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By Erika Anderson
ATLANTA—The Lord’s Passion was boldly proclaimed during
Holy Week by the Passionist community of St. Paul of the Cross Church, an order
committed to revealing Christ’s crucified love and the redemptive
significance of human suffering.
Parishioners presented a play depicting the Passion according to
John’s Gospel on Passion Sunday which was repeated on Good Friday.
Rehearsals throughout Lent became a meaningful sacrifice for 50 parishioners
from Atlanta’s largest African-American parish. They participated as
disciples, a feisty crowd, singers and in other roles.
Thirty-year parishioner Jackie Chandler directed the production
and music director Steve Dalton coordinated the music. Donald Jeanne served as
stage manager and Syble Williams made costumes. In addition to singing in the
play, Frances Kennedy directed 15 young people in their third choral Passion
concert during the Saturday Mass.
Father Melvin Shorter, CP, pastor of St. Paul of the Cross,
initiated the annual play, after having enjoyed it in his hometown parish in
Baltimore. It has now been done for about six years in various forms at St.
Paul of the Cross.
Chandler said it was a privilege for lay persons to proclaim the
Gospel.
“We as lay persons, as a community and as a parish (are
Passionists). I’m a Passionist. We also must proclaim the Passion of Our
Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. What we did yesterday was we dramatized the
Passion ... We proclaimed the Gospel,” she said. “... There was not a
dry eye in the church and I said I wasn’t going to cry, but I
couldn’t help it. It was just a very moving service. It really moved (the
congregation) to think how important this particular period is in our church
history. This is, I feel, the most important part in the liturgical
calendar.”
Following church tradition, the Passion Sunday Mass began as
Father Shorter blessed palm branches amid the crowd of about 300 speckled with
actors wearing robes. Outside they reenacted Jesus’ walk into Jerusalem
before his crucifixion.
In the church, the actors retraced the road to Calvary. The
presentation included representations of the Last Supper, the agony in the
garden of Gethsemane, Peter’s denial of knowing Jesus, Judas’
betrayal and Jesus’ arrest, condemnation and crucifixion.
In his homily Father Shorter talked about how the crowds condemned
Jesus at Calvary, spitting and yelling at him, and challenged parishioners to
consider how they crucify Christ daily through things like slander and gossip.
If they don’t build people up, he said, they’re no better than that
crowd 2000 years ago and haven’t learned much.
Father Shorter later explained the reason for the reenactment of
the Passion.
“We do this to remember; not to recreate what happened but
simply to remember the Passion. We very much did that with the play on Sunday.
I feel it helped them to pray and I think the few words I said afterwards
helped them to think about, although this happened 2000 years ago, where are we
still crucifying Jesus the Jew—in the pews, the Jesus in their homes and
the Jesus in their families? I think it gave them an opportunity to reflect and
to prepare themselves for Holy Week,” he said.
“With the kids in the youth program it gave (them) the
opportunity to think too. It was something they were involved in and had to
reflect and think about in order to do what they did. It’s not just
rehearsing with them. It’s praying with them and asking them, do they
understand what they’re doing, and, the more they understand, they can
help other children to understand. Sometimes they are victimized in school.
Sometimes they are friendless and it helps them to understand better and to not
be so cruel to other people.”
He spoke of the paschal mystery, referring to how Christians gain
new life through self-denial just as Christ was resurrected.
“Holy Week is focused on the entire paschal mystery (of) the
Passion, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ so that on Easter we celebrate
the resurrection of Christ,” he said.
He said that Passionist priests take a vow to preach the Passion
and that, kicking into overdrive during Lent and Easter, “our main focus
is preaching (the love) of Christ crucified.”
They strive to help people find meaning in suffering, “as we
know we can’t take away human suffering, but we’re helping people to
find some redemption in it.”
Rev. Mr. Joseph Goolsby, a parish deacon, portrayed Jesus, saying
he initially resisted playing the youthful Jesus when nearing 60. He gained a
deeper sense of Christ’s suffering, he recalled, when in the play he was
crowned with thorns and had to carry the wood cross on his shoulders out of the
church. As this happened, Kennedy sang the African-American spiritual,
“Were You There.” In the background was the sound of someone pounding
nails to recall the piercing of Jesus’ flesh. The congregation was in
solemn darkness as a spotlight shone on the altar.
“It was a very vivid image of Jesus on the cross and it was
really touching to them,” said Deacon Goolsby. “Many people who were
there were actually moved by the spotlight on the cross. There was one young
lady who expressed that her son thought they had really killed Jesus there and
that the young boy was actually shedding tears.”
“It brought something that was abstract into focus and it
really made it connect in my mind. There’s a certain realism ... I was
trying to depict somewhat what it was like for Jesus, the man, to be on that
cross. As I read the lines and went through the motions and carried the cross,
I could really identify with him there and some of the suffering ... he went
through in carrying that cross.”
Deacon Goolsby also made props that graced the altar throughout
Holy Week, including a banner reading “King of the Jews,” scenery for
the garden at Gethsemane and a large Roman shield.
Kennedy, a parishioner for 26 years and a choir member almost as
long, was reminded through reflection on Peter’s denial of Christ to lift
high her own cross and face challenges at her work.
“It reminded me of how you promise to do things. You promise
yourself that you’re going to do the right thing and you’re not going
to do certain things, but something happens to remind you that you haven’t
kept all your promises,” she said. “I saw the play and heard the
Passion. It was a constant reminder of the challenges that God asks of
us—and we might not always want to take on those challenges but not my
will but your will ... If you really trust that God is there for you and is
taking care of you and will help you to do these things, that’s your test
of faith—to believe that he is going to provide for you.”
She was also reminded to show compassion.
“The charism of the Passionist community is to share the
Passion of Christ with the people. Sharing the Passion of Christ means sharing
how Christ loves people ... The major way he shows that is in this Passion that
we talk about this week, but he also shared his love as he healed people. He
showed how you share love with people in sharing your abilities to heal
them” sometimes through simply being there for them and being willing to
listen.
Kennedy said that the youth concert included choral narration and
four songs, with solos by Herman Jones, who sang “The Lamb’s
Prayer,” and Kristen Johnson, who sang “When They Pierced Your
Side.”
To prepare for the performance, Kennedy had youth discuss their
parts, visualize them while singing and watch an adult play rehearsal to fully
understand and share the message.
“They got out of it how they can present the message to the
community and how they can help the community get the most out of it.”
Dalton said the Passion narrative at Mass brought home for him the
resurrection celebration.
“As we walked into the church and (saw) how the Passion
players (were) all dressed up, all the hard work that goes into it by
everybody, I think it really brings to life the special importance to all of us
as Catholic Christians to what this Holy Week is about. It brings it from
something that is hard to comprehend because it happened so long ago and brings
it forward and present to us today.”
Chandler, who had directed past plays before having a stroke two
years ago, was grateful to participate. “Hopefully we’ll be doing it
again next year. It’s an Easter gift for me. I hadn’t been feeling
well. I had been ill and now I’m feeling so much better and am able to do
this. This is a blessing.”
The afternoon ended as the congregation enjoyed a Passover Seder
meal to celebrate its own and Jesus’ Jewish heritage while remembering the
freedom won by Christ. |
