle and sits on the stool there. Next to her is a table with a pitcher and a book. Mary picks up the book and opens it. After a minute, she looks up.)
(Verse 2 of hymn, Young Mary comes down the stage left aisle. She is carrying an armful of roses. She comes near the seated Mary.
Verse 3, The Angel Gabriel comes out of the sacristy door. The angel is carrying a single rose. The angel comes to stage left, staying behind the altar rail. The angel points at Mary.)
Seated Mary: And the angel said to me, “Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you.”
I was perplexed at the angel’s words, and wondered what sort of greeting this might be.
And then the angel said to me, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And now you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David. He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”
And so I said to the angel, “How can this be, since I am a virgin?”
The angel looked at me and set me trembling, and said to me, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be holy; he will be called Son of God. And now, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son; and this is the sixth month for her who was said to be barren. For nothing will be impossible with God.”
(Young Mary puts the roses in the pitcher, falls on her knees at the altar rail. The angel reaches out, places rose in the pitcher, and places hands on young Mary’s head. )
Seated Mary: “And so I said, with my whole heart and mind, and with my whole soul, and with my whole strength, “Here I am, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.”
(The angel Gabriel goes back out the sacristy door. Young Mary stands up, takes three roses from the pitcher, and runs down stage left aisle and out the door, as seated Mary watches her go.)
Scene Two The Visit to Elizabeth (Luke 1:39-56)
Seated Mary: “Before long, I knew that I was pregnant. I decided to go visit Elizabeth and Zechariah. Elizabeth was also expecting a child. We could encourage each other and keep one another company. And so I went with haste to the Judean hill country where they lived.
Elizabeth was so excited to see me! Full of the Holy Spirit, she cried out when she heard me call out to her as I came through the doorway into the house. “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. And why has this happened to me, that the mother of my Lord comes to me? For as soon as I heard the sound of your greeting, the child in my womb leapt for joy. And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her by the Lord.”
And then, full of the Holy Spirit, I couldn’t help but sing out the words that coursed through my spirit.
Congregation stands and all sing Tell out my Soul, all four verses, H 438.
(Seated Mary) After about three months with Elizabeth, I went back home. Not long after that, Elizabeth had her son, and his father Zechariah named their baby John.”
Scene Three—Mary and Joseph (Matthew 1:18-24)
All remain seated Come now and praise the humble saint, H 260 is sung
Seated Mary: Joseph—And what would I have done without Joseph? Joseph helped me get through what turned out to be an awful time. People in Nazareth gossiped about me because I was pregnant. Joseph and I weren’t yet married, even though we were engaged. Joseph was pretty upset by the whole thing too. Joseph was a righteous man and he didn’t want to expose me to even more public disgrace, so he planned to dismiss me quietly. I didn’t know what I’d do.
(As seated Mary talks, Mary and Joseph come down the aisle, stage right. They stand together, in serious conversation. Joseph walks away –across to the other side of seated Mary. Joseph looks distressed. Young Mary stands beside seated Mary with her head down, looking sad.)
But then Joseph changed his mind. He told me what had happened. An angel of the Lord had appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.”
Long ago, Isaiah had said “Look, the Virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel, which means ‘God is with us.’”
(Joseph comes back to Mary. They talk. Angel comes out of sacristy door, points at Joseph. Joseph and Mary look at angel. Joseph kneels at altar rail. Angel puts hands on his head. Mary kneels beside him.)
Seated Mary: So Joseph took me as his wife, and cared for me tenderly.
(Joseph and Mary get up, take hands, and they exit, aisle stage right. )
Scene Four—The journey to Bethlehem and the birth of Jesus (Luke 2:1-20)
O Little town of Bethlehem, Verse 1 H 78 Choir
Seated Mary: In all the years that have passed, all the days and all the nights, I will never forget the birth of my first son, a night filled with mystery, and fear, and wonder, and joy.
Caesar Augustus sent out a decree that all the world should be taxed. And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria. And so all went to be taxed, everyone to his own city.
Joseph and I had to make a long journey. We had to travel up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judea, and then all the way to Bethlehem, the city of David, because Joseph was of the house and lineage of David.
We walked, I rode the donkey, I walked. And when I got tired of walking, I rode the donkey again. Joseph never left my side. We were the last ones to get to Bethlehem, and there was no room for us in the inn.
And so my baby was born in a cave which was used as a stable for the animals. I wrapped the baby in swaddling clothes, and laid him in the manger, because it had hay in it, and the hay was softer than the ground would have been for my little baby.
(Marilyn plays her harp as Mary and Joseph come out of sacristy door. Mary is holding a baby in her arms, and she lays the baby in the manger. She and Joseph stand there, looking at the baby. Seated Mary looks at this scene. )
Congregation, remaining seated , sings O Little Town of Bethlehem Verses 2-5 H 78
Seated Mary: We rested. The baby slept. But then, I’ll never forget it—a shepherd entered the stable—I thought he had come in to check on the animals, but instead, he came to the manger and stared at our baby. And then several more shepherds joined him, until the cave was filled with shepherds. (First shepherd comes down the aisle, goes to the manger, looks at the baby and beckons to the other shepherds)
(Shepherds come down both aisles and go around the manger)
At first, I was frightened. Why were so many of these men here?
But then, a shepherd told us what had happened.
They had been out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. Just an ordinary night, except that the sky was so bright with stars—and then, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them. And they were afraid. Afraid as I was.
(Shepherds point to angel in the gallery)
The angel said to them, “Do not be afraid: For see—I am bringing you good news of great joy for all of the people, for unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord.”
And then, the angel told them that they would find a child wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger. The shepherds told us that the sky was filled with thousands of angels, praising God and singing,
“Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace among those whom he favors.”
All sing While shepherds watched their flocks by night H 94
(Angels come to the manger.)
And so the shepherds came to see the baby, and afterwards, they told everyone what had happened, and everyone who heard their story was amazed.
All these years, I’ve kept all these words of the shepherds and the angels from that night and treasured them in my heart.
(Shepherds and angels leave the manger and go back down aisles to back of the church.)
The Visit of the Wise Men (Matthew 2:1-12)
After the angels had appeared to the shepherds and the shepherds had come to see the baby, we had several more visitors. Their story was just as startling as the story of the shepherds had been.
(Choir sings “Who are these Eastern strangers?” as wise men come down aisles.)
Wise men come to the altar and give gifts to Mary and Joseph and the baby.
King Herod had told the wise men to come back and tell him where we were. But they were warned in a dream not to return to Herod, so they left for their own country by another road.
(Wise men go back out door aisle stage left)
(Seated Mary stands.)
My life has been full of miracles. My soul has been pierced. My heart has been broken.
But most of all, in all of these years, my soul has magnified the Lord, and my spirit has rejoiced, and still rejoices, and will always rejoice in God, my savior.
Because he looked with favor on me, his lowly servant, and for the thousands of years since I gave birth to Jesus, all generations have called me blessed, because God has done great things for me, and holy is his name.
(Mary, Joseph and the baby go out the sacristy door. Seated Mary goes out the sacristy door. Catherine closes the doors of the image of Mary.)
Let us pray.
Purify our consciences, Almighty God, and bring us your divine comfort by visiting us every day, so that your Son Jesus Christ, at his coming, may find in us a mansion prepared for himself; who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
Closing hymn Angels from the realms of glory H 93 (Everyone returns to the front.)