Adult Christmas

20 pages

5 m, 5 w, 1 boy, 1 girl, extra teens as youth group.

Elizabeth, pregnant with her third child, blames God for the recent car accident which killed her husband, Mark, a young minister. Distraught and grief-stricken, Elizabeth even contemplates giving up the baby for adoption. Her parents, strong Christians, reach out, but nothing helps until their pastor brings a special young woman to visit. The last person to see Mark alive, she tells about the healing comfort he gave her and her husband in the hospital on the death of their infant. The faith of those around her gives Elizabeth the courage to go on. "Unto us a...

20 pages

6 m, 8 w, 1 flexible part. (Also 3 boys, one line each.)

Gina and Steven Hart are ready to take their newborn son home from the hospital Christmas Eve when a man they think is an orderly takes the infant from their arms. Soon they, and the doctors, nurses, minister, and others realize the baby has been kidnapped. As a search swings into force, the distraught, exhausted couple envision the Holy Spirit. In two dramatic inset scenes, the Holy Spirit shows that when parents ask, "Why my child?" as Mary must have questioned the future of baby Jesus, God always has answers. A beautiful ending reaffirms the blessings of t...

40 pages

4 m, 5 to 7 w, 1 girl, 1 boy non speaking.

It's Christmas Eve, (1960s) and Jake Johnson can muster only an uninspired, "Yeah, whatever," due to the stress of keeping his small, private hospital financially sound. In fact, he's just issued a new policy refusing to help anyone without health insurance, forcing patients to travel to the county hospital miles away. And there's no relief at home either as an elaborate family dinner has been planned which includes the Johnsons' estranged son Reese, and their daughter and her fiancé, whom Jake believes will be just another smart-alecky seminarian. Ill-will s...

37 pages

1 m, 3 teen girls, 3 teen boys.

Megan, too young to have a job, secretly applies for a position as a waitress in order to buy her mom the perfect Christmas gift, a ticket to visit Grandma. Of course she has to make a few innocent "white lies" on the application to get the job. A co-worker, Denon, who has also lied on his job application, doesn't think his "white lies" and deception will hurt anyone either so they both cover up their lies with more lies, resulting in whirled truth. Finally, the lies culminate into a small disaster in the restaurant, leaving Megan and Denon expecting to get f...

37 pages

4 m, 4 w, 1 girl.

Have you ever received a gift you didn't really want? A young married couple, Stephen and Pamela, find themselves on the receiving end of a grandfather's will, and the inheritance, should they choose to accept it, is his retarded adult son. Although they are Christians, Stephen and Pamela undergo a critical test of faith and marriage, as they share the Christmas season with this unexpected "presence," Uncle Duncan, plus some friends and family members who complicate their custodial decision and their holiday. Humor and pathos color their unfolding dilemma. Ch...

29 pages

9 flexible parts, approx. 3 m, 5 w, 1 child.

Linda is worried because her recently widowed mother, Susan, is adamant about staying in her Florida condominium rather than coming up north to celebrate the holiday. Linda decides she and her husband and children better see what's wrong, even if it means they won't be celebrating Christmas the "right way" with all the familiar traditions. And non-traditional it is! Instead of warm fires and sled rides the kids are sunbathing and riding jet skis. But when Linda objects because her mother may miss Christmas Eve services, she finds the real and generous reason ...

32 pages

3 m, 1 w.

Three wounded Confederate soldiers are confined to a makeshift field hospital and cared for by Liddy, a black woman. As the men's differing personalities begin to clash, they gradually uncover a dark, common past which has shaped their present, and threatens to destroy their future. They become embroiled in their own personal "civil war," and each struggles with his own form of slavery. Liddy, assumed to be a slave, offers the only key to freedom for them all: the self-denial and humility of the first Christmas. This uniquely American drama is beautiful and p...

27 pages

3 m, 2 w, 1 girl, carolers if desired.

The family is trying to ready the barn for the annual nativity scene, but no one feels much like celebrating since Brenda has just suffered a miscarriage. Eleven-year-old Anna Bell is taking it the hardest, especially since her favorite cat, Glory Excelsis, has been missing for days, too. But Sarah, a wise mother, comforts the family when she makes them realize that God must have known sadness when He sent His only Son to earth. That's why Christmas should be celebrated, to thank Him for His great gift. A warm and wonderful story with optional nativity ending...

37 pages

4 m, 3 w, 4 flexible parts.

Dylan and Tyler Shepherd, brothers whose arguing finally stopped when they were brought together one Christmas (see "The Shepherds Who Gather"), are back in this sequel. It's five years later and now they are working together on a Christian TV show. Unfortunately, the station has a new owner, Tabitha Rafferty, to whom ratings are more important than people or their priorities. She has little sympathy for Dylan whose wife has recently died, leaving him to raise their young son alone. But Christmas is a time of giving. Some unusual "gifts" given by some unlikel...

27 pages

4 m, 10 w, extras.

Angel Charles Persindon has a month on earth to find out what is the "Christmas Spirit." He visits many places, but seemingly hasn't come up with the right answer. With only twenty-four hours to go, he happens onto the Cavindish Orphanage. The antics of two girls, Tiger and Lizzie, coupled with the visit of Mrs. Cavindish, almost ends up in a veritable explosion. Through Charley, the haughty Mrs. Cavindish and the girls are taught a lesson. Performance time: 30 minutes.

18 pages

Flexible cast

Here is an impressive, 45-minute, candle-lighting service for the congregation. The program can be presented with minimum time for rehearsals for there is little memory work needed. Most portions may be read. It's a new and different presentation to interest those who have become bored with the same message heard in the same way.

15 pages

1 w, 7 flex.

A federal court has ordered that a traditional Christmas cross on top of the fire station not be lighted this year. At a town meeting numerous people voice their opinions, including an ACLU attorney, a born-again Christian, and the free-thinker who brought the suit against the city in the first place. Into this melee walks a pregnant, illegal refugee who needs help. A fascinating play which shows that being a Christian takes more than putting up a Christmas cross.  Performance time: 25 minutes.

19 pages

8 m, 8 w.

Here is a play which shows that the Christmas story is really a story of people on a journey. Mary and Joseph and the wise men travelled long, difficult distances physically, but more important are their personal journeys. They, along with the shepherds of the field and even a messenger in King Herod's court, face danger, consuming doubt, and sometimes frightening emptiness. For some of them it's a journey into the unknown. Yet each one finds - and follows - a path to the King of Eternity. Their journeys beckon us to follow. Performance time: About 25 minutes...

25 pages

3 m, 4 w.

Janie wants a real old-fashioned Christmas, one that brings back the spirit of the old days, but her boyfriend is too busy working at the mission to help her. As hard as she tries, everything goes wrong - the popcorn balls are too sticky, the homemade candles collapse, and the live Christmas tree falls over. Janie thinks Christmas is ruined, but it's only the display that's failed. With the help of her family and boyfriend, Janie rediscovers that the Christmas spirit is in each of us, giving and sharing all year long. Performance time: 30 minutes.

0 pages

flexible cast

These five different Christmas pageants put the Gospel of Jesus firmly at the center of spiritual dramas that grapple with the events and basic needs of everyday life. Each hour-long program represents an entire service, including a responsive reading, a place for a message from the pastor and an offering, all interspersed with suggested songs that can be sung by a choir, a group of children, or the congregation as a whole. Each script offers active speaking and non-speaking roles for 40 to 50 participants. These pageants present an ideal opportunity for wors...