The Crucifixion Of Monty
Stories
Lectionary Tales For The Pulpit
Series IV, Cycle B
Object:
The Crucifixion Of Monty
Then Peter began to speak to them: "We are witnesses to all that he did both in Judea and in Jerusalem. They put him to death by hanging him on a tree; but God raised him on the third day and allowed him to appear, not to all the people but to us who were chosen by God as witnesses, and who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead. He commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one ordained by God as judge of the living and the dead. All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name." (vv. 34a, 39-43)
Blair Waddell spent a summer working at a camp in western North Carolina. The staff decided to portray the events of Holy Week by acting out a week-long passion play for the campers. Every morning and evening they would portray a scene from the life of Christ. The highlight would be the crucifixion scene on Friday evening, followed by the Resurrection on Sunday morning. They wanted everything to be as realistic as possible in order to allow the campers to feel like true spectators of the passion of Christ.
Waddell played Peter during the week -- a role he found fun and interesting. His friend Monty played the role of Jesus. Monty was not the standard image of Christ. He had blond hair, blue eyes, and was a little overweight. He didn't look like a man who walked everywhere he went in the blazing sun, but there weren't many olive-skinned men in the Appalachian Mountains. Yet, for everything that wasn't like Jesus on the outside, Monty reflected Christ on the inside. He had the heart of Jesus; he was gentle and loving. He accurately portrayed the love and compassion of Christ.
The week began well. The campers were completely awed by the triumphal entry. Monty rode in on a white horse as the rest shouted, "Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord" and threw their rhododendron leaves before him. (Palm trees are also in short supply in the Appalachian Mountains.) Then they showed Jesus clearing the temple, his anointing by the woman with the alabaster jar, the Last Supper, and his trial before Herod and Pilate. The campers really got into it. They even spontaneously participated at various points. By the time of the crucifixion scene, the campers were in tune with the passion.
Two actors portraying the thieves were hanging on two crosses with an obvious space between them. Soldiers stripped Monty of his tattered purple robe, and laid him on the cross. The sound of a hammer striking steel wafted into the silence of the crowd. The soldiers raised the cross, dropped it into a hole and Monty let out a screech as if he actually felt the impact.
A Pharisee stood under Monty and mockingly shouted up to him, "If you truly are the Christ, why don't you come down from that cross?"
And that's when it happened. At that precise moment, there was a slight creaking noise. The cross beam snapped in two. Monty wildly flailed his arms, which accomplished nothing since they were tied to the cross beam. The slightly overweight, blond-haired, blue-eyed Jesus did a rather undignified belly flop to the ground.
In the midst of the tenseness of the scene, the entire camp erupted in laughter. Waddell tried his best to stay in character, but lost his composure. The image of Monty tumbling off that cross kept replaying in his mind. He couldn't stop the image. The whole camp had the same problem. Someone would snicker and set off a chain reaction. Even the thieves on the other two crosses were trying to stifle their laughter.
Unhurt, Monty tried his best to recover, but he was having a hard time restraining a smile. The mood was long gone. Monty put up a valiant effort by trying to pretend he was hanging from the broken cross, but it was no use.
It's a good reminder that we can't be Christ. We fail. That is precisely why we need Christ -- why Christ offered his life by hanging on a tree. As Peter says in Acts, those who believe receive "forgiveness of sins through his name." Sure, we fail, but Christ doesn't. He got it right with the crucifixion and the resurrection. And that saves us.
(Scott Gillenwaters, Sage Advice: Stories from Seasoned Youth Workers [Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2003], pp. 148-150.)
Then Peter began to speak to them: "We are witnesses to all that he did both in Judea and in Jerusalem. They put him to death by hanging him on a tree; but God raised him on the third day and allowed him to appear, not to all the people but to us who were chosen by God as witnesses, and who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead. He commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one ordained by God as judge of the living and the dead. All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name." (vv. 34a, 39-43)
Blair Waddell spent a summer working at a camp in western North Carolina. The staff decided to portray the events of Holy Week by acting out a week-long passion play for the campers. Every morning and evening they would portray a scene from the life of Christ. The highlight would be the crucifixion scene on Friday evening, followed by the Resurrection on Sunday morning. They wanted everything to be as realistic as possible in order to allow the campers to feel like true spectators of the passion of Christ.
Waddell played Peter during the week -- a role he found fun and interesting. His friend Monty played the role of Jesus. Monty was not the standard image of Christ. He had blond hair, blue eyes, and was a little overweight. He didn't look like a man who walked everywhere he went in the blazing sun, but there weren't many olive-skinned men in the Appalachian Mountains. Yet, for everything that wasn't like Jesus on the outside, Monty reflected Christ on the inside. He had the heart of Jesus; he was gentle and loving. He accurately portrayed the love and compassion of Christ.
The week began well. The campers were completely awed by the triumphal entry. Monty rode in on a white horse as the rest shouted, "Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord" and threw their rhododendron leaves before him. (Palm trees are also in short supply in the Appalachian Mountains.) Then they showed Jesus clearing the temple, his anointing by the woman with the alabaster jar, the Last Supper, and his trial before Herod and Pilate. The campers really got into it. They even spontaneously participated at various points. By the time of the crucifixion scene, the campers were in tune with the passion.
Two actors portraying the thieves were hanging on two crosses with an obvious space between them. Soldiers stripped Monty of his tattered purple robe, and laid him on the cross. The sound of a hammer striking steel wafted into the silence of the crowd. The soldiers raised the cross, dropped it into a hole and Monty let out a screech as if he actually felt the impact.
A Pharisee stood under Monty and mockingly shouted up to him, "If you truly are the Christ, why don't you come down from that cross?"
And that's when it happened. At that precise moment, there was a slight creaking noise. The cross beam snapped in two. Monty wildly flailed his arms, which accomplished nothing since they were tied to the cross beam. The slightly overweight, blond-haired, blue-eyed Jesus did a rather undignified belly flop to the ground.
In the midst of the tenseness of the scene, the entire camp erupted in laughter. Waddell tried his best to stay in character, but lost his composure. The image of Monty tumbling off that cross kept replaying in his mind. He couldn't stop the image. The whole camp had the same problem. Someone would snicker and set off a chain reaction. Even the thieves on the other two crosses were trying to stifle their laughter.
Unhurt, Monty tried his best to recover, but he was having a hard time restraining a smile. The mood was long gone. Monty put up a valiant effort by trying to pretend he was hanging from the broken cross, but it was no use.
It's a good reminder that we can't be Christ. We fail. That is precisely why we need Christ -- why Christ offered his life by hanging on a tree. As Peter says in Acts, those who believe receive "forgiveness of sins through his name." Sure, we fail, but Christ doesn't. He got it right with the crucifixion and the resurrection. And that saves us.
(Scott Gillenwaters, Sage Advice: Stories from Seasoned Youth Workers [Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2003], pp. 148-150.)
