Passion play on twitter

Trinity Church, Wall Street today had a passion play entirely on Twitter.

Here is the text:

twspassionplayvia @_Peter_of_: is waiting in the courtyard of the High Priest Caiaphas. I ran scared when the officers came but I need to see how this ends.
8 minutes ago from GroupTweet

twspassionplay via @ServingGirl: Darkness and earthquake. I heard the curtain in the temple was torn in two. I wonder�
less than a minute ago from GroupTweet

twspassionplay via @Pontius_Pilate: They want this done by nightfall. I sent my soldiers to break the dead men�s legs. Are my hands clean of this?
less than a minute ago from GroupTweet

twspassionplayvia @ServingGirl: is so tired. Caiaphas and the priests have been up all night questioning a man who claims to be the Messiah. And I wait on them.
8 minutes ago from GroupTweet

twspassionplayvia @_JesusChrist: Let the scriptures be fulfilled. It is as the prophets wrote. I am who you say I am.
1 minute ago from GroupTweet

twspassionplayvia @_Peter_of_: is heartsick. I abandoned him. I denied him. I couldn�t believe it, even as the words came out of my mouth.
about 1 hour ago from GroupTweet

twspassionplay via @Pontius_Pilate: Bad feeling about this. The prisoner won�t talk. The priests accuse him of blasphemy and sedition, and he just stands there, waiting
about 1 hour ago from GroupTweet

twspassionplay via @Mary_Mother_Of: I have no peace, though I have talked with angels, and in my bones I know he is Emmanuel. It rips me to hear the crowds chant �Crucify him!�
about 1 hour ago from GroupTweet

twspassionplay via @Pontius_Pilate: What harm has this man done? Why does the crowd cheer on his murder? I wash my hands of this. They can do what they want
about 1 hour ago from GroupTweet

twspassionplay via @_JesusChrist: Father forgive them, they know not what they do.
39 minutes ago from GroupTweet

twspassionplay via @ServingGirl: This crowd is rough. Talk of his blood on our hands�but if he is really the Messiah God will rescue him.
39 minutes ago from GroupTweet

twspassionplay via @_JesusChrist:It is as the prophets have written: I tell my tale of misery while they look on and gloat.
33 minutes ago from GroupTweet

twspassionplay via @Mary_Mother_Of: The light is going from the sky. I am alone here. Give me strength, God of the Universe.
39 minutes ago from GroupTweet

twspassionplayvia @_JesusChrist: Father into thy hands I commit my spirit.
25 minutes ago from GroupTweet

twspassionplay via @ServingGirl: Darkness and earthquake. I heard the curtain in the temple was torn in two. I wonder�
less than a minute ago from GroupTweet

twspassionplay via @Pontius_Pilate: They want this done by nightfall. I sent my soldiers to break the dead men�s legs. Are my hands clean of this?
less than a minute ago from GroupTweet

twspassionplay via @JosephArimathea: is sleepwalking through this. I cut the tomb, bought the linen, hold his body�and he�s gone.
2 minutes ago from GroupTweet

twspassionplay via @Mary_Mother_Of: I saw the water and the blood. I want to scream with him: Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?
2 minutes ago from GroupTweet

twspassionplay via @Mary_Mother_Of: They sealed his tomb at dusk. The stone stands between us, and I can�t leave. I am an old woman now, lost in the dark.
less than a minute ago from GroupTweet

Claiming holy ground

One hundred people or so gathered in one place to worship in Liverpool. So what? Is this news? It was not what they did that is different but how they did it.



This gathering was called a 'flash mob,' a group of people who plan a "spontaneous" or improvised event where people don't expect middle of a shopping mall in Liverpool, England. Think of "improv everywhere" who did this version of a flash mob:



Bishop David Thomson, Bishop of Huntingdon (England) describes a "flash mob" for the rest of us on his blog "On Holy Ground:"

A flash mob, for oldies like me, is a large group of people who assemble suddenly in a public place, organized by texts or the like, and perform an unusual action for a brief time, then quickly disperse. Last Saturday the group dream - re-imagining worship brought together a group of mainly young people for an act of worship in Liverpool One Shopping Centre.

As described on the website "Dream: re-imagining church" here is what happened.

We began scattered among the shoppers. At the signal, we all stopped and took off our shoes ... an ancient sign that this is "holy ground". God lives in shopping malls as well as churches!
We then made out way to the park at the centre of the mall where we sat together to form a cross ... and prayed silently for a few minutes. We remembered Easter and the cross. We prayed for the current economic situation ... for those who have lost jobs ... and for God's blessing on our city ... we prayed for hope.

Ruth Gledhill writes:

This is thought to be the first time 'flash mob' has been used to generate a 'random' act of Christian worship. It took place last Saturday at Liverpool One Shopping Centre....

...Stuart Haynes from the Liverpool diocese told me more: 'It was the brain child of one of our Pioneer Ministers, Richard White, who has taken the idea from the flash mob events and tried to use it in a worship concept. The idea was planned via a Facebook site called Guerilla Worship. Richard led the discussion with a whole range of people bringing ideas together for what to do. They settled on an event at 4pm on the 4th April in the Liverpool One Shopping centre in the heart of the city. About a hundred participants came together - milled around in the centre – and then at a prearranged signal, the umbrella in the video took their shoes off and gathered in the parkland. The symbolism was to reclaim the area as Holy Ground – hence the removal of shoes. They prayed for the city, for the current crisis and released a balloon to symbolize the prayers going to God. The group wanted to create a talking point in the city and to catch the attention of passers by as well as creating the video which we now hope to go viral on the internet. It is experimental but was a success and the group plan more events in the future. The minister behind all this – Richard White – is an ordained Anglican minister working to create network church. The dream network aims to reach out into new communities and the online world.'

Over at Preludium, Mark Harris says:

I thought it was great. What's with taking off the shoes? What did people think? Etc.

And then he plays around with his own imagining of how flash evangelism might look.

The idea of gathering Christians in one place is not new. The idea of Evangelism is not new. Even the idea of praying in public is not so new. The innovative thing here is that is that public "spontaneous" act of worship in an unexpected place is an act that is designed to intrude or at least break up the rush and reactivity of daily life and call attention to the Gospel in a way that poses more questions and suggests, but does not force, answers.

It shows us how community, worship and evangelism can happen outside of the settings we have come to expect.