I Was There: An Example Of First-person Portrayal Of Scriptural Narrative

The following is a complete service for Christmas Eve that features three first-person accounts of Christ's birth. These monologues, along with a brief homily, are interspersed among Scripture readings and Christmas hymns. Gathering for Worship: We prepare for worship in the Gathering Space. Welcome! Choir: "On Christmas Night" Processional: "Once in Royal David's City" Scripture Reading: Isaiah 9:2; 42:59 "Yes, I Was There": The Innkeeper's Wife "Yes, I was there that night. We'd had a busy day at the inn. People arrived from all over for the registration, and we were full by mid-afternoon. In fact, we had to turn away five families. But somehow I didn't have the heart to turn away the young man and pregnant young woman, so I fixed them a place to sleep in the barn. I could tell her time for delivery was close, so I stayed with her. A woman needs another woman at a time like that. "It was a night I'll long remember. The young mother told me some strange stories about her baby…