November 14, 2016

Hundreds hear performance of the Gospel of Luke

REGIONAL
Story and photos by Peggy Weber

SPRINGFIELD – Actor Frank Runyeon brought the Gospel of Luke to life for more than 300 people at St. Patrick Church, here, Nov.13.  The 90-minute performance focused on “Stories of Mercy” as Runyeon educated and enlightened his audience.

“Luke really is all about mercy,” said Runyeon, at the start of his show. A graduate of Princeton University, Runyeon has an impressive resume as an actor on television and the theater. He also holds a master’s degree from the General Theological Seminary in New York.  He has translated and adapted seven biblical texts for one-man theatrical performances.

He told his audience that many of the stories of Luke don’t have an ending “because we are the ending. Jesus is still in the room with us.”

He focused on several stories including the Good Samaritan, the Prodigal Son and Zachaeus. He concluded his talk with a reflection on “Hollywood vs. Faith.”  He said that in most Hollywood movies, God is put aside. “Their job isn’t to tell the truth about God, he said.

He also noted that today children are being barraged with commercials and told that buying things will make them happy. He said young girls and women are being barraged with messages about how they look and that this leads to eating disorders and depression. And he said young people are being brought up in a culture that focuses on winning.

He said that people are in the middle of a tug-of-war with what they are told in church and what they are told by society.

Runyeon said he battled cancer four years ago and said that it reminded him to keep God at the center of his life.

In an interview with iObserve, he said he started performing the Gospels as “my kids got to an age where they weren’t understanding why we went to church and what the stories were about. So it challenged me to learn more about it and be able to explain it to them.”

He said that the Gospel stories also are need more than ever in today’s world.

“Hard things happen in life. My college roommate took his life and miscarriages happened and you know it made me realize that life can be tough and have hard questions. So you need more deeply true stories so I returned to the stories (the Gospels) and found a way to tell it,” he said.

Kerry Dowd, a member of St. Patrick Parish and co-program manager of the event, said she was delighted with the event and Runyeon’s performance.

She said, the event grew from the evangelization committee in the parish. She said her faith means a lot to her and “I want my children to pass it on as a legacy to theirs.”

“I also think the evangelization movement set forth by Bishop Rozanski is excellent and was long overdue. For other religions, it is and has been pretty commonplace as their churches offer many programs which connect and involve their parishioners. When my family serves as greeters at the 4 p.m. Mass, we have seen how happy the people are when we simply hand them a bulletin, hold the door for them, or engage them in conversation.

“I truly hope this movement continues so we can offer more events which will add to the churches population and perhaps engage or light a fire or call them to serve those who currently attend. “ 

Carole Dalton, administrative assistant at St. Patrick Parish and co-program manager said, “I thought Frank’s performance was wonderful. I go the chills many times when he spoke. And it really made the gospel of Luke come alive. I also learned some things I did not know.”

She said that the parish evangelization committee invited Runyeon because they wanted “to have something new and hear it in a different way to touch our hearts again and light that light and get that fire in us about the Lord.”

Marty Caine, a member of the organizing committee, said, “It probably took 50 people in the parish to put this all together. From parking, supers, refreshment, lighting, tickets, etc. It was quite a project and got a lot of the parish involved.” He said the night was inspiring and unifying.