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Purpose of Drama in The Church

PURPOSE OF DRAMA IN THE CHURCH

ABSTRACT Drama in church has had its origin since the middle ages of mans existence and has been employed for, at least, one of several reasons. Its purpose in the church has grown alongside its complexity and variance in presentation. These purposes, aimed at the ultimate edification of the church, need understanding that the drama minister requires for proper motivation in promoting efficiency and productivity.

Purpose of Drama in The Church

PURPOSE OF DRAMA IN THE CHURCH

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INTRODUCTION

When a man sets out to do a thing, it is not for vain reason(s), but for a purpose. Causes and effects happen for a purpose, like was aforementioned, it is not for vain reason(s). Waking up in the morning is for the purpose of functioning in the new day. Praying to God is for the purpose of communing with Him for one reason or the other. Brushing your teeth is for the purpose of keeping a healthy, clean and non-smelly mouth. Bathing is for the purpose of keeping a clean, healthy, comfortable and unsmelling body. Wearing clothes is for the purpose of keeping warm and covering your nakedness, even the different clothing, from underwear to overcoats and scarf, serve different purposes. When you go out of your house, it is for the purpose of participating in the social activities of the day besides others. Coming back home at the close of the day serves the purpose to settle in a place to rest for the night, sleeping is to actually give total rest to the body. Very important is eating and drinking which serve several purposes that ensure the human body remains alive and functioning to meet the purpose of its creation. Purpose is the motivation behind every cause and resultant effect(s) and if purpose is not understood, not just known, then there is great probability of loss in efficiency and productivity. An understanding of purpose drives one to accomplishment when he decides to pursue a defined cause.

Purpose of Drama in The Church

Below is a list of scripture references that defined the purpose of several existence and actions, viz.; Nehemiah 8:4 Matthew 26:7-12 Ephesians 1:11-12 Luke 8:47 Proverbs 20:18 Acts 26:16 Ephesians 6:22 John 8:37 Jeremiah 6:20 Acts 27:42-43 Colossians 4:8-9 Acts 10:21-22 Jeremiah 51:29 Romans 9:17 1 John 3:8 1 Corinthians 4:17

One of the scripture references in the list above defines why Christ went on to die on the cross when the spirit of fear tempted him in Gethsemane to abort the purpose of His birth, which you should note, was not primarily to preach the kingdom of God, which he did before his death, but to actually experience excruciating suffering then die the hideous death on the cross at Calvary. With all his preaching and healing, if he had not died, he would have failed to fulfill the ultimate purpose for his birth.

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DEFINITION OF BASIC TERMS

PURPOSE
Language: Old French Origin: purpos, from purposer 'to intend'. Definition

1 [countable usually singular] the purpose of something is what it is intended to achieve, e.g. the purpose of this meeting is to elect a new chairman, what is the purpose of your visit? The purpose of doing something, e.g. the purpose of conducting a business is to make money. For/with the purpose of doing something, e.g. troops were sent solely for the purpose of assisting refugees, He came here with the purpose of carrying out the attack. 2 purposes [plural] the reasons that explain why something is needed or why it is considered in a particular way, e.g. several of the items had religious purposes. 3 [countable] a plan or aim, e.g. Nick had no particular purpose in mind when he started. Somebodys purpose in doing something, e.g. attending the race was not my purpose in coming to Indianapolis. 4 Serve a purpose (=achieve a particular aim), e.g. it would serve no useful purpose to re-open the investigation.

Purpose of Drama in The Church

DRAMA
Language: Late Latin Origin: Greek, 'action, theater plays', from dran 'to do' Definition

1 [uncountable and countable] a play for the theatre, television, radio etc, usually a serious one, or plays in general, e.g. he plays a Russian spy in the comedy drama 'Sleepers'. 2 [uncountable] acting-used when talking about it as a subject to study or teach. CHURCH
Language: Old English Origin: cirice, from Late Greek kyriakon, from Greek kyriakos 'of the lord', from kyrios 'lord, master' Definition

1 [countable] a building where Christians go to worship, e.g. church bells 2 [uncountable] the religious ceremonies in a church, e.g. Mrs. Dobson invited us to dinner after church, my parents go to church every Sunday, we didn't see you at church this morning. 3 [singular, uncountable] the institution of the Christian religion, and all the priests and other ministers who are part of it, e.g. the church's attitude towards marriage

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PURPOSE

Although the term Purpose has been defined, let us attempt a better understanding of its meaning by a brief look from a philosophical1 point of view. Purpose, as may be understood from earlier definitions, refers to an agent's specific intention/aim/goal/expected result for performing an action or series of actions; the end or goal that is aimed at. G.E.M. Anscombe made the topic of intentional action a major topic of analytic philosophy with her 1957 work Intention. She argued that intentional action was coextensive with action of which one could ask "why were you doing that?" In the sense that Anscombe meant her question, it was "refused application" by the answer "I was not aware that I was doing that", but not by "for no reason at all". Therefore Anscombe held that it was possible to act intentionally for no reason at all. She also claimed that intentional action was subject to "knowledge without observation", and that all intentional action involved acting under a description. This implies that one may not have reason for doing a thing or performing an action, but, however, expects a desired outcome by the specific action to be carried out or being carried or that has been carried out. Purpose does not define the status of an action, but rather the intended result of the action. So, simply put, purpose is the expected result or outcome of an action.

relating to philosophy: plural philosophies 1 [uncountable] the study of the nature and meaning of existence, truth, good and evil, etc: 2 [countable] the views of a particular philosopher or group of philosophers 3 [countable] the attitude or set of ideas that guides the behaviour of a person or organization.
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CHURCH DRAMA

Church Drama, as we refer today, has its root in early practices referred to as Liturgical Drama or Religious Drama, which in its various Christian contexts, originates from the mass itself, and usually presents a relatively complex ritual that includes theatrical elements. Until the Late Middle Ages2 it is the best recorded tradition of religious drama, and is assumed to have been the root from which other forms such as the civic mystery plays3, as well as poorly recorded travelling companies, grew. The origins of Western drama can be traced to the celebratory music of 6th-century BC Attica, the Greek region centered on Athens. Although accounts of this period are inadequate, it appears that the poet Thespis developed a new musical form in which he impersonated a single character and engaged a chorus of singer-dancers in dialogue. As the first composer and soloist in this new form, which came to be known as tragedy, Thespis can be considered both the first dramatist and the first actor. Of the hundreds of works produced by Greek tragic playwrights, only 32 plays by three major innovators in this new art form survived. Aeschylus created the

A term commonly used to designate that period of European history between the fall of the Roman Empire and about the middle of the fifteenth century. The precise dates of the beginning, culmination, and end of the Middle Ages are more or less arbitrarily assumed according to the point of view adopted. The period is usually considered to open with those migrations of the German Tribes which led to the destruction of the Roman Empire in the West in 375, when the Huns fell upon the Gothic tribes north of the Black Sea and forced the Visigoths over the boundaries of the Roman Empire on the lower Danube. A later date, however, is sometimes assumed, viz., when Odoacer deposed Romulus Augustulus, the last of the Roman Emperors of the West, in 476. Others, again, begin the Middle Ages with the opening years of the seventh century and the death (609) of Venantius Fortunatus, the last representative of classic Latin literature. The close of the Middle Ages is also variously fixed; some make it coincide with the rise of Humanism and the Renaissance in Italy, in the fourteenth century; with the fall of Constantinople, in 1453; with the discovery of America by Columbus in 1492; or, again, with the great religious schism of the sixteenth century. Any hard and fast line drawn to designate either the beginning or close of the period in question is arbitrary. The widest limits given, viz., the irruption of the Visigoths over the boundaries of the Roman Empire, for the beginning, and the middle of the sixteenth century, for the close, may be taken as inclusively sufficient, and embrace, beyond dispute, every movement or phase of history that can be claimed as properly belonging to the Middle Ages. Mystery plays and miracle plays (sometimes distinguished as two different forms, although the terms are often used interchangeably) are among the earliest formally developed plays in medieval Europe. Medieval mystery plays focused on the representation of Bible stories in churches as tableaux with accompanying antiphonal song. They developed from the 10th to the 16th century, reaching the height of their popularity in the 15th century before being rendered obsolete by the rise of professional theatre. The name derives from mystery used in its sense of miracle, but an occasionally quoted derivation is from misterium, meaning craft, a play performed by the craft guilds.
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Purpose of Drama in The Church

possibility of developing conflict between characters by introducing a second actor into the format. Religious drama first appeared throughout the fifteenth century in the form of mystery plays. The reason for this creation came from a quarter that had traditionally opposed any form of theater: the Christian church. Originally, the church had forbidden existing pagan drama as 'immoral'. Once this form (pagan drama) had disappeared, the church introduced its own 'moral' drama. During religious festivals and feasts, such as the Easter services, and later in the Christmas services, bits of chanted dialogue, called tropes, were interpolated into the liturgy. Priests, impersonating biblical figures, acted out minuscule scenes from the holiday stories. Originally, dramatic text was taken directly from the Gospel or Office of the day and consisted of Latin prose. Diversification soon arose with plays quickly changing to lose their liturgical aspect but kept their religious aspects in place. Before long, prose became rare and verse began to make up the bulk of the drama and the vernacular began to appear alongside Latin. French and English soon took over and Latin had virtually disappeared from liturgical drama. Eventually, these playlets grew more elaborate and abandoned the inside of the church for the church steps and the adjacent marketplace. Secular elements crept in as the artisan guilds took responsibility for these performances; although the glorification of God and the redemption of humanity remained prime concerns. It was because of this influence of the church on acting history that liturgical drama kept on changing but never got lost.

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PURPOSE OF DRAMA IN THE CHURCH

Having gotten an understanding of what purpose is and what church drama is, by a brief retrospective look at the origin of drama in the church, it should be quite obvious in some respect what the purpose of drama in church is: as was cited in the previous section that the church in The Middle Ages2 above forbade the then existing pagan drama as immoral and with the eventual disappearance of these forms of drama, the church introduced its own form of moral drama. However, church drama over many years had undergone changes in its forms of expressions with its purpose becoming more robust. Here we take a look at a listing of what I believe are the primary purposes of drama in church. They are self explanatory in their mere expression; however one might require some bit of elaboration, viz., 1. To encourage the exploration and expression of Gods truth through the theatre arts. 2. To present the bible in graphic forms, creating visuals that are relatively less forgotten, with time, than words. 3. To teach lessons from the bible to people that cannot read. 4. To nurture and utilize Gods gift to the glory of Christ. 5. To provide healthy exposure to live theatre. 6. To facilitate understanding of bible truths by presenting them using indigenous geo-social entities and events, especially as it relates to the peculiarity of diversities of norms. 7. To portray ideas and concepts that cannot be captured in direct vocal or lingual communication.

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CONCLUSION

In conclusion, it is worth it to note that an understanding of purpose is essential for effectiveness and efficiency towards actualizing the result that is defined. Knowledge, by itself, is insufficient. Furthermore, note that a mango tree that bears oranges may have succeeded at giving food to eat, but has failed as a mango-bearing tree, which is its purpose for existence. Likewise, a cook may be commended for driving a dying boss to the hospital, saving his or her life, or probably succeeds at stopping thieves from entering the house among many other things, yet if he/she cannot cook or has no food ready at the end of the day when all are set to eat, he/she has failed in the purpose for which he/she was hired. You may do many good things, and so well, but if you fail at achieving the intent or purpose for which you exist, whether in life or in an organization, you score nothing. It is my prayer and hope that this small knowledge-base has been sufficient towards your understanding, or better understanding, of the Purpose of Drama in Church, which is the purpose for this course topic, and that it helps you to function appropriately, effectively and efficiently to achieving the vision and mission of this unit that you have opted to be part of.

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REFERENCES

History of theatre http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_theatre History of Drama http://litera1no4.tripod.com/dramahistory.html Acting history Liturgical drama http://www.acting-classes-onlinetips.com/acting-history-liturgical.html The Catholic Encyclopedia http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/10285c.htm Worship Drama And Dance http://www.beau.org/~vickir/drama/ Liturgical drama http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liturgical_drama Intention http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Purpose What is Purpose? http://ezinearticles.com/?What-is-Purpose?&id=3901424 Intention http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intention Purpose Statement and Values for Christian or Church Drama http://danbuck.blogspot.com/2006/03/purpose-statement-and-values-for.html Christian drama http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_drama Purpose and Doctrine | DRAMA Ministry http://dramateam.org/beta/purposeand-doctrine/ Mystery play http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mystery_play Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English, Writing Assistant Edition, Pearson Education Limited 2005

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