The Man Born to be King by Dorothy L. Sayers

 

 

("Dorothy Sayers,” photograph, www.ccwatershed.org.)

 

     The book The Man Born to be King by Dorothy L. Sayers, a well-known writer of detective mysteries, is a cycle of plays that relates the story of the birth, life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Sayers draws on all four Gospels, presenting a harmonized account of the acts of Jesus and those around him. [1] The plays, according to the writer herself, are more historical than theological, [2] but many, including her contemporary C. S. Lewis, viewed the plays as a great devotional work which positively influenced the spiritual lives of many, including himself. [3]

    There are twelve plays in all which cover from the birth of Jesus to his ascension. The first play, "Kings in Judaea," includes the nativity, the visit of the shepherds, the visit of the wise men to Herod and then to the Holy Family, the political activity of Herod the Great, and the slaughter of the innocents. Then come six more plays which cover Jesus' ministry of preaching and healing. "The King's Herald" tells about John the Baptist, the baptism of Jesus and his temptation in the wilderness, John's arrest, and the calling of first disciples. "A Certain Noblemen" relates Christ's first miracle at the wedding feast in Cana, the cleansing of the temple, and the healing of a nobleman's son.

    The main events covered in "The Heirs to the Kingdom" are the healing of the Centurion's servant, the sermon on the mount, and conversations of some Jewish and Roman leaders concerning Jesus and his influence. "The Bread of Heaven" most notably includes the feeding of the five thousand and the "Bread of Life" discourse, but also touches upon the healing of the blind man and the miracle of the storm on the lake of Galilee. The transfiguration and the feast of tabernacles, with Jesus preaching in the temple and being challenged and questioned by the Sadducees and others, is related in "The Feast of Tabernacles." "The Light and Life" includes the story of Mary and Martha, the raising of Lazarus, and the plotting of the Sanhedrin against Jesus.

    This is followed by five passion plays. "Royal Progress" primarily tells of Jesus' entrance into Jerusalem on a donkey as well as a few parables, Jesus teaching in the temple, and the attempts to trick Jesus. "The King's Supper" covers the last supper and prayer in the garden of Gethsemane with the ensuing arrest. "The Princes of This World" tells about Jesus's trial by the Sanhedrin and his appearances before Herod and Pilate leading to him being sentenced to death. "King of Sorrows" covers the crucifixion and death. Finally, "The King Comes to His Own" relates the resurrection, the road to Emmaus and other appearances of Jesus, and the ascension.

    These twelve plays, following logically and chronologically upon one another, are weaved together by development and discussion in the disciples' faith and the plots of political leaders against Jesus as well as Judas' slow downfall to the ultimate betrayal. Each play is its own story, able to stand alone, but there is an overall story arc encompassing the entire play-cycle.

    These plays were originally written for radio production and broadcast by the BBC during the Second World War. [4] Besides the plays, the book also contains instructions for the production of the plays, including stage directions and descriptions of the characters, as well as a twenty page introduction in which the author explains how she treated certain aspects of Scripture in her play and why she did so.

    In the introduction, Sayers explains that these plays were written to acquaint the British public with the story of Jesus. According to her, many people of her time knew the basics of the nativity and the Easter story, but were only vaguely familiar with the rest of the Gospel contents and had little idea about how all the Gospel events fit together. Hence, her goal of this story is not to produce a great theological work, but to tell the story of Jesus' life and works in a particular genre: dramatized radio.

    The plays rely heavily on both Scripture and artistic dramatization and elaboration. Much of the script of the plays is Scripture itself, but many of the verses are paraphrased or put into more contemporary speech. Her goal is not to place the events of Scripture in modern times, but rather to make the speech easily understandable to her audience. In her play directions, she often explains why she interprets a phrase or word in a particular way, usually to avoid connotations or misunderstandings that would distort the meaning of Scripture. She also includes fictionalized conversations among the apostles or the background characters, using them to as tools to relate the contents of the Scriptures in the context of an organized story arc.

    Overall in the plays, Sayers portrays Jesus as a true human being, acting in a truly human way while also having a truly divine nature as well. When Sayers was writing the plays, she endeavored to  show that Jesus is both truly God and also truly man, but she admitted it was a difficult task. As she wrote to her friends, many Christian people actually follow Arianism or Docetism, believing Jesus is either not really human or not really divine. [5] Even though Sayers managed to convey the concept very well to her audience, her plays could be misinterpreted by those with preconceived biases about the nature of Jesus.

    While some might be scandalized at the artistic liberty which Sayers takes with the Gospel accounts, it seems to me that The Man Born to be King is true to the Gospel, even if Sayers adds background dialogue and characters. After being commissioned to write the plays, Sayers spent a year studying Scripture and commentaries including the original Greek of the Gospels. [6] She took her work seriously, striving to tell a good story that was true to the original facts. Moreover, Sayers in no way intended to replace or reinterpret the moral teachings of Scripture. Perhaps the greatest testimony to the excellence of these plays is the thousands of people who, after hearing the radio broadcast, said that they were brought back to God or started to read Scripture again. [7]

    Overall, the plays are a wonderful retelling of Scripture. It conveys the realness of the history of Jesus and his disciples without being overly sentimental or trying too hard to be "relatable." The characters are real because they act like human beings, not props in a play. At the time of its publication, The Man Born to be King changed people's perception of Jesus from a static, distant figure; instead, the plays showed him as a real person who actually lived in history. These plays inspired many to renew their faith in God, [8] and Sayers' work still has that potential today.

[1] Kathryn Wehr, "Dorothy L. Sayers' Use of the Four Gospels in The Man Born to be King," Journal of Inklings Studies, 6, no. 2 (2016), 4-6.
[2] Dorothy L. Sayers, The Man Born to be King (San Francisco: Ignatius, 1990), 13-14.
[3] Joel Heck, "C.S. Lewis and The Man Born to be King," C.S. Lewis Blog, 26 December 2014, at www.cslewis.com.
[4] Gilbert Meilaender, "The Greatest Drama Ever," Touchstone 26, no. 2 (2013), 18.
[5] Letter to S. Dark April 6, 1938 and Letter to Fr. Herbert Kelly, The Letters of Dorothy L. Sayers, 1937–1943: From Novelist to Playwright (New York: St. Martin’s, 1997), 307.
[6] Crystal Downing "Dorothy Sayers, Reluctant Prophet," Christianity Today 62, no. 5 (2018), 64-68.
[7] Downing, "Dorothy Sayers," 67.
[8] Downing, "Dorothy Sayers," 67.