The Croxton Play of the Sacrament is the only surviving English Host

miracle play Mystery plays and miracle plays (they are distinguished as two different forms although the terms are often used interchangeably) are among the earliest formally developed plays in medieval Europe. Medieval mystery plays focused on the represe ...

. The play centers around the abduction of a Eucharistic Host by a group of

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

men, and the series of miracles that lead to their conversion of

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...

Historical background and author

The play was written circa 1491. It is believed that the play was performed by an

East Anglia East Anglia is an area of the East of England, often defined as including the counties of Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire, with parts of Essex sometimes also included. The name derives from the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of the East Angles, ...

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. The original author is unknown, however it is believed that he was a member of

clergy Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...

, as he has great knowledge of

Scripture Religious texts, including scripture, are texts which various religions consider to be of central importance to their religious tradition. They often feature a compilation or discussion of beliefs, ritual practices, moral commandments and ...

, The Mass, and

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The surviving manuscript

A singular manuscript of the play is the only surviving text available. The manuscript is found in 338r–356r of Dublin, Trinity MS F.4.20, catalogue no. 652. The initials "R.C" are located on the bottom right corner of the text. Gail Gibson hypothesizes that these initials belong to a vicar by the name of Robert Cooke, while Tamara Atkin argues that they belong to the printer Robert Copeland. Like the author, there is no way to definitively know what these initials really mean.

Similarities to the Passion of Christ

The main plot points throughout the play correspond to the main plot points from the Passion. As Aristorius is Christian, his selling of the host symbolizes

Judas Judas Iscariot (; ; died AD) was, according to Christianity's four canonical gospels, one of the original Twelve Apostles of Jesus Christ. Judas betrayed Jesus to the Sanhedrin in the Garden of Gethsemane, in exchange for thirty pieces of ...

betraying Christ. The host is nailed to a post, relating to Christ's crucifixion. The cauldron symbolizes Christ's burial, while the oven symbolizes

Hell In religion and folklore, hell is a location or state in the afterlife in which souls are subjected to punishment after death. Religions with a linear divine history sometimes depict hells as eternal destinations, such as Christianity and I ...

. The image of Christ revealed at the end represents the

resurrection of Christ The resurrection of Jesus () is Christian belief that God raised Jesus from the dead on the third day after his crucifixion, starting—or restoring—his exalted life as Christ and Lord. According to the New Testament writing, Jesus w ...

Antisemitism controversy

The play is largely

antisemitic Antisemitism or Jew-hatred is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who harbours it is called an antisemite. Whether antisemitism is considered a form of racism depends on the school of thought. Antisemi ...

, and Lisa Lampert views the play as a text that vilifies "the Jew" and casts them as a murderer and constant enemy of a Christian. She states that the play asserts that the Jews murdered Christ in the past, and will continue to do so in the future. Anthony Bale notes that while the play is largely antisemitic, viewing it as simply antisemitic would be a mistake. He asserts that the Jews are used to examine the aspects of religion, international trade, identity, and most importantly the efficacy of the Eucharist. He also asserts that the corrupt Christian (Aristorius) is presented as much at fault as the Jewish men who buy the host.

Jews or Lollards?

There is an ongoing scholarly debate around whether or not the Jews in the play were actually meant to covertly depict members of the

proto-Protestant Proto-Protestantism, also called pre-Protestantism, refers to individuals and movements that propagated various ideas later associated with Protestantism before 1517, which historians usually regard as the starting year for the Reformation era ...

Lollard Lollardy was a proto-Protestantism, proto-Protestant Christianity, Christian religious movement that was active in England from the mid-14th century until the 16th-century English Reformation. It was initially led by John Wycliffe, a Catholic C ...

movement. At the time that the play was written, the

English Jew The history of the Jews in England can be traced to at least 750 CE through the Canonical Exceptions of Echbright, published by the Archbishop of York, although it is likely that there had been some Jewish presence in the Roman period and poss ...

ish community had been completely nonexistent for almost two centuries, since all Jews had been banished from England by King Edward Longshanks in the 1290

Edict of Expulsion The Edict of Expulsion was a royal decree expelling all Jews from the Kingdom of England that was issued by Edward I of England, Edward I on 18 July 1290; it was the first time a European state is known to have permanently banned their prese ...

. Celia Cutts accordingly believes that the real purpose of the play was to defend the Catholic doctrine of the

Real Presence The real presence of Christ in the Eucharist, sometimes shortened Real Presence'','' is the Christian doctrine that Jesus Christ is present in the Eucharist, not merely symbolically or metaphorically, but in a true, real and substantial way. Th ...

in the

Blessed Sacrament The Eucharist ( ; from , ), also called Holy Communion, the Blessed Sacrament or the Lord's Supper, is a Christian rite, considered a sacrament in most churches and an ordinance in others. Christians believe that the rite was instituted by J ...

against the attacks of the Lollards, and to persuade them away from their

heresy Heresy is any belief or theory that is strongly at variance with established beliefs or customs, particularly the accepted beliefs or religious law of a religious organization. A heretic is a proponent of heresy. Heresy in Heresy in Christian ...

. Others have alleged that East Anglia was very tolerant in the fifteenth century, as long as the nonconformists were both non-violent and discreet and presented no threat to the state. Furthermore, those who oppose this theory claim the lack of evidence of Lollardy during this time disproves it entirely.

Characters

Vexillators – Men who give a summary of the play before it begins.
Jonathas – A Jewish merchant. Skeptical of the holy host, and aims to disprove it.
Aristorius – A Christian merchant. Flawed in his own ways, as he steals and sells Christ's body to Jonathas.
Episcopus – The Bishop.
Presbyter – A Priest named Isoder.
Clericus – A Clerk named Peter Paul. He is part of the deal to buy the host.
Jason – “The second Jew.”
Jasdon – “The third Jew.”
Masphat – “The fourth Jew.”
Malchus – “The fifth Jew.”
Magister Phisicus / Brundyche – A master physician, the "quack doctor".
Coll – A servant.

Summary

The play begins with the Vexillators appearing to the audience with banners. They inform the audience of the plot. After the summary, the Vexillators ask that the audience never doubt Christ. They tell the audience that the play is set in Croxton,There are several places in England called Croxton. The East Anglian connection suggests either

Croxton, Cambridgeshire Croxton is a village and civil parish about west of Cambridge in South Cambridgeshire, England. In 2001, the resident population was 163 people, falling slightly to 160 at the 2011 Census. Croxton Park is to the south of the current village and ...

Croxton, Norfolk Croxton is a village and civil parish in the Breckland district of Norfolk, England. It is located north of Thetford and south-east of Norwich. History Croxton's name is of mixed Anglo-Saxon and Viking origin deriving from an amalgamation of ...

. and then the play begins. Aristorius appears, praising his success as a merchant, and thanking God for allowing him to sell his goods. Isoder enters, and says that he will do anything in his power to ensure that Aristorius remains successful. Jonathas then enters, thanking Mohammed for all that he possesses. Jonathas is a Jewish man who is skeptical of the

and Christianity. He, along with his friends Jason and Jasdon, have discuss how insane it is for Christian men to “believe on a cake” in their religion. The cake is referring to the holy host. They wish to desecrate a host in the name of their

God In monotheistic belief systems, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. In polytheistic belief systems, a god is "a spirit or being believed to have created, or for controlling some part of the un ...

, and discuss ways in which they can acquire one. The Jewish men visit Aristorius, and ask him to sell the host. He initially refuses, as they are not of the Christian faith. Jonathas increases his offer to 100 pounds, which Aristorius is unable to turn down. Aristorius is afraid that he will get caught stealing the host, but Jonathas convinces him to do it at night time. Aristorius goes to visit his

parish priest A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or ...

, and gets him drunk on wine – enabling him to steal the host. Once they receive the consecrated host, Jonathas, Jason, Jasdon, Malchus, and Masphat decide to stab the host to see if it bleeds. To their surprise, it bleeds. Now terrified of the host, they decide to boil it in hot oil. When Jonathas tries to throw the host in the oil, it clings to his hand. He tries to wash it away in water, but again it stays attached. The men decide to pin it to a host, and pull Jonathas until he is released. The host is not removed, and the men wind up pulling so hard that his arm detaches from his body. Defeated, the men go to bed and vow to keep their plot a secret. Coll and Brundich now enter. It is revealed that Brundich is a corrupt man, who makes his patients ill again to get the most money possible out of them. Coll tells Brundich of Jonathas’ troubles, and Brundich proceeds to attempt to treat him. Jonathas refuses this treatment, and tells Brundich to leave. Jonathas has his men remove the host and toss it in the bubbling oil. The oil then turns to blood, and overflows. They then toss the host in a hot oven, where it begins to ooze blood and then eventually explode. After the explosion, an Image of

Jesus Christ Jesus (AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Chris ...

appears to the men. Christ asks the Jewish men why they despise him so much. He proceeds to blame them for the desecration of his body both presently and in the past. Still, he says that he will forgive them. The men repent their sins, and Christ heals Jonathas’ arm when he dips it in the cauldron. Upon confessing his sins to the Bishop, Jonathas brings the Bishop back to the image of Christ. The Bishop converts the image back into the

, and carried the Host back to the Cathedral. Aristorius confesses his sins, and asks forgiveness from the Bishop. At the end of the play, all of the men attend a sermon at the church. The Jewish men convert, and proclaim belief in the

Holy Trinity The Trinity (, from 'threefold') is the Christian doctrine concerning the nature of God, which defines one God existing in three, , consubstantial divine persons: God the Father, God the Son (Jesus Christ) and God the Holy Spirit, three ...

.The Bishop then asks for God's blessing, and chant in

Ecclesiastical Latin Ecclesiastical Latin, also called Church Latin or Liturgical Latin, is a form of Latin developed to discuss Christian theology, Christian thought in Late antiquity and used in Christianity, Christian liturgy, theology, and church administration ...

, “ Te Deum Laudamus” (We Praise Thee, O God) which ends the play.

Performance history

A performance was staged at St. John's College Chapel in Oxford on 9 January 2013. On 13 March 2014 a recording of this performance was uploaded to Vimeo from the user Unmarked Films. The performance can be viewed at https://vimeo.com/89019417.

Publishing history

Known publications of the play include: *Play of the Sacrament: A Middle-English Drama, Edited from a Manuscript in the Library of Trinity College, Dublin, with a Preface and Glossary. Ed. Whitley Stokes. Publications of the Philological Society. Berlin: Asher, 1862. *Manly, John Matthews, ed., Specimens of the Pre-Shakesperean Drama, with an Introduction, Notes, and a Glossary. 2 vols. Boston: Ginn & Company, 1897–98. 1:239–76. *Waterhouse, Osborn, ed., Non-Cycle Mystery Plays, together with the Croxton Play of the Sacrament and The Pride of Life. EETS e.s. 104. London: Kegan Paul, Trench, Trübner & Co., 1909. Pp. 54–87. *Adams, Joseph Quincy, ed., Chief Pre-Shakespearean Dramas: A Selection of Plays Illustrating the History of the English Drama from Its Origin down to Shakespeare. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1924. Pp. 243–62. *Davis, Norman, ed., Non-Cycle Plays and Fragments. EETS s.s. 1. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1970. Pp. 58–89. *Coldewey, John C., ed., Early English Drama: An Anthology. New York: Garland Publishing, 1993. Pp. 274–305. *Bevington, David, ed., Medieval Drama. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1975. Pp. 754–88. *Walker, Greg, ed., Medieval Drama: An Anthology. Oxford: Blackwell, 2000. Pp. 213–33. *Sebastian, John T. Croxton Play of the sacrament. Kalamazoo: Medieval Institute Publications, Western Michigan University, 2012.

References

1490s plays Christian plays English plays Fiction about Jews and Judaism Religious vernacular drama Works of unknown authorship