A good play has a message in it. Here’s one for your Sunday school or CYC to do. “The Case of Frances Fault-Finder” is one of several short plays about developing Christ-like character. All the plays in the series are set as dialog between Dr. Good word and a patient who comes to his Spiritual Clinic. The afflictions that the good Doctor treats are chronic disorders like pride, hypocrisy, and temptation.1
The play is short and simple. Add a few props and costumes and you are ready to go to work. Encourage the kids to put feeling into it and be sure to have someone behind a camera. Your cast and crew will enjoy watching the play afterward, and so will the rest of the ecclesia. The message doesn’t grow old.
The Case of Frances Fault-Finder
Characters:
Announcer, Doctor Good word, Frances Fault-Finder, one or more Bible readers.
Props:
The setting is the Doctor’s office. A desk (card table) and two chairs will do. The Doctor has a pencil, pad, and Bible on his desk. Give Doctor Good word a white coat, spectacles, and a moustache. Fancy up Francis and you are ready for the camera(s) to roll.
Enter Doctor Good word and Frances. Fran has a serious case of beam-in-my-itis.
Script:2
Announcer: Here we are at the Spiritual Clinic of Doctor Good word, where we find the wise old physician of the soul turning his attention to the case of a certain young Frances Fault-Finder. At the moment the young lady has the floor.
Frances: (Standing) And this friend of mine — she is such a gossip! There
isn’t a person in the entire ecclesia that she doesn’t talk about …
Doctor: (Cutting in) Will you be seated, please, Miss Fault-Finder?
Frances: Thank you, sir. As I was saying — this friend of mine is just …
Doctor: (Cutting in) Now, let me have your full name again, please?
Frances: Frances Fault-Finder.
Doctor: And your address?
Frances: No. 1 Trouble-Maker Street.
Doctor: Oh, yes. That’s over in Meddlers Park, isn’t it?
Frances: Yes … and, Doctor, you can’t imagine what a neighborhood I live
- Why, the people there are …
Doctor: (Cutting in) Let me see if I have this correct now. Miss Frances
Fault-Finder, No. 1 Trouble-Maker Street, Meddlers Park. Do I have that right?
Frances: (Slightly annoyed) Yes, of course.
Doctor: Now, Miss, what is your ailment?
Frances: Why, Doctor, you misunderstand me. I’m not here for myself.
Doctor: Not here for yourself?
Frances: Oh my, no! You see, there’s nothing wrong with me. My spiritual
health is fine. It’s my friends I’m concerned about.
Doctor: I see.
Frances: Now, take Cindy Little, for instance. She’s a lovely girl. But so selfish.
Doctor: I see. I’ll just make a note of that. Anything else you think I should
know?
Frances: Let me tell you about Mark Himwell. Now don’t get me wrong,
Doctor. I think Mark is a very nice boy. The only trouble with him is he’s too bossy.
Doctor: Uh huh.
Frances: He wants to run everything all the time.
Doctor: I see.
Frances: And Mimi Furst. I hope you don’t think I’m picky, Doctor. It isn’t
that. It’s just that I want you to know about these people so you’ll be able to help them.
Doctor: Yes, I understand.
Frances: Now, Mimi is the kind of girl who craves attention. She’s a terrible
show-off. Are you making a note of all this, Doctor?
Doctor: I have it down. You go right ahead.
Frances: Good. And there’s Barry Burdens, too. A great talker and all, but
he’s always complaining about something.
Doctor: It’s too bad about Barry, isn’t it?
Frances: It certainly is. Poor Barry. I hope you’ll be able to help him. … Did
I tell you about Karen Service yet?
Doctor: (Sounding annoyed) Let me see. No … No, I don’t believe you did.
What’s wrong with Karen?
Frances: I don’t think I like the way you said that, Doctor.
Doctor: I’m sorry. I didn’t mean any offense, I’m sure.
Frances: It sounded as though you might think I’m too critical.
Doctor: Go on with your story, Miss. Tell me about Karen Service. What’s
her ailment?
Frances: Karen is such a fine girl in so many ways. Wonderful leader, hard
worker and all.
Doctor: But she has her faults?
Frances: She certainly has! And plenty of them!
Doctor: I recognize the symptoms. It’s just as I thought.
Frances: Do you think you’ll be able to help them, Doctor?
Doctor: I’ll give you a prescription that will do the trick, I’m sure.
Frances: For all of them?
Doctor: For you, young lady!
Frances: But I’m not the one who’s sick. It’s these friends of mine that I’m
concerned about.
Doctor: Yes, I understand. So you follow this prescription and I’m sure
everything will turn out all right. It won’t be long until you’re back in the pink of condition.
Frances: (Getting upset) You don’t seem at all concerned about my friends,
Doctor. They’re the ones who need help!
Doctor: This will help them, I’m sure. If you follow this prescription faithfully
for even one week, I’m positive you’ll find that your friends have improved one hundred per cent.
Frances: I don’t see how my friends are going to be helped if you give me a
prescription!
Doctor: I’ll give it to you now, and I want you to read it over once before you
leave my office — and once a day for the next fourteen days.
Frances: May I see it, please?
Doctor: (Opening his Bible to Matthew 7) Yes, here it is — all set for you.
Frances: It’s from the Bible, isn’t it?
Doctor: Yes, all my prescriptions are from the Bible, Miss Fault-Finder.
There’s not a spiritual ailment known to man for which the Bible doesn’t have a remedy. (Handing his Bible to Frances) Read Matthew 7, verse 5, please.
Frances: (Reading) “You hypocrite …” (indignantly) Hypocrite?! The very idea!
Doctor: Go on. The prescription will do wonders for you.
Frances: “You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you
will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye.”
Reader: “Judge not, that you be not judged. For with the judgment you
pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you” (Matt 7:1-2).
Reader: “Do not grumble against one another, brothers, so that you may not
be judged; behold, the Judge is standing at the door” (James 5:9).
Reader: “So then each of us will give an account of himself to God. Therefore
let us not pass judgment on one another any longer” (Rom 14:12-13).
Curtain.
If you would like printable copies of the plays in the series, just drop me an email. I will send them to you as PDF files.
- Source information wanted. The plays in this series are quite old. They are not Christadelphian in origin and the source is unknown. Anyone who recognizes the plays and has information about their origin is asked to contact me. I would like to credit the source if possible — Jim Harper.
- Play scripts have been revised, and in some cases familiar Christadelphian words like ecclesia, CYC, daily Bible readings, etc. have been introduced.
The Origin of the Organic World – Part One