THE TOUCH OF
THE ROBE
A Biblical
Play in
Two Acts
By Jewell Ellen Smith
First performed at a “Good Friday Prayer Breakfast” at the
Officer’s Club at
Return
to the Jewell Ellen Smith Home Page
THEME: “Truly this was the Son of God.” “...Now when the Centurion and they that were with him, watching Jesus
(on the cross), saw the earthquake, and those things that were done, they feared greatly, saying, “Truly this
was the Son
of God.” Matt. 27:54
Sub-Theme: “Whatever He saith unto you, do it.” “...There was a
marriage in Cana of Galilee; and the
mother of Jesus was there; and both Jesus ... and his disciples. ... And when they wanted wine, his mother saith unto the
servants, “Whatever He saith unto you, do it.”
Sub-Theme: “All things are possible
to him that believeth.” “...And one in the multitude answered and said, ‘Master, I have
brought unto thee my son which hath an evil spirit. ... If thou canst do anything, have compassion on us, and help
us. ...
Jesus said unto him, ‘If thou
canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth.’” Mark 9
TIME AND PLACE:
RESUMÉ OF SCENES:
Act I
Scene 1. A detail of four Roman soldiers and one NCO (Non-Commissioned
Officer) named Felix have been assigned to “clean up the place,’ immediately after the crucifixion at Golgotha, the place of the skull, They divide Jesus’ garments, casting lots
for the “robe without
seam.” The Centurion
in charge returns. He believes Jesus was the Son of God. And while the soldiers take
down the crosses, the Centurion tells
the NCO of Jesus, and His miracles. (Felix and Centurion thus serve as
narrators for remainder of
Act I.)
Scene 2. Christ asks disciples “Whom say the people that I am?” This, while the group walks (across ballroom floor) toward Coast of Caesarea Philippi.
Scene 3. The marriage feast in Cana of Galilee, at which Jesus turns the
water into wine. This, after the supply had been exhausted and Mary had told
the servants to go to Jesus. She added, “Whatever He saith unto you, do it.”
Scene is climaxed by Mary’s singing a solo. Its
theme is “Do the will of God.”
Scene 4. In an
outdoor place, Jesus and his disciples are thronged by a crowd of people. Two
blind men try to get to Jesus to be
helped. A woman with a plague pushes her way through the crowd and touches the
hem of His garment. A man brings his epileptic son to Jesus. After the son is
made whole, the father sings a solo which declares to the audience exactly what
Jesus told the father, “All things are possible
to him that believeth.” (Woman, blind men and boy join in on chorus.)
The conversation between the Centurion and NCO Felix is
interrupted by
the arrival of a messenger who comes from Pontius Pilate, The Centurion is instructed to post a guard at the tomb of the
so-called “King of the Jews” so that his followers will not steal his body away at night and say that he arose from the
grave. Soldiers
finish removing crosses as NCO speculates
on whether or not Jesus was the son of God. (It is Felix who has acquired the “robe without seam” and he takes it with him into Act II.)
ACT
II
Scene 1: At twilight on the day following
the crucifixion, two soldiers are in the garden at the tomb when Jesus’ body
was placed--standing guard. Two others, with NCO Felix, arrive to relieve them. Felix does not
stay, but does leave Jesus’ raiment, including the robe.
There is a storm
just before dawn. Two angels appear. The soldiers “become as dead men.” Angels
roll away stone. They find the robe and other raiment left by Felix and take it
into the tomb for the Christ to wear.
Scenes
2 & 3: NCO Felix returns just in time to see three Women of Galilee coming to the tomb to bring spices to anoint the
body of the Christ. He listens as the angels tell the women Christ has risen. Felix (visible to the audience but not to
others in the garden) talks to himself in stage whisper. He becomes convinced
tha Jesus is the Son of God. After the angels and Christ Figure and women
leave, Felix shakes the sleeping guards. He declares to them that Jesus is the
living Son.
The guards bring up
the possibility of reporting what has happened
to the Centurion and to the authorities. Felix replies: “You two can tell the Centurion anything you want. I am
going to tell the world about the Crucified and Resurrected One! And each time I tell His story, I will add these
words:
By a game of chance, I took His robe!
The robe of God’s Son touched me!”
Felix begins
singing Grand Finale hymn. He is joined by entire cast. Cast sings certain
sections of song and final chorus.
--The End--
(It
is customary for the entire cast to remain on stage and sing a medley of Easter
hymns while the ceremony of “The Cross of Elower Petals” is in progress.)
BACKGROUND SCRIPTURE:
Opinion of Roman soldiers regarding Jesus. And their decision on his robe:
Matt. 27:54: “Now when the centurion and they that were with him,
watching Jesus, saw
the earthquake, and those things that
were done, they feared greatly, saying, Truly this was the Son of God.”
John
19:23-24a: “Then the soldiers, when they had crucified Jesus, took his
garments, and made four parts, to every soldier a
part; and also
his coat: now the coat was without seam, woven from the top throughout. They said therefore among themselves, Let us not rend it, but cast lots for it, whose
it shall be. ...”
Opinion of the
disciples regarding Jesus
Matt. 16:l3-16:
“When Jesus came into the coasts of Caesarea Phillippi, he asked his disciples, saying, Whom do men say I the Son
of man am? And they said, Some say that thou art
John the Baptist: some, Elias; and others, Jeremias, or one of the
prophets. He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am. And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of
the living God.”
cf. Luke
First Miracle: The Good Wine:
John 2:1-9: “...There was a marriage in Cana of
Galilee; and the mother of Jesus was there; and both Jesus was called, and his disciples to the marriage... And when
they wanted wine -- his mother saith unto
the servants, whatever He saith unto you,
do it.
... Jesus saith unto them (servants) ‘Fill the waterpots with water.’ And they filled them
to the brim. And he saith unto them, ‘Draw out now, and bear unto the governor
of the feast.’ And they bear it.
“When the ruler of the feast had tasted the wine and knew
not whence it was (but the servants which drew the water knew) the governor of
the feast called the bridegroom. Every man
at the beginrdng doth set forth good wine; and when men have well drunk, then
that which is worse; but thou hast kept the good wine until now.”
Summary of healing:
Matt. 9:35: “And
Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, and
preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every
sickness and every disease among the people.”
Mark
Mark
Guard for tomb
requested of Pilate:
Matt. 27:62b-66: “...The
chief priests and Pharisees came together unto Pilate saying, Sir, we remember
that that deceiver said while he was yet alive, After three days I will rise
again. Command therefore that the sepulchre be made
sure. ... Pilate said unto them, Ye have a watch. ... So they went, and made
the sepulchre sure, sealing the stone, and setting a watch.”
Soldier guards faint at sight of resurrection angels, Women come to the tomb at dawn to bring spices; they
see Jesus:
St.
Matt. 28:1-11. (cf. Mk. 16:1-14, Lk.
24:1-49; John 20:1-23)
“...As it began to dawn toward the first day of the
week, came Mary Magdalene and the other Mary to see the sepulchre.... the angel
of the Lord... rolled back the stone…. For fear of him the keepers (soldiers) did quake and
become as dead men.... As (the women) went, Jesus met them, and they worshiped
Him.”
List of Characters, in the order of
their appearance:
NCO Felix -- A Roman soldier in
charge of the detail which is taking down the three crosses used at the
Crucifixion. Felix is the chief narrator. He has many lines. He must have
solo voice.
Four Roman Soldiers Lucius, Arcalla, Otholus, and Gaverus:
Remain on stage during all of Act I. Come and go in Act II. Minimum of lines.
At least two could be played by women.
The Centurion -- A Roman officer in charge of 100 soldiers. Has
many lines in Act I. Does not appear again until Grand Finale.
Simon
Peter -- Appears in scenes 2, 3, 4 of Act I. Few lines.
Disciple John -- Appears in scenes 2, 3, 4 of Act 1. Very few lines.
Christ Figure -- Appears
in Act I
and II. Always wears purple robe. Few lines, but his scenes are the most
important.
Ten other disciples
-- No lines. Can be female players.
Governor of the
Feast -- Good many lines. Should be fat, rough.
Boy Servant -- Appears
only at wedding feast. Not too many
lines. Woman can play role,
Bridegroom -- Few
lines. Must be male actor.
Bride -- No lines.
Chief Servant -- Average number
of
lines. Must be male actor.
Mary, the Mother of
Jesus - - Few lines. Sings solo. Appears only in Act I.
Wedding
Guests -- group of about 15 persons. No speaking parts.
A Servant -- No
lines. Helps to fill water jars, serve wine at marriage feast.
A Throng of People -- about 15 persons. (May be same as the wedding guests.)
Woman with Plague
-- minimum of lines. Appears
only in Act I, scene 4.
First Blind Person
-- few lines. Can be woman.
Second Blind Person
-- few lines. Can be
woman.
Bystander -- very few lines. Can be woman.
A Father with his son -- Few very
dramatic lines. Sings solo; persons healed join in singing.
Epileptic son -- No
lines. Can be small woman.
First
and Second Angels -- Average number of lines. Can be women. Appear only in last
scene.
Mary
Magdalene, Slaome, and The Other Mary -- Average number of lines. Last scene.
Total number of players
required: about 40.
Several can play double roles. All sing final song.
THE TOUCH OF THE
ROBE
ACT I, Scene 1
The curtain rises on the
FELIX: All right, you guys! Let’s get with
it! We’ve got to take down these crosses! The Crucifixion is over! Our
Centurion gave orders that we are to clean up this “place of the skull.” And he’ll be back here any minute!
Lucius takes
the sandals. A.rcalla takes the tunic to examine
it. Otholus and Gaverus keep
looking at the robe. None make a move toward taking down the crosses.
FELIX: Come on now! You’ve argued long enough
over these clothes. What’s the problem, anyway?
LUCIUS: Well, it’s like this: We are going
to divide the clothes that belonged to that so-called “King of the Jews” that died on the middle cross into
four stacks. Then, each of us will take a
stack. But I don’t want these sandals!
ARCALLA: I don’t want this
tunic! But I wouldn’t mind having the sandals!
I want this purple robe, but Gaverus here claims he ought to have it!
GAVERUS: I need the robe! It would feel mighty good these cold windy nights here in Jerusalem.
LUCIUS: taking the robe
Gaverus, you’ve got a robe! Let me have this one! It’s not new, but it surely
is a good one!
ARCALLA: Just a minute now! I outrank all three of you guys! If
anybody deserves the robe, it’s me!
FELIX: pulling out his dagger I can settle this!
Hold up the robe, and h I’ll cut it very
neatly, very exactly, into four pieces. And you can sac take a piece!
ALL Soldiers:
Oh, no! Don’t do that! No!
ARCALLA: It would
be a shame to cut it up!
OTHOLUS: Yeah! Just
look at it! turning robe this
way and that
It’s a nice cloak!
GAVERUS: picking up edge of robe There’s not a seam in it!
LUCIUS: Let’s cast
lots for
it! That would be fair!
ARCALLA: Yeah! And winner take all! Sandals,
underclothes, tunic, the purple robe! Everything that belonged to that poor man
they called “King of the Jews”!
FELIX: Well, now, that does sound like a
good idea, Arcalla! We’ll cast lots!
ARCALLA: What do you mean, we?
FELIX: You guys
don’t mind me being in on it too, do you?
ARCALLA: grumbling tone I guess not. If you insist on it.
FELIX: with
much enthusiasm Who’s got the dice?
ARCALLA: Here’s
mine.
FELIX: You roll ‘em first.
Soldiers
squat down in semi-circle to roll dice, in turn. There’s much excitement and
suspense. Felix is last and wins!
FELIX: I win! I win! Winner takes all! Remember?
Grumbling
soldiers gather clothes together. Arcalla rolls sandals & tunic up in a
bundle and ties it. Hands bundle and robe to Felix.
ARCALLA: Here you are, you
lucky old so and so.
Felix
tries on robe. Strides back and forth, much pleased with the robe, and with himself.
FELIX: Ah! It fits perfectly! Just like it was made for me.
Well, now that this is all
settled, let’s tear these crosses down. Removes
robe and puts it aside. Before our Centurion gets back!
GAVERUS: Is the
Centurion going to run an inspection?
FELIX: I don’t know
if he will run an inspection, as such, or not. He just told me that he had been
called to come to the hail of Pontius Pilate and that he would be back out
here at Golgotha before sundown!
Soldiers
take down cross on left. Start taking it apart. They work without enthusiasm.
The Centurion arrives, walking slowly. He is evidently in a downcast mood.
FELIX: salutes and addresses The Centurion Sir,
is anything wrong? You look
almost ill! Can I send and get you
a bit of wine or something? One of the
soldiers here could run and--
CENTURION: No, no, thank you. I’ll be all
right. sits down on rude bench It’s
just that this crucifixion was the worst one I
ever had to carry out. I can’t get over
it--especially seeing the middle one die.
FELIX: Well, Sir, it’s all finished now. Think about it this
way: these thieves and revolutionaries and murderers here in Jerusalem bring it
on themselves. They deserve to die!
CENTURION:
The one who died on the middle cross was no criminal! He was. Jesus of Nazareth.
He didn’t deserve to die.
FELIX: I know one
thing about that
man that hung on the middle cross: He had two very, very rich friends! And
those two men--whoever they were--came here just about an Ixur ago and took down the body. ... And I wish you could have
seen the fine linen
they wrapped it in. I know it was linen from Egypt! And burial spices! I never saw the like! Those two men
had to be rich to afford all that imported spice and that fine Egyptian cloth!
CENTURION: One of
them was Joseph of Aramathea, a rich ruler of the
Jews. I was still in Pilate’s chambers when he came to
Pilate and asked permission to place the body in his own new tomb.
FELIX: Who was the
other rich man? I’d like to get acquainted with him!
CENTURION: It was probably a ruler and
teacher of Israel named Nicodemus. I happen
to know that Nicodemus and Joseph of Aramathea both believed on this Jesus of
Nazareth.
FELIX: Believed on
him? What do you mean , Sir?
CENTURION:
They believed this Jesus was the Son of God!
FELIX: The Son
of God? Sir, I don’t see--
CENTURION: All of his close followers
beieved him to be the Son of God! I know a couple of his disciples. One of them is a big
fisherman named Simon Peter. And he told me a lot about what people said of
this Jesus. Once he told me that there was no doubt about Jesus being the Son of God.
Spotlight picks up Scene 2.
Scene 2
The Christ Figure and
12 disciples are walking near the coasts of Caesarea Philippi. This scene--very brief--simply moves across ballroom floor. The group
talk as they walk, pausing briefly in center stage for the key lines.
SIMON
PETER: We should reach the coasts of Caesarea Philippi within an hour.
DISCIPLE JOHN: I wish we were there
now. This long journey has made me weary.
Master, are you weary?
CHRIST FIGURE: Not so weary. As we
go on our way, there’s something I should like to ask all of you.
Group pauses
JOHN:
Just ask us. Master, we will tell you anything.
PETER: If we know
the answer, we surely will tell
you. Truthfully.
CHRIST FIGURE: Whom do men
say I the Son of man am?
JOHN:
Some say that you are John the Baptist come back to life!
PETER:
Others think you must be Elijah.
Or one of the other old prophets.
JOHN: Many, many people say that one of the
old prophets is risen again. They often mention Jeremiah.
PETER: Yes, if you were to ask the ordinary person whom he thinks
you are, he would call the name of one of the three--John the Baptist, Elijah,
or Jeremiah.
CHRIST FIGURE: But whom say you that I
am?
SIMON PETER: “Thou art
the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
CHRIST
FIGURE: Simon Peter, Flesh and Blood have not revealed this to you, but My
Father which is in heaven.
Spotlight goes back to Felix and
Centurion. C. F. and disciples move into position for marriage feast.
FELIX: So his disciples thought
he was the Son of God? I find that-- It’s-- Why, Sir, it’s impossible
for me to believe that!
CENTURION:
I believe it!