BACK VIRGIN 4'1m*f RT: Joseph announces Mary's pregnancy (RT == Readers' Theater: requires little or no memorization, little or no rehearsal. An indefinite number of reporters are salted throughout the audience) JOSEPH -- (enters wearing tunic, sandals and headress, crosses to podium) Good morning. My name is Joseph son of Heli. As Nazareth is a small town, I'm sure you have all heard that I am engaged to marry a girl named Mary. The reason I called this press conference is to address the many rumors that are flying around Nazareth. First, it is NOT true that I have decided not to marry her. REPORTER -- Then, are you denying also that your intended bride is pregnant? JOSEPH -- No. I'm not denying that. REPORTER -- Are you saying that you did not even consider calling off the wedding? JOSEPH -- I will admit that my original impulse was to send her away quietly... REPORTER -- But Jewish law requires that the girl be put to death. JOSEPH -- I'm sorry. You're wrong. Flat out wrong. REPORTER -- The girl is pregnant out of wed lock. What am I missing? JOSEPH -- The law does not require that girls who are pregnant out of wedlock be put to death. REPORTER -- I'm quite familiar with Jewish law and the law requires that adulterers be put to death. JOSEPH -- You are assuming, as I did at first, that Mary is pregnant because of adultery. REPORTER -- She's not married. How else do you explain it? JOSEPH -- Mary claims that the Angel Gabriel appeared to her and told her that the Holy Spirit of God would implant a baby in her womb. REPORTER -- And you believed that story? JOSEPH -- Yes. REPORTER -- Are you just naive, or are you in a state of denial? JOSEPH -- Neither. After I decided to send Mary away quietly, the same angel appeared to me and confirmed Mary's story. He told me to go ahead with the marriage, that the baby would be a blessing. REPORTER -- So, you're going to go ahead and marry this girl? JOSEPH -- Yes. REPORTER -- Why? Nobody would blame you for sending her away. JOSEPH -- Because Mary and I believe that this baby is the long awaited messiah of the nation of Israel. REPORTER -- Doesn't this sound a little far fetched, even to you? JOSEPH -- Not in the least. The angel Gabriel told us to name the baby Yahoshua, which is pronounced JESUS in Greek. Yahoshua means "God is salvation". REPORTER -- Are you claiming that this baby will save our people from their sins? JOSEPH -- That's what the angel told us. REPORTER -- But the prophet Isaiah wrote that only God himself can save us from our sins. Are you claiming that this baby is God himself? JOSEPH -- That's the way it looks to us. REPORTER -- At the very least, I think you are mistaken. But it's more likely that you're deluded. JOSEPH -- Not at all. Look at the name the Angel gave him. Yahoshua or Joshua was the great general who conquered Jericho in seven days. The walls of Jericho literally fell down on the seventh day, on the sabbath exactly as predicted by the Lord of the sabbath. Giving the baby the same name tells us that He will be the Lord of the Sabbath. REPORTER -- And you got this directly from an angel? JOSEPH -- Both of us did. The Prophet Isaiah predicted that our coming messiah would be born of a virgin and would be called Immanuel which means "God with us". REPORTER -- Wait a minute. According to the Prophet Micah, the messiah will come from Bethlehem, not from Nazareth! JOSEPH -- Yes. That reminds me. My wife-to-be and I are leaving today to go to Bethlehem to be counted in the census. The baby will probably be born there. REPORTER -- So, the baby is to be born into the family of King David, as the Prophets predicted? JOSEPH -- Yes. Both Mary and I are descendants of King David. I'm sorry, we really MUST go now if we intend to get to Bethlehem in time for the census. (exits) Thank you for coming. REPORTER -- Hey, this baby really COULD BE the messiah after all! ©2013 Bob Snook. Conditions for use: Do not sell any part of this script, even if you rewrite it. Pay no royalties, even if you make money from performances. You may reproduce and distribute this script freely, but all copies must contain this copyright statement. http://www.bobsnook.org email: [email protected] BACK |