CHARACTERS

NARRATOR 1

NARRATOR 2

NARRATOR 3

JESUS

MARTHA

MARY

JUDAS

LAZARUS

Narrator 1: Six days before the Passover, Jesus came to the town of Bethany, to the home of Mary, Martha, and Lazarus.

Narrator 2: Lazarus, Mary, and Martha were very close friends of Jesus. He had come to their home many times before. One time, Mary was talking with and listening to Jesus with her brother and the other men while Martha was doing all the cooking. In that time women weren’t suppose to talk with the men; they were only supposed to do the housework. Martha, who was a wonderful hostess, got mad and said to her sister…

Martha: Mary, how come you are not helping me? Jesus, tell her to help me, I’m doing all the work!

Narrator 2: Jesus said to Martha…

Jesus: Martha, it is good for Mary to join in the conversation and learn.

Narrator 2: Another time, Lazarus got very sick and Martha sent a message to Jesus to come quickly and heal him. Jesus came too late, Lazarus died, and they put him in the tomb. Martha was upset and she and Jesus stood in the road and had a long theological argument about death and resurrection. Then Mary joined them and said to Jesus…

Mary: I believe you have the power of God and could bring my brother back to life.

Narrator: Then Mary cried, and Martha cried, and Jesus cried, and everyone there cried. And Jesus called to Lazarus…

Jesus: Lazarus, come out!

Narrator 2: Lazarus came out of the tomb and was alive!

Narrator 3: The last time Jesus came to visit he was about to go to Jerusalem where he knew they would probably kill him. He was sitting at the table with Lazarus and his disciples. Martha was cooking. Mary came in with a pound of costly perfume made of pure oil. She anointed Jesus’ feet, and wiped them with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume. But Judas Iscariot, one of Jesus’ disciples said…

Judas: Why was this perfume not sold for a lot of money and given to the poor people?

Narrator 1: Jesus answered him by saying…

Jesus: Leave her alone. She bought it so that she might keep it for the day of my burial. You always have the poor with you, but you will not always have me.

Narrator 3: Jesus must have felt very loved by Mary because no one else seemed to realize he was going to die. Jesus spent all his time healing other people and teaching them, but no one seemed to take care of him except Martha, who made sure he got enough to eat, and Mary who anointed him with love because she knew he was about to do something very difficult and painful.

Lazarus: All of us have times in our lives when we need the power of God to help us live our lives.

Martha: We are all called by God to serve others, to help the poor, to visit the sick and those in prison. To work for justice in our world.

Mary: All of us need to be anointed with the love of God to go into the world and to share the good news that every person is precious.

Jesus: I invite you to anoint each other with a little bit of oil. This is a symbol of God’s love, giving you the strength to do the hard and painful things you are called to do to help in God’s world. Please take a very small bit of oil on your finger and gently put it on the forehead of your neighbor.

Each person in the cast takes a cup or bowl of oil and passes it down the aisles. Cast members anoint the first person so they will know how to do it for the next person. When everyone has been anointed, bring the containers back up to the front.

Jesus: Let us pray. God, we are anointed with your love, help us to go into the world and share the Good News. Give us the strength to do the hard and painful things we need to do to make our world a more loving and healthy place. Amen.

Deepening Faith: Youth Ministry Resources and Some Miscellaneous Advice

Rev. Lizann Bassham, Front Porch Spirit Press