Deacon Sherry Coman wrote about storytelling in the August edition of Canada Lutheran. She states how the Apostle Paul and deacon Stephen recounted the history of the Israelites and through the days of Jesus.

In my read through the Bible this year, I’ve noticed prophets doing the same thing. Those stories were meant to remind people of who they are and where they’ve come from, and also who would guide them, if they let it happen.

In our day, storytelling also reminds us of who we are, and what we hold dear. Of those stories that touch us most deeply, what is their origin? What is their meaning for us?

Coman speaks of the risks it takes to repeat those stories to people who might not accept the beliefs we hold. We know what happened to some of those disciples and apostles.

As an oral storyteller, I choose wisely the stories I will tell. I tend not to tell ghost stories, or ones of a culture unfamiliar to me. I read through collections of stories to find something I can really get into. Several years ago, for our guild’s World Storytelling Day, I chose to tell Stone Soup. I went back to a 1720s version by Madame De Noyer (France) and made the story my own, not with soldiers or monks, but ordinary travellers.

The travellers are hungry and thirsty, but people seem reluctant to answer the door to the strangers. With the ruse of building soup with a stone as its base, the travellers ask for small contributions to the soup.

A wise storyteller does not end with a moral, but leaves the audience in a safe place to consider the meaning for themselves. Thus I leave you with the opportunity to look up the story (a version without the moral attached) and consider its meaning for yourself.