Christmas Pageant - 2023

The 6th Annual Chapel Hill UMC Christmas Pageant was performed by the church congregation during the Sunday service on December 24 2023.

Introduction

Many thanks to Bonnie for handling the production of this year's Christmas Pageant; The Story of the Birth of Jusus Christ. Vickie and Maggie were script readers and did a magnificent job. If flowed like magic.

The Angel Gabriel visits Mary

The angel said to her, Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High.

The Angel Visits Joseph

Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel (which means, God with us).

Joseph and Mary Travel to Bethlehem

Mary and Joseph travelled to Bethlehem to register and pay their taxes. When they arrived in Bethlehem, the city was crowded with many people. They knocked on the doors of many inns, but they could not find a place to stay. At last a kindly INNKEEPER saw that Mary was soon to give birth and felt sorry for her and Joseph. There is no place in the inn, he said, but there is a stable at the back.

The Animals Gather

And so it was that Mary and Joseph prepared for the birth of their child in a stable with cows, chickens, sheep and doves and a donkey.

The Birth of Jesus

And while in the stable, the time came for Mary to give birth. Mary gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger filled with straw.

The Angels Tell the Shepherds

And the angel said to the Shepherds, Be not afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of a great joy which will come to all the people; for unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign for you; you will find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger.

The Shepherds Follow the Star

The shepherds said to each other Let us go over to Bethlehem and see the Savior which the Lord has made known to us. So they looked for the STAR and went with haste and found Mary and Joseph and the baby lying in a manger just as the angel had said.

King Herod Summons the Wise Men

Then Herod summoned the wise men secretly and ascertained from them what time the star had appeared. And he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, Go and search diligently for the child, and when you have found him, bring me word, that I too may come and worship him.

The Wisemen follow the Star

And behold, the Wisemen followed the STAR until it brought them to the Stable where "The Child" was. And going into the house they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh. And being warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed to their own country by another way.

The End of the Beginning

And there lie Jesus in the manger in the Stable of an overcrowded inn in Bethlehem surrounded by the cast of charecters called by God to witness the birth of Jesus Christ, our Savior.

The Pageant Team

Many thanks to the performers and Bonnie, Vickie and Maggie and all others who brought this pageant together.