Bibliodrama

Well, it’s perhaps best to start by saying what Bibliodrama isn’t.

It is not the traditional acting out of Biblical stories, although the name may appear to suggest it. It’s also not simply the re-interpreting of them in a modern context. It is also not exclusively Christian or even necessarily religious! It requires only that participants be able to treat the text with respect.

It is the engagement of the whole person; mind, body, and soul (however one might want to understand ‘soul’) effectively ‘all the senses’, with texts of scripture in ways that take us into the meaning and implications of the texts and their interaction with our lives as individuals and individuals in community.

There is no one set form of how a Bibliodrama session should run. Some may use a range of creative arts. Some may involve more in the form of movement and others improvised drama. Some may create a fusion of different forms. Some may provide a focus on understanding the text itself, others on the experiences in our lives with which the text connects.

There are three core elements of every exploration of Bibliodrama.

The first  is ‘Body Work’, the creating of the focus of the whole person and not simply the mind.

The second is ‘Play’, where the diversity of approach is most clearly seen.

The third is ‘Sharing’, where individual and group reflection takes place.

Interfaith Bibliodrama is a developing area of practice and study and from the outset Bibliodrama has been a practice within Judaism as a form of midrash. We are on the look out for more interfaith partners to join us in the network.