THE PASSION GOSPEL

These are strange and wonderful times in which we live. On the surface, they seem haphazard, fraught with landmines. Who could've imagined this time last year how the coming days, weeks, and months would play out as we navigated our way through a deadly pandemic. However, as we look back in history, so many incredible inventions and innovations came about through necessity as the world endured great calamities and hardships. As Fr. Ben pointed out on Sunday, life is transformed through adversity which is truly the story of resurrection. So, in this past year, we have seen many new and wonderful innovations which have allowed us to stay in touch with one another, and in many ways, reimagine ourselves. Through marvelous technologies which already existed, we've been able to become more aware of their usefulness and have tailored them to help us in this reimagining of who we are.

Here at St. Gregory's, we now have a very healthy and vibrant "online" presence and our audience continues to grow each and every day with regular members and with people from around the globe who are now calling St. Gregory's their "online, virtual church.

A few months ago, our beloved James Sorensen approached us with an idea--a virtual "Radio Play" version of the Passion Gospel. Having been a radio announcer himself, as evidenced by his incredible speech delivery, he envisioned a reading of the Passion Gospel According to Mark with the mechanics and feel of an actual "Radio Show" reminiscent of the old radio shows whereby the readers or "players" would speak their respective parts into a microphone as would've been the case back in the 1930's. He envisioned it being filmed, allowing the audience to have a "sneak peak" into the "studio" of the radio players.

As I said, we are living in strange and wonderful times! This incredible throwback to a concept of yester-year, coupled with our current technology, has allowed us to be creative to the point of presenting something totally unique, and I dare say, rare in it's conception. Jim gathered the players together and on a beautiful Sunday afternoon, we recorded an amazing and powerful version of the Passion Gospel which will now have a life of it's own, living in the online world of the internet and becoming one more piece of a re-imagined St. Gregory's. With the addition of graphics, art-work, and music, this presentation of A Radio Play of the Passion of our Lord Jesus Christ According to Mark will touch your hearts in a way not yet done.

Thank you, Jim, for your imagination and for sparking in me another level of creativity. Thank you for making a difference in our imaginations and in our hearts.

Tim Brumfield