Every Lenten Season since our, now deceased member and founding director of the 9th grade HNOJ Passion Play, Mark Best, joined our KC Council, I have been invited to present a rosary-related lecture to the 9th grade Passion Play participants along with giving away colorful plastic rosaries, all on behalf of our Good Samaritan KC Council. This presentation is one of my favorite things to do, each year. Some of these kids will be future KC’s, so I like to plug the Knight’s, as part of the presentation. If you’ve ever attended the play, the two biggest impact scenes are the opening and closing. The entire cast, acting as the crowd, busting through all the doorways into the church, roaring as loud as they can, “CRUCIFY HIM…CRUCIFY HIM!”
In my lecture, I give the assurance that everyone, throughout their entire lives, will always be part of a crowd, i.e. a fraternity/sorority, a charity, a voting bloc, a church community, an environmental movement, a sports fan club, alumni, veteran, a blog, even a Knight of Columbus member. As a crowd member, you will be fed information by the leaders of the organization, to keep your interest. Sometimes a person can get misled, but most crowds have good intentions. With today’s technology, you can create much more noise, both good and bad much faster, on the internet.
Then we chat about the rosary, how it came about, how the Passion play is really the Sorrowful Mysteries, being acted out and how they, as actors, will always have an advantage in meditating those mysteries, over those who never got a chance to be the play. It’s a huge blessing to be part of the 9th grade Passion Play, as it will create and maintain memories that will last a lifetime.
I continue with the suggestion that many members of the crowd that crucified Christ probably realized they may have been wrong, after it was too late to change the outcome. The students may have the opportunity to take physics class in school, where they discover, every action has an equal or greater reaction. That will prove to be true in almost all walks of life, physically, emotionally, spiritually, in both positive and negative ways. So, I contend the “crowd scene” in the play, is where they will gain valuable knowledge to apply in their everyday life.
Please take time to review the entire speech. There is value in giving a consistent message, no matter who delivers it. In the event that I might not be available to present, in the future, I would hope who ever delivers it, uses this presentation.