God is out of sight, a disembodied voice, throughout the entire drama/dialogue.
God: I had a dream…
Voice 1: Who is that?
God: I had a dream…
Voice 2: Who is that?
God: I had a dream…
Voice 3: Who is that?
God: I had a dream…
Voice 1: Does anybody else hear that voice?
Voice 2: I heard it!
Voice 3: I heard it too, so either we are all hallucinating or…
Voice 1: Or… it is God talking!
Voice 2: God? Why on earth would God be talking to us?
Voice 3: Well, I certainly don’t think we are hallucinating, and I don’t know why God would be talking to us, but there are plenty of time in our Bible when God talked to people.
God: I had a dream…
All Voices: There it is again! (incredulously)
Voice 1: But we aren’t anybody special, not like those people in the Bible.
Voice 2: Who else do you see around here?
Voice 1: But if God were going to speak in one of our churches, surely it would be in one of the big, important churches… with hundreds of people… there aren’t very many of us here… (sadly)
God: I had a dream…
Voice 1: Okay, now this is just getting a bit monotonous.
Voice 2: Monotonous! It’s GOD talking!!! How can that be monotonous!!! (angrily)
Voice 3: Okay, okay, calm down you two… let’s think about this for a minute… Let’s ask ourselves some questions… has God spoken to people before?
Voice 1: Yes, or at least I think so… I seem to remember hearing about that from Bible readings…
Voice 2: Ummm… who did God speak to?
Voice 1: Haven’t we heard about God speaking to Moses?
Voice 2: Yes…. But Moses was an amazing leader… not like us…(sceptically)
Voice 1: You are right…
Voice 3: But Moses wasn’t always an amazing leader… in fact, he I understand that he stuttered… and when God called him, he tried to tell God that he wasn’t the one to lead his people into freedom.
Voice 1: Last week we heard about Joshua taking over from Moses… now there was an amazing leader!
Voice 2: You are right…
Voice 3: Don’t forget, Joshua had his own doubts about whether he was the one to lead the people into the Promised Land. But God spoke to him and gave him confidence!
Voice 1: Catherine, didn’t we hear another story of God speaking to someone today?
Voice 3: Yes, from the prophet Joel… listen to it again…You shall eat in plenty and be satisfied, and praise the name of the Lord your God, who has dealt wondrously with you.
And my people shall never again be put to shame.
You shall know that I am in the midst of Israel, and that I, the Lord, am your God and there is no other.
And my people shall never again be put to shame.
Then afterward I will pour out my spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions.
Even on the male and female slaves, in those days, I will pour out my spirit.
Voice 2: Wow! Now… if God would speak to us like that, I would pay attention! If God would tell us what to do, I would pay attention. If God would…
God: (Interrupting) I have a dream…
Voice 1: There it is again! Just that statement over and over again…
Voice 2: Okay, so do you suppose that God had a message for us?
Voice 1: Yes, but you think God could make it a bit more clear than: “I have a dream! (sarcastically)
Voice 2: What would like? Heavenly angels? A burning bush? (sarcastically)
Voice 1: That works for me!
Voice 3: Hey, wait a minute… we just heard words from the Joel about how everybody would have enough to eat…
Voice 1: Yes…
Voice 3: Everybody! And the Holy Spirit would be poured out on all the people…
Voice 2: Yes…
Voice 3: All the people!
Voice 1: Like you and me and everyone here? (wonderingly)
Voice 3: Why not? Maybe that is God’s dream…
Voice 1: Well, I have enough to eat… in fact, sometimes a bit too much… (pats belly)
Voice 2: I have enough to eat as well… but I know that isn’t the case for everyone.
Voice 1: I can’t stand to watch some of the commercials on TV… you know the ones I mean… the ones that start off with, “Someday, when my bills are paid off, then I will be able to be generous and help those who don’t have enough to eat…”
Voice 2: Yeah, they always make me feel guilty… and uncomfortable…
Voice 1: And they show pictures of hungry… often from a country that has had a lot of war.
Voice 2: Yes, but I get so angry when we send help to those countries and then see them fighting over the food…
Voice 1: I know what you mean…it makes me wonder why we bother…
Voice 3: I can understand why you might feel like that… but I want you to put yourselves in their shoes for a moment… they have been without food for who knows how long… their children are crying and can’t sleep because they are so hungry… have your children cried and gotten sick because they are so hungry?
Voice 1: No… (sheepishly)
Voice 2: No… I can barely stand to think of that…
Voice 1: You know, there’s no telling what I might do to feed my children…
Voice 2: We are so lucky aren’t we… simply because of where we live? Enough food to eat and no wars…
Voice 1: Wait a minute… my grandfather went to war…
Voice 2: Yes, mine too!
Voice 3: Mine was a conscientious objector.
Voice 1: What?
Voice 3: My grandfather was a Mennonite and they don’t believe in going to war… they don’t believe that war is the way to peace.
Voice 1: I respect my grandfather for going to war!
Voice 2: I respect mine too!
Voice 3: And I respect mine too! I think all our grandfathers and grandmothers wanted peace… perhaps they just couldn’t agree on the way to get it… in fact Remembrance Day is this coming week… and we remember all who took part in wars and conflicts and all who take part in peacekeeping. And what did our grandfathers and grandmothers and aunts and uncles want? And what do our sons and daughters who are serving now want?
Voice 1: Peace…
Voice 2: Peace…
God: I have a dream…
All Voices: There is God again!
Voice 1: Why do you suppose God spoke again right now?
Voice 2: Good question!
Voice 3: Did you notice before that God became silent when we seemed to get the idea that part of God’s dream came from us understanding what God had said to the prophet Joel? About everybody having enough to eat?
Voice 1: Is that when God stopped talking?
Voice 2: You know, now that I think of it, it was…
Voice 1: Didn’t we hear something this morning about peace?
Voice 2: I think so… do you suppose that we should hear it again?
Voice 3: Sure, why not? Remember who is speaking right now… it is Zechariah, father of John the Baptist….
Voice 1: Yeah, yeah, the wild guy who lived on honey and locusts…
Voice 2: And wore strange clothing…
Voice 3: Do you want to hear it or not? (sternly)
Voices 1&2: Yes. (meekly)
Voice 3: As I was saying… Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and said, “By the tender mercy of our God, the dawn from on high will break upon us, to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.”
Voice 1: Wow…to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace…
Voice 2: Those words give me the shivers…
Voice 1: Me too…
Voice 2: But what can we do?
Voice 1: Well, what did God say before?
Voice 2: I have a dream…
Voice 1: Right… it sounds as if God’s dream is for everyone to have enough food and for everyone to live in peace.
Voice 2: Well, sure… easy for God to say!
Voice 1: God doesn’t live down here…
Voice 3: Sure, but perhaps we can do some work on God’s behalf.
Voice 2: Like what? I give to the food bank, I contribute to the Mission & Service Fund and I give to other charities as well… sometime I feel as if all I am doing is giving to charities!
Voice 1: I know what you mean… but let’s keep in mind that our children aren’t hungry… and aside from natural disasters causing hunger, and wars, I understand that lack of economic opportunity is the biggest reason people are hungry.
Voice 2: Okay, so they need jobs! Big deal, get a job!
Voice 1: Did you know that a lot of people who receive charity in Canada and all around the world are actually working quite hard? In fact, probably harder than most of us do.
Voice 2: So?
Voice 1: So, they don’t get a fair wage for their work…
Voice 2: Well, that is hardly my problem… and besides, there is not much I can do about that!
Voice 3: Actually there is.
Voices 1&2: There is???
Voice 3: Christmas is coming right? Do you know that there are places that you can buy fairly traded merchandise?
Voice 1: Fairly traded merchandise? What’s that?
Voice 3: It’s merchandise for which the workers receive a fair price for their goods.
Voice 1: Yes, I have heard of that kind of stuff, but that stuff is so expensive…
Voice 3: Why do you suppose that is?
Voice 2: Because they receive a fair price?
Voice 3: Exactly! Is it fair for us to have cheap stuff and let God’s people be hungry?
Voice 1: No… but where do we find this stuff… I don’t think I have seen it in the malls.
Voice 2: I bet you we could find out… we could just google ‘fair trade merchandise’ and see what we get.
Voice 3: I know some churches host a Ten Thousand Villages fair.
Voice 1: What is Ten Thousand Villages?
Voice 3: Funny you should ask me… I looked up their Mission Statement last week:
This is what it said on-line: Ten Thousand Villages provides vital, fair income to Third World people by marketing their handicrafts and telling their stories in North America. Ten Thousand Villages works with artisans who would otherwise be unemployed or underemployed. This income helps pay for food, education, health care and housing. Ten Thousand Villages is a nonprofit program of Mennonite Central Committee, the relief and development agency of Mennonite and Brethren in Christ churches in North America.
Voice 1: So, there is something we can do in addition to all the things we are already doing.
Voice 2: I have heard of Fair trade coffee too, do you know anything about that?
Voice 1: Yes, it’s when coffee growers get a fair price for their coffee, one of the first Fairly Traded Coffee Co-ops was started right here in NS! JustUS! Coffee. You can even buy it in the grocery stores now.
Voice 2: Wow… food for all, justice for all and peace for all…
Voice 1: I have a dream…
Voice 2: I have a dream…
Voice 3: I have a dream…
God: Ah yes… the people will live out my dream… a dream where all my children, black, white, red, yellow will all have enough to eat… they will all have a place to sleep… they will all have a community that cares for them… just as I sent Jesus to be the Prince of Peace… they will have peace…
Voice 1: Amen.
Voice 2: Amen.
Voice 3: Amen.
All Voices: Amen!
Joel 2: 26-29, Luke 1: 67-79
(C) Catherine MacDonald
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