Four Liturgical Plays: Christian Allegorical Festival Plays With Animal Characters

by Jabez L. Van Cleef

Elaborating on the traditions of medieval bestiaries, these liturgical plays attempt to characterize various animals according to some of the virtues and vices that humans have grown to associate with them. This approach helps in retelling three of the formative stories of Christian belief: the birth of Jesus; the "Passion" narrative; and the descent of the Holy Spirit into the Apostles; so that these stories can be better understood by children. For example, in "Gifts and Creatures," the Passion story, each of seven animals is identified with a "deadly sin," and, because of a generous contribution to the advance of the story, is able to transform the sin into a corresponding virtue. Thus the Woodpecker, who extracts the nails that were used to crucify Jesus so that his body can be brought down from the cross, transforms his greed into generosity.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1438223315
• ISBN13: 9781438223315
• Release Date: May 2008
• Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform
• Length: 134 Pages
• Weight: 0.32 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.3" x 5.2" x 8.0"