SUMMER OF '77 chapter 203

Portrait Players opened the summer tour in Calgary attending the Tri District Conference of the Canadian Christian and Missionary Alliance. The issue of Canada separating from the United States administratively had already been broached when at a General Council, then president Nathan Bailey speaking against separation said, “You cannot lay tracks and not expect a train to run on them.

This was the second gathering of the three Canadian Districts with the first being in Regina. Separation was sure to be on the agenda as the government was putting greater pressure on organizations whose headquarters was located out of country. Many Canadians appreciated the pressure as it was in the hearts of the leaders to separate.

We were not there because of that issue, but I believed separation was inevitable and I was glad to be there to listen to the debate. Faculty had no vote at council and is persona non grata within the denomination. The thing that bugged me the most was we were required yearly to sign an affirmation of doctrinal agreement while pastors and other leaders signed only when licensed at the beginning of their ministry. They were fearful that as faculty we would abandon the doctrine but had no fear about anyone else. Strange. They should have visited some of the churches from time to time.

But I digress. We were there to first present No Time For Tombstones during an optional afternoon slot. There was limited attendance but it sure brought in the requests for more performances. Second, I was directing the Sunday afternoon missions rally with Gordon Fowler and the Portrait Players had a major role. The theme was The Lord God Reigns.

The rally opened with a choir and then a light came up behind a scrim with a man sitting at a desk writing letters home to his wife. The man was Mr. Cassidy who would have been the first missionary sent out by the newly formed Missionary Alliance. Unfortunately, he died en route to China.  L.L. King, then president of the C&MA spoke briefly

Three announcers immediately launched into a rapid fire reading of news reports as slides depicted chaos and catastrophe throughout the world. As the slides picked up speed so did the news readers as they gradually began to speak on top of one another until they suddenly ended, paused and together quoted “You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed, Such things must happen, but the end is still to come, Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of birth pains.”

Next we moved to a sketch called “Missionary in a Pot.” We had a very large caldron with one of our actors sitting in the pot with a fire going and steam pouring over the sides. In the background were four characters discussing why the missionary should be boiled. The one in the pot represented the stereotype of a missionary with pith helmet, safari shirt etc.  The speakers could see no reason to keep the missionary around.

The next set up was done interview style where the announcers asked three different missionaries questioned about their work.

A possible missions candidate walked across the stage and four individuals confront him with a better way to use his life. They try to persuade him not to go. He decided to accept the call.

Fade to lights coming up behind a scrim where Mrs. Cassidy standing at a podium announces that she will go to China to replace her husband who never made it. She ends with a plea, “Who will go with me.” At that, missionaries seated all over the auditorium rose and came to the platform with the young recruit in a very emotionally moving display.

The next morning the Portrait Players left to continue their tour presenting No Time for Tombstones. We were all shocked to see it was snowing and it was sticking. None of us had winter coats. It was May 16. That was the latest I had ever seen snow in the 15 years I lived in Canada. It also, was melted the next day.

I loved this comment from Garry Tollefson. “This was General Council in Calgary. There was a series of sketches including the missionary in the pot. It culminated in the young man being called to missions and all the missionaries getting up from their seats and joining him on stage. The most amazing part for me was for one scene we were sitting on the orchestra lift waiting to come up for our scene and LL King was preaching above us. It gave us goose bumps sitting there listening to him only a few feet away. Dave McIntyre wrote music for the event.”