What Say?
Drama
Lectionary Scenes
58 Vignettes For Cycle B
Theme
Grace is the basis for keeping the Sabbath day holy.
Summary
John and Peter, two disciples, harass the storyteller as he is reading a passage.
Playing Time
3 minutes
Setting
Your church
Props
None
Costumes
Storyteller -- contemporary
Disciples -- suggestions of first century costumes
Cast
JOHN -- a disciple
PETER -- another one
STORYTELLER -- a storyteller
STORYTELLER: (ENTERS, STANDS CENTER STAGE, AND READS FROM THE KING JAMES BIBLE) And it came to pass ... (DISCIPLES ENTER AND PASS IN FRONT OF STORYTELLER)
PETER: Pardon me. May I pass?
STORYTELLER: Why, yes, of course.
JOHN: Mind if I pass?
STORYTELLER: No, no. Go right ahead.
JOHN: He's very nice, don't you think?
PETER: Yes, very nice. I agree.
JOHN: (TO STORYTELLER) You're doing a very nice job.
STORYTELLER: Thank you. May I continue?
PETER: Certainly. We're waiting.
JOHN: We're hanging on every word.
STORYTELLER: Very well, I shall. He went through the cornfields on the Sabbath day; and his disciples began, as they went, to pluck the ears of corn.
PETER: Wait. Wait just a minute.
STORYTELLER: What's wrong?
PETER: What's wrong? I'll tell you what's wrong. You said corn.
STORYTELLER: Why, yes. I did. What's the matter with that?
PETER: It wasn't corn. It was wheat, if memory serves.
JOHN: Yes. If memory serves.
STORYTELLER: Your memory, I assume.
PETER: Most assuredly, my memory.
JOHN: And mine, too. And OUR memory serves.
PETER: Yes, our memory ALWAYS serves.
JOHN: ALWAYS!
STORYTELLER: Well, that's nice, but my Bible says corn.
PETER: But I'm telling you it was wheat. Don't you think we'd know the difference between corn and wheat?
JOHN: (EXAGGERATING AND ACTING IT OUT) Here, in my one hand I have a GREAT BIG ear of corn. And in my other hand I have a REALLY LITTLE grain of wheat. I wonder what the difference is? GREAT BIG ear of corn -- REALLY LITTLE grain of wheat. BIG -- LITTLE; CORN -- WHEAT.
PETER: Yes, and another thing, there was no such thing as corn in those days.
JOHN: Yes, I wish there would have been. We had to eat REALLY LITTLE grains of wheat. I'd much rather have been eating GREAT BIG ears of corn.
PETER: So would I.
STORYTELLER: All right. Is that settled? I'll say wheat. All right?
JOHN: Yes, that's good -- wheat.
STORYTELLER: All right, then. "And the Pharisees said unto him, Behold, why do they on the Sabbath day that which is not lawful?"
PETER: You know, I never knew what the Pharisees were talking about, did you?
JOHN: No, I never did. I just smiled a lot and nodded my head. (JOHN AND PETER BEGIN TO SMILE AND NOD THEIR HEADS)
STORYTELLER: "And Jesus said unto them, Have ye never read what David did?"
PETER: King David.
JOHN: He meant King David.
PETER: Yes, he did. I don't think that's very clear. But he did mean King David.
JOHN: Yes, he certainly did.
STORYTELLER: King David. That's good then. King David. Yes, King David. To continue: "When KING DAVID had need, and was an hungered, he and they that were with him?"
PETER: An hungered. (HE LAUGHS)
JOHN: And was an hungered. (HE LAUGHS)
STORYTELLER: Is everything all right?
PETER: (STILL LAUGHING) Oh, sure, go on.
JOHN: (LAUGHING UNCONTROLLABLY) And was an hungered.
STORYTELLER: "How he -- KING DAVID went into the house of God in the days of Abiathar the high priest, and did eat the shewbread, which is not lawful to eat but for the priests, and gave also to them which were with him?" Everything all right?
PETER: Sure. Go on.
JOHN: He's very nice but a bit slow, don't you think?
PETER: He's all right.
STORYTELLER: "And Jesus said unto them ..."
JOHN: Here it is, then.
PETER: Finally, we get to it.
STORYTELLER: "The Sabbath was made for man and not man for the Sabbath."
PETER: He said a mouthful there, didn't he?
JOHN: And he said it very well, too.
PETER: Very well, indeed. I don't know if I could have done half so well.
JOHN: I think you could have.
PETER: Well, possibly. But I KNOW you could have.
JOHN: Thank you.
PETER: I like this last bit, don't you?
JOHN: Very much. It's my favorite. I can hardly wait.
PETER: Well, let's let him do it, shall we?
JOHN: Yes, let's.
STORYTELLER: Thank you. "Therefore the Son of Man is Lord also of the Sabbath."
JOHN: (APPLAUDING) Good. Good.
PETER: (APPLAUDING) I think it was excellent. Superb, even. (PETER AND JOHN EXIT CONGRATULATING EACH OTHER, LEAVING THE STORYTELLER TO WANDER OFFSTAGE ALONE)
Grace is the basis for keeping the Sabbath day holy.
Summary
John and Peter, two disciples, harass the storyteller as he is reading a passage.
Playing Time
3 minutes
Setting
Your church
Props
None
Costumes
Storyteller -- contemporary
Disciples -- suggestions of first century costumes
Cast
JOHN -- a disciple
PETER -- another one
STORYTELLER -- a storyteller
STORYTELLER: (ENTERS, STANDS CENTER STAGE, AND READS FROM THE KING JAMES BIBLE) And it came to pass ... (DISCIPLES ENTER AND PASS IN FRONT OF STORYTELLER)
PETER: Pardon me. May I pass?
STORYTELLER: Why, yes, of course.
JOHN: Mind if I pass?
STORYTELLER: No, no. Go right ahead.
JOHN: He's very nice, don't you think?
PETER: Yes, very nice. I agree.
JOHN: (TO STORYTELLER) You're doing a very nice job.
STORYTELLER: Thank you. May I continue?
PETER: Certainly. We're waiting.
JOHN: We're hanging on every word.
STORYTELLER: Very well, I shall. He went through the cornfields on the Sabbath day; and his disciples began, as they went, to pluck the ears of corn.
PETER: Wait. Wait just a minute.
STORYTELLER: What's wrong?
PETER: What's wrong? I'll tell you what's wrong. You said corn.
STORYTELLER: Why, yes. I did. What's the matter with that?
PETER: It wasn't corn. It was wheat, if memory serves.
JOHN: Yes. If memory serves.
STORYTELLER: Your memory, I assume.
PETER: Most assuredly, my memory.
JOHN: And mine, too. And OUR memory serves.
PETER: Yes, our memory ALWAYS serves.
JOHN: ALWAYS!
STORYTELLER: Well, that's nice, but my Bible says corn.
PETER: But I'm telling you it was wheat. Don't you think we'd know the difference between corn and wheat?
JOHN: (EXAGGERATING AND ACTING IT OUT) Here, in my one hand I have a GREAT BIG ear of corn. And in my other hand I have a REALLY LITTLE grain of wheat. I wonder what the difference is? GREAT BIG ear of corn -- REALLY LITTLE grain of wheat. BIG -- LITTLE; CORN -- WHEAT.
PETER: Yes, and another thing, there was no such thing as corn in those days.
JOHN: Yes, I wish there would have been. We had to eat REALLY LITTLE grains of wheat. I'd much rather have been eating GREAT BIG ears of corn.
PETER: So would I.
STORYTELLER: All right. Is that settled? I'll say wheat. All right?
JOHN: Yes, that's good -- wheat.
STORYTELLER: All right, then. "And the Pharisees said unto him, Behold, why do they on the Sabbath day that which is not lawful?"
PETER: You know, I never knew what the Pharisees were talking about, did you?
JOHN: No, I never did. I just smiled a lot and nodded my head. (JOHN AND PETER BEGIN TO SMILE AND NOD THEIR HEADS)
STORYTELLER: "And Jesus said unto them, Have ye never read what David did?"
PETER: King David.
JOHN: He meant King David.
PETER: Yes, he did. I don't think that's very clear. But he did mean King David.
JOHN: Yes, he certainly did.
STORYTELLER: King David. That's good then. King David. Yes, King David. To continue: "When KING DAVID had need, and was an hungered, he and they that were with him?"
PETER: An hungered. (HE LAUGHS)
JOHN: And was an hungered. (HE LAUGHS)
STORYTELLER: Is everything all right?
PETER: (STILL LAUGHING) Oh, sure, go on.
JOHN: (LAUGHING UNCONTROLLABLY) And was an hungered.
STORYTELLER: "How he -- KING DAVID went into the house of God in the days of Abiathar the high priest, and did eat the shewbread, which is not lawful to eat but for the priests, and gave also to them which were with him?" Everything all right?
PETER: Sure. Go on.
JOHN: He's very nice but a bit slow, don't you think?
PETER: He's all right.
STORYTELLER: "And Jesus said unto them ..."
JOHN: Here it is, then.
PETER: Finally, we get to it.
STORYTELLER: "The Sabbath was made for man and not man for the Sabbath."
PETER: He said a mouthful there, didn't he?
JOHN: And he said it very well, too.
PETER: Very well, indeed. I don't know if I could have done half so well.
JOHN: I think you could have.
PETER: Well, possibly. But I KNOW you could have.
JOHN: Thank you.
PETER: I like this last bit, don't you?
JOHN: Very much. It's my favorite. I can hardly wait.
PETER: Well, let's let him do it, shall we?
JOHN: Yes, let's.
STORYTELLER: Thank you. "Therefore the Son of Man is Lord also of the Sabbath."
JOHN: (APPLAUDING) Good. Good.
PETER: (APPLAUDING) I think it was excellent. Superb, even. (PETER AND JOHN EXIT CONGRATULATING EACH OTHER, LEAVING THE STORYTELLER TO WANDER OFFSTAGE ALONE)
