Godscam

By Thom Whalen

A man tells a young Christian woman that he is God. Can she believe him? Does she dare not believe him? Who is scamming who in this duel of wits, logic, and faith? A full-length stage play told in twelve acts.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Thom Whalen
• Release date: Jun 30, 2015
• ISBN: 9781310053740

Thom Whalen

Thom Whalen studied experimental psychology at UCSD (B.A.), UBC (M.A.) and Dalhousie University (Ph.D.). After working for the Government of Canada conducting research on the human factors of computer networks for thirty years, he retired to begin a new career writing fiction.If you wish to send him email, contact information is available at http://thomwhalen.com/ He eagerly awaits comment on his stories.

Book preview

GODSCAM

A Play in Twelve Scenes

by

Thom Whalen

Copyright (c) 2015 Thom Whalen

All rights reserved, including the right of reproduction, either in whole or in part, in any form. This play is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictionally. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

Smashwords Edition, License Notes

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy.

Contact [e-mail] to enquire about performance rights.

GODSCAM

CAST OF CHARACTERS

CHRISTOPHER THOMAS. 26. A young man.

PETER SMITH. 23. Chris’ friend.

SALLY JOHNSON. 21. A member of an evangelical religious order.

JUDY JONES. 23. Sally’s friend; a member of the same evangelical religious order.

THE TIME

The present. November.

THE PLACE

Any large city, with a suburban shopping mall and a prestigious university; a city similar to the one in which the play is staged.

Scene 1. A shopping mall. Afternoon. The third Monday in November.

Scene 2. A graduate student lounge. Evening. The third Monday in November.

Scene 3. Sally’s small, spartan apartment. Evening. The third Monday in November.

Scene 4. The shopping mall. Afternoon. The last Monday in November.

Scene 5. The graduate student lounge. Evening. The last Monday in November.

Scene 6. The living room of a large apartment. Evening. The first Saturday in December.

Scene 7. The graduate student lounge. Morning. The first Monday in December.

Scene 8. Sally’s apartment. Morning. The first Monday in December.

Scene 9. The shopping mall. Afternoon. The first Monday in December.

Scene 10. A street near the university. Night. The second Saturday in December.

Scene 11. The graduate student lounge. Morning. The second Monday in December.

Scene 12. The shopping mall. Afternoon. The second Monday in December.

GODSCAM

Scene One

SETTING: A typical suburban shopping mall. The storefronts are decorated with tinsel and lights for Christmas. A stool and tripod with a round red pot are sitting in the middle of the space.

AT RISE: A young woman, 21, (Sally) is sitting on the low stool next to the tripod and pot. She is dressed in a Salvation Army uniform. Her hands are folded in her lap and she nods and smiles shyly at unseen passers-by.

CHRIS

(Walks up to Sally, stands directly in front of her, waiting until he has her full attention, then speaks, casually)

I am God.

SALLY

(surprised)

What?

CHRIS

(more definitively)

I am God.

SALLY

(confused)

What do you mean?

CHRIS

(pedantically)

I mean exactly what I say. I’m God. I’m your God. Your Lord.

SALLY

(chin up)

No, you aren’t.

CHRIS

(nodding vigorously)

Yes, I am.

SALLY

(visibly forcing herself to be more assertive than is her nature)

No, you aren’t.

CHRIS

(challenging her)

How can you say that I am not God?

SALLY

How can you say that you are God?

CHRIS

It’s easy. I am. So I say that I am.

SALLY

But you aren’t.

CHRIS

Why not?

SALLY

God is immortal. He is in Heaven.

CHRIS

No, your God is omnipresent. He–me, I’m everywhere.

(points up)

I’m in heaven.

(points offstage)

I’m in the church around the corner.

(points at himself)

And I’m in this man right now. All at the same time.

SALLY

There is no church around the corner.

CHRIS

(Rolling his eyes)

I’m speaking metaphorically.

SALLY

So you don’t really mean it when you say that you’re God.

CHRIS

No. That is the literal truth.

SALLY

Then I don’t believe you.

CHRIS

You believe that I am not within this man right now

SALLY

That’s right. I don’t believe that you are in this man.

CHRIS

Then you do not believe that God is omnipresent?

SALLY

Of course I believe that God is omnipresent.

CHRIS

Then God would have to be present in this man that you see before you, wouldn’t he?

SALLY

(only giving an inch)

Ok. You’re right. God is present in every person.

(quickly)

But that doesn’t mean that every person is God.

CHRIS

No, of course not. But God is all-powerful, right?

SALLY

(Reluctantly. She does not like where this is going)

Right.

CHRIS

So when I make a man speak my words, then it is God speaking, not the man. So right now, you are not speaking to this man. You are speaking to the God within this man. That is me. God.

SALLY

(Shaking her head doubtfully)

No.

CHRIS

Yes. You know that when I chose to make a burning bush speak my words, it spoke them, didn’t it? You believe that.

SALLY

Yes. I believe that.

CHRIS

Of course. So if I choose to make a person