wordsout by godfrey rust
Incarnate < 9a
of 26 > < christmas >
A
child is born
For
five voices: version for one or two voices here
2 Here is a message from our sponsor:
1
Fear not,
for I bring you good tidings of
great joy
which
shall be to you and all mankind
2
in this season of goodwill
which
in keeping with our policy of
inclusion
we do
not connect explicitly
with
any particular major world
religion.
1
Do not be
afraid.
3
A little apprehensive, maybe.
Curious—that works too.
Even
mild interest would be welcome in
some
quarters.
1
For unto us
a child is born.
4
So that we can be sure this
child will meet your
personal needs
andexpectations for a Messiah
please
select from the following
optional features.
1
Unto us a son
is given.
5
If your preference was for a
daughter
please
complete our alternative
Daughter Of God
questionnaire.
For a
gender-free option visit our
website.
1
His name shall
be
2
(a)
Wonderful Counsellor, Everlasting Father,
the Mighty God,
the
Prince of
Peace
3
(b)
Hugo
4
(c)
Muhammed
5
(d)
Anything you like as he will be dead soon enough
1
He will be
born in
2
(a)
Bethlehem of Judaea,
for you O Bethlehem
are not least
among the Princes of Judah
3
(b)
Queen Charlotte and Chelsea Hospital*
4
(c)
Bethlehem, West Bank
5
(d)
a refugee camp far from his family home
1
His race and
colour shall be
2
(a)
Jewish
3
(b)
White Caucasian
4
(c)
something I’d rather not sit next to on a plane
5
(d)
the colour of genocide
1
He will be
born
2
(a)
of a virgin
3
(a)
to a couple with two incomes and a series of
unsatisfactory Croatian au
pairs
4
(c)
with anger and little hope
5
(d)
with HIV
1
You will find
the babe
2
(a)
wrapped in swaddling
clothes lying in a
manger
3
(b)
in his nursery with teddy
4
(c)
in a house marked with bullet holes
5
(d)
in a shallow grave
1
Wise men will
2
(a)
come from the East
3
(b)
sign him up early for a good prep school or
start
attending their
local Anglican church
4
(c)
regard him as a potential terrorist
5
(d)
leave well alone as the region has no oil
1
They will
bring him gifts of
2
(a)
gold, frankincense
and myrrh
3
(b)
privilege
4
(c)
bombs and rockets
5
(d)
debt, drought and disease
1
And the
government will be
2
(a)
on his shoulders
3
(b)
on his conscience
4
(c)
on his case
5
(d)
on vacation somewhere nice
1
And he
will
2
(a)
save his people from
their sins
3
(b)
achieve the required A level grades
for Oxbridge
4
(c)
seek asylum in someone else’s country
5
(d)
fight for his life
1
And he
shall
2
(a)
reign on the throne
of his father David
forever
3
(b)
enjoy a successful portfolio career
4
(c)
die on a suicide mission
5
(d)
die through neglect
1
Will you
go now to Bethlehem to see this thing
which is come to pass?
Which will you find:
2
(a) A
child in a manger?
3
(b) A baby
born to rule?
4
(c) A refugee
and exile?
5
(d) A
boy born to die too
young?
1
Which is the
odd one out?
1
Each is the
Christ child—
2
Immanuel, God with us
3 a
refugee king
from a heavenly home.
4 Born as
a bastard
in occupied country,
5
born to be hated,
dying alone.
2
Hope of his
father,
3
fear of his mother,
4
driven to exile,
5
pursued to the end.
24 Trained for his
mission,
35 assisted to
suicide,
24 trapped by
expedience,
35 betrayed by a
friend.
1
Here is the
Christ child
12 living among us,
123 God become man
1234 with his power writ small.
All Child in a manger,
infant of Mary,
outcast and stranger,
Lord of all.
*insert name of reputable local maternity hospital here.
Written
for
the
carol service at
Five voices read the lines as numbered. It is more effective if the (a) (b) (c) (d) letters are all read by Voice 1, as indicated by the italics. For example, Voice 1 says: "His race and colour shall be [a]" and Voice 2 then says "Jewish".
When being performed the "multiple choice" section should if possible be projected on a screen using Powerpoint or similar software, with each sentence coming up as it is spoken.
The last four lines are from the carol "Child in the manger" by Mary McDonald (1789-1872).
Typical performance time 3 minutes 40 seconds.
© Godfrey Rust 2004, godfrey@wordsout.co.uk. See here for permissions.