I wrote the dialogue and lyrics for this new Christmas Pageant, which kids from my church performed yesterday on the Fourth Sunday of Advent. It was a blast! (And, obviously, despite the assertion in the first paragraph, the real Taylor didn’t help us – but her music did.) Here’s the video of the pageant, followed by the script.

NARRATOR:
In this year’s Christmas Pageant, we’re doing something a little different. We’re still going to tell the same story, the amazing story of God coming to us in the humblest of ways, as a baby born of a brave mother who lived on the outskirts of a powerful and oppressive empire. But this year, we’re going to get a little help from an unlikely source. Fresh off the conclusion of her Eras Tour, Taylor Swift just so happened to be available to help us put on today’s pageant. By tweaking a few of her lyrics, we want to get the message of Christmas stuck in your heads like a hit song! So, without further ado, we present “The Christmas Pageant (Taylor’s Version).”

We begin, as we usually do, with that fearless mother, who received a surprising visitor one day.

(To the tune of “Love Story“)

We are here now for the Christmas Pageant,
So listen close, see the story starts:
We’re standing there
In a dusty town in desert air.
See the light, see the angel, the glory;
See you make your way to my side
And say, “Hello.”
Little did I know

That you were Gabriel, you were there [with a] message:
“You’re the favored one, Mary, do not be afraid.”
And I was fuzzy on the details
Asking you, “Please how so?” 
And you said,

“Jesus Christ will be born of you the Son of God
Once the Holy Spirit overshadows you.
He’ll be the Prince of Peace, David’s highness.
It’s a love story, Mary, just say, ‘Yes.’”

MARY:
I did say, “Yes.” I told the angel, “I am the Lord’s servant. Let it be with me just as you have said.”

NARRATOR:
In a state of grace, Mary ran off to the hill country of Judea to tell her cousin Elizabeth the amazing thing that had happened. Back in Nazareth, everything had changed for Mary’s fiancé Joseph. He was having a tough time accepting Mary’s news.

(To the tune of “The Story of Us“)

I used to think one day we’d tell the story of us
How we met and we knew we’d be family.
And people would say, “What a happy pair.”
I used to know my place was your husband-to-be
Now I’m going to bed bitter and upset
’Cause lately, I don’t even know who I can trust

Oh, a tricky complication
Your humiliation
Leads to break-up
So many things that I wish I knew
So many words that I wish were true

Now I’m dreaming at night when an angel appears
and starts speaking:
“Joseph, don’t be afraid to fulfill your vow
And marry Mary
For the child she bears is the Holy One
Who is coming down
And so God is with us.
Seems a lot like a victory now.”

JOSEPH:
I wanted no bad blood between Mary and me. I took the angel’s words to heart and chose to raise the baby as my own child.

NARRATOR:
But before the baby was born, the Roman emperor commanded everyone in his empire to go to their own hometowns to be registered for taxation. Joseph and Mary traveled all the way from Nazareth in Galilee to the town of Bethlehem.

(To the tune of “Welcome to New York“)

Walkin’ through a crowd, the village is so full
A thousand David’s kin caught in push and pull
Everybody here is being counted for
A census so (the Romans) they can tax us more
And they said,

Go to Bethlehem
Bring your sons and daughters
Go to Bethlehem
Go to Bethlehem
Stay in Bethlehem
The inns have no more room
Stay in Bethlehem
Stay in Bethlehem

There’s a dry stable
With a manger to sleep,
Sleep for a newborn
The star is so bright
And it shines on him, him.
Born in Bethlehem
The savior of the world
Born in Bethlehem
Born in Bethlehem

MARY:
My baby was born in the humblest of settings, in the hay among the animals. Joseph and I named him Jesus because he would save the people from their sins.

NARRATOR:
That same night, shepherds watched their flocks out in the fields. These were not the people who would normally be first to hear news, nor be believed if they shared it, but the angels came to them anyway, bigger than the whole sky.

(To the tune of “22“)

It feels like a holy night
To watch out for angels
And look up at the starlight
Glor-i-ah-ah
It feels like a holy night
To wake up at midnight
To hear the host of heaven
Glor-i-ah-ah

Yeah, we’re fearful, awed, confused and joyful at the same time
It’s wonderful and mystical, oh yeah
Tonight’s the night when angels sing 
the Gospel’s headlines, it’s time, Ah, ah

“Hey, we’re bringing good news!
So we’re singing, ‘Glory to…
To our God in highest heaven,
On earth there’s peace renewed.’
Go to Bethlehem town
And you’ll find Messiah
In a manger laid and swaddled.
So we keep singing our news:
Gloria
Gloria!”

ANGEL:
We told the shepherds first because they lived on the edges of society, which is precisely where God’s Son was going to do so much of his ministry.

SHEPHERD:
Nothing in our wildest dreams prepared us for what the angels told. We raced to Bethlehem and found Mary and her babe. Then we went all over town sharing the good news!

MARY:
I treasured in my heart everything the shepherds told me. It was the best day.

NARRATOR:
Later on in a distant land to the east, wise people saw a bright star appear in the sky, and they knew something special had happened far away. They came to Herod and asked him if he knew anything about this revelation.

(To the tune of “Teardrops on my Guitar“)

Do you know where
We could locate the newborn king?
We’ve got gifts to share
So he knows he’s everything.

We’ve brought him gifts of gold And myrrh and frankincense
That’s precious metal, holy oil, and some swank incense.

He’s the reason for our journey from afar
The holy one who keeps us looking to that western star
He is love’s avatar who keeps loving
Because God is true.

MAGI:
An angel warned us in a dream about Herod’s mean intent, so after delivering our gifts to the Christ child, we returned home by a different road.

JOSEPH:
We weren’t out of the woods yet. Mary and I fled with Jesus to Egypt, and when it was safe to return home, we settled back in Nazareth.

NARRATOR:
Jesus grew up and when the time was right, he began preaching the good news of God’s reign coming near. He healed those who were sick and loved those who were outcast. From the day of his birth, Jesus showed us that God’s love and grace were for everyone to share, that God’s peace and justice were for everyone to strive for, and that God’s promise of eternal relationship with every bit of creation would always be sustained.

And so today, with the whole host of heaven, we sing our song of praise to the God who is with us forever and always.

“Hey, we’re bringing good news!
So we’re singing, ‘Glory to…
To our God in highest heaven,
On earth there’s peace renewed.’
Go to Bethlehem town
And you’ll find Messiah
In a manger laid and swaddled.
So we keep singing our news:
Gloria
Gloria!”