Parable of the Unjust Manager Drama

Parable of the Unjust Manager:  Luke 16.1-13 

(a play written and performed by me and my puppet Deckham)

Narrator: Hello Deckham, what have you been up to?

Deckham: I’ve written a play entitled The Taming of the Shrewd.

Narrator: Do you not mean The Taming of the Shrew, the Shakespeare play?

Deckham: No this is a story that Jesus told about a shrewd manger, you know baby Jesus’ cradle?

Narrator: You’ve got me all confused now Deckham, do you not mean the Shrewd Manager?

Deckham: What is a manager?

Narrator:  A manager is what you would call the top man, a head servant.

Deckham: Aaaaaah that makes sense now!

Narrator: Good! This should be interesting. I’m listening.

Deckham: No I’ve a part for you. You’re the Narrator, and you start first.

Narrator: Ooh thank you Deckham, I’m honoured. (clears throat and winces) Here we go.

Deckham: Speak out clearly, I want everyone to hear.

Narrator:  A rich man had a manger, (I’ll start again)

                   A rich man had a manager, and he was very shrewd,

                  He squandered his master’s money . . . so he could buy some food? But Deckham it’s got to

                  be true though. You can’t put ‘food’ in just because it rhymes with shrewd.

Deckham: Right we’ll say, ‘squandered his master’s money, just because he could.

Narrator: Well that’s better. Let’s go on. You have to speak next you’re the Shrewd Manager.

Deckham: Oh my master’s found me out! Now what will I do?

                    I cannot dig, I will not beg, I’m going to be a shrew!

Narrator:    Stop there a second. You mean, “I’m going to be shrewd! (pronounce the d)

Deckham:  Are you going to be a shrew too?

Narrator:  No Deckham, you’re just mixed up. A shrew is a little mole like animal, and shrewd means

                    crafty. The manager in this story is very clever, he knows just what he’s doing!

Deckham:  Aaaaaah! I get it now!

Narrator: Thank goodness for that! Is there any more, this is taking a long time?

Deckham: OK . . .When my master tells me, that I have got the sack.

                               I’ve made my mind up here and now. I’m going to get him back!

Narrator:  That’s not a nice line Deckham, keep to the story!     

Deckham:  It’s your turn now, concentrate.

Narrator: So the manager called everyone he knew who owed his master money, and asked them

                  how much they owed, and this is what he said to them:-

Deckham: What! A hundred jugs of olive oil?

Narrator: He said, looking very shifty.

Deckham: Take your bill, sit down here, we’ll make it into fifty!

Narrator: To another he said,

Deckham: What! A hundred containers of wheat?

Narrator: Trying to sound quite ‘matey’

Deckham: Take your bill, sit down here. Let’s change into eighty!

Narrator: I can tell you wrote this Deckham.

Deckham: Thank you, it’s good isn’t it?

Narrator: It’s indescribable! Let’s finish this off. Why did the manager do this?

Deckham: I’m doing this to make some friends. You really ought to try it.

                   And if the worst come to the worst, they’ll back me and deny it.

Narrator: You know Deckham, you really have excelled yourself. I enjoyed that. I’m thinking that Jesus

                 wanted his followers to be as wise and eager and ingenious as this dishonest man, and then

                 the world would be a better place.

Deckham; That’s exactly what I thought!                                                                          ©Sheila Hamil 23rd January 2014