“That’s true in baseball, theater and comedy,” he says. “I generally listen when things come in threes.”

The adage has served him well for more than 20 years, as Swartz ’89, M.Div ’92, has engaged with the unlikely trio of theology, comedy and issues of faith. First with Lee Eshleman ’86 in Ted & Lee, and now with Ted & Company, he has written and produced more than a dozen plays, travelling extensively worldwide for performances.

And that’s why, when three similarly focused suggestions came to his drawing board, he took notice.

“91����Ƶ two years ago,” Swartz remembers, “I was asked to consider writing something about same-sex issues and sexuality in the context of the church, and I was busy at the time. But then six months later, on two other occasions, people asked the same question, and I took it a bit more seriously.”

This dialogue resulted in “,” a play that invites the audience to listen just as Swartz did to the diverse voices speaking about the controversial, challenging topic of same-sex relationships.

91����Ƶ will host a performance of the show, which is free and open to the public, Sunday, Nov. 2, at 7:30 p.m. in Lehman Auditorium. Seating is on a first-come, first-serve basis, with doors opening at 6:45 p.m. A talkback session will follow.

Characters share variety of perspectives

The main character of “Listening For Grace” is Daryl, a widower who learns that his son is gay. During the 70-minute performance, Daryl shares the stories of five other characters, each of whom provide a different perspective on same-sex relationships and faith. One of those voices is that of his deceased wife, Grace.

“The audience is continuously listening throughout this play, for Grace as a character who speaks truth to the main character in a way he can’t hear otherwise,” Swartz says. “They are listening for Grace, but they are also listening to hear themselves in someone else’s story.”

In shaping the play as an extended dialogue, Swartz invites the audience to honor their own viewpoints and those of others, and then to re-engage in continued discussion with respect and empathy.

Campus community invited to conversation

Recent performances at Mennonite churches and other locations around the country have often sparked the scheduling of conversation circles and small-group discussion, “sometimes even a few days later to allow people to process it, depending on how the community or congregation wants to handle it,” Swartz says.

91����Ƶ is following this model, hosting a follow-up conversation for campus community members at the Discipleship Center on Monday, Nov. 3, at 7:30 p.m.

Pastor , director of , says the play offers an opportunity for continued dialogue.

“I expect that most people will find their voice, or voices, represented by one or more of the characters in this play such that continued reflection and conversation with others might be prompted,” Burkholder said. “Ideally, this performance will offer a shared experience that encourages ongoing dialogue.”

Play, cast, have connections to campus

“Listening For Grace” has been performed at in Harrisonburg to a packed house of Swartz’s hometown fans.

Yet Swartz says he is delighted to be returning to 91����Ƶ and to Lehman Auditorium, the stage “where I learned to act” while studying theology at .

And it’s fitting that the play returns to campus, where Swartz debuted an early script at a closed reading in the fall of 2013. Since that time, the play morphed dramatically, most notably from an ensemble to a solo cast, and from recorded music to on-stage accompaniment.

Music at the Nov. 3 performance will be provided by pianist Phillip Martin ’13 and celloist Justin Yoder (when Justin is unavailable, 91����Ƶ student Chris Yoder contributes in this role).

All of 91����Ƶ’s ODAC-sponsored sports were represented on the All-Academic Team.  Men’s volleyball competes in the Continental Volleyball Conference and is not eligible for the ODAC team.

The ODAC All-Academic Team eclipsed 1,000 student-athletes for the seventh consecutive year and set a new high-water mark for conference honorees for the fourth year in a row.  With representatives from each of the 17 ODAC institutions (including Catholic University for football only and Greensboro College and Notre Dame of Maryland University for swimming only), 1,459 student-athletes earned recognition on the 2012-13 ODAC All-Academic Team.

Eligibility for the ODAC All-Academic Team is open to any student-athlete that competes in a conference-sponsored sport, regardless of academic class.  He or she must achieve at least a 3.25 grade point average for the year to be considered for an ODAC All-Academic Award.

The entire list of Royals named to the ODAC All-Academic Team is listed below.

Nels Akerson – Cross Country, Track & Field
Elizabeth Alderfer – Cross Country, Track & Field
Sonja Anderson – Field Hockey
Kayley Argenbright – Women’s Basketball
Trey Barrett – Men’s Basketball
Ruthie Beck – Softball
Jennifer Blankenship – Women’s Basketball
Jessica Blanks – Field Hockey
Carol Brinkley – Field Hockey
Jonathan Bush – Men’s Soccer, Track & Field
Hannah Chappell-Dick – Cross Country, Track & Field
Hannah Clemmer – Cross Country, Track & Field
Melissa Cox – Field Hockey
Nicolette Cuevas – Softball
Mary Beth Danaher – Field Hockey
Patty Danaher – Cross Country, Track & Field
Jenessa Derstine – Field Hockey
Alli Eanes – Cross Country, Track & Field
Katie Eckman – Cross Country
Ryan Eshleman – Men’s Soccer
Jonathan Estrada – Baseball
Daniel Friesen – Men’s Soccer
Chantelle Garber – Field Hockey
Jessica Goertzen – Women’s Volleyball
Naomi Good – Women’s Soccer
Patrick Graber – Cross Country, Track & Field
Derek Harnish – Men’s Soccer
Bethany Hench – Field Hockey
Ryan Henschel – Baseball
Brooke Hensley – Softball
Jordan Hollinger – Men’s Soccer
David Hooley – Men’s Soccer
Holly Jensen – Women’s Soccer
Brianna Kauffman – Field Hockey
Janna Kaufman – Women’s Soccer
Rachel Kennel – Women’s Volleyball
Lanae Kreider – Cross Country, Track & Field
Jonathan Leaman – Men’s Golf
Parker Leap – Men’s Soccer
Mattie Lehman – Women’s Volleyball
Mollie Lehman – Field Hockey
Rachel Lehman – Women’s Volleyball
Lexi Link – Women’s Volleyball
Owen Longacre – Men’s Basketball
Karla Martin – Women’s Volleyball
Katie Martin – Women’s Volleyball
Phillip Martin – Track & Field
Ian Mast – Men’s Soccer
Mark Mast – Men’s Soccer
Saralyn Mast – Cross Country, Track & Field
Brittany McDonaldson – Women’s Golf
Thomas Millary – Cross Country
Katie Miller – Women’s Volleyball
Michelle Miller – Women’s Volleyball
Kaitlyn Morris – Softball
Austin Mumaw – Men’s Soccer
Joel Murray – Men’s Golf
Dan Nafziger – Cross Country, Track & Field
Jolee Paden – Cross Country, Track & Field
Jesse Parker – Cross Country, Track & Field
Hannah Patterson – Track & Field
Alicia Poplett – Women’s Soccer
Jess Rheinheimer – Women’s Basketball
Steph Rheinheimer – Women’s Basketball
Sara Ritchie – Women’s Volleyball
Krista Rittenhouse – Cross Country, Track & Field
Adriana Santiago – Field Hockey
Meghan Schaefer – Cross Country
Juni Schirch – Cross Country, Track & Field
Jacob Shank – Men’s Soccer
Aaron Sloan – Track & Field
Kayla Smeltzer – Women’s Volleyball
Aaron Springer – Cross Country, Track & Field
Andre Swartzentruber – Men’s Golf
John Toney – Men’s Golf
Alena Yoder – Women’s Volleyball
Andrew Yoder – Men’s Soccer
Kegan Yoder – Men’s Soccer
Tyler Yoder – Men’s Soccer
Michelle Zook – Field Hockey

(Broadway, VA/Broadway) took second in the 100m hurdles while also charting the No. 5 run in 91����Ƶ history.  His time of 15.82 in the finals got him a silver behind the winning time of 15.53 from Ben Martindell of Bridgewater.

(Pottstown, PA/Owen J. Roberts) won the 400m hurdles in his first try at the event.  He crossed the finish in 58.34, ahead of Martindell at 59.02.

In the 100m dash, (Syracuse, NY/East Syracuse Minoa) showed the biggest improvement between his preliminary and his finals time, taking second at 11.47.  He just missed the gold to RC’s Trevor Hunt at 11.43.  He also won the 200m dash, ahead of teammate (Fork Union, VA/Louisa County).  McBride broke the tape in 23.28, followed by Allen at 23.56.

(Philadelphia, PA/La Salle) won the 400m by nearly a half second, clocking in at 51.47.

(Harrisonburg, VA/Harrisonburg) took the gold in the 1500m run, finishing six seconds ahead of teammate (Wichita, KS/Wichita East).  Nafziger’s winning time was 4:17.04, while Parker came in at 4:23.00.  (Mount Joy, PA/Donegal) took sixth place in 4:35.61.

Nafziger and Parker also highlight the 800m.  Nafziger took fourth with a time of 2:04.70 while Parker also pointed, getting sixth in 2:10.98.

In the relays, the 91����Ƶ team in the 4x100m took second and charted the No. 7 time in 91����Ƶ history.  The squad of Robinson, Allen, Watson and McBride crossed in 44.04, just behind Bridgewater’s foursome in 43.73.

The 4x400m team didn’t set an 91����Ƶ time, but did manage to win the event at the meet.  Bush, Robinson, (Nelson, VA/Nelson County) and Watson combined for a time of 3:31.92, winning by more than three seconds.

In the field events, (Harrisonburg, VA/Eastern Mennonite) and (Dalton, OH/Central Christian) were in a group of four men who each had a best jump of 1.82m.  Vrolijk ended up second based on jumps, while King settled for fourth.

Allen won the long jump and took second in the triple jump.  In the long jump, the senior landed at 6.63m, while in the triple he measured at 12.22m.

(Ooltewah, TN/McCallie School) led the way in the throws.  He won the javelin with a fling of 47.40m, the No. 7 distance in the 91����Ƶ record books.  Sloan took third in the hammer throw with the No. 6 measurement in 91����Ƶ history at 32.15m.  Then in the shot put he just missed gold, getting second in 11.29m, behind the winning throw of 11.54m.

The Royals grabbed 152 points for the team win, ahead of host Roanoke at 142.

On the women’s side, Chafin Brumfield (Harrisonburg, VA/Spotswood) and Jolee Paden (St. Joseph, IL/St. Joseph-Odgen) had big days in the middle distances.  Brumfield won the 800m run in 2:30.35, with Paden taken second in 2:32.77.  Hannah Patterson (Puyallup, WA/Mountainview International) was fourth in 2:44.27 while Saralyn Mast (Gap, PA/Lancaster Mennonite) took sixth in 2:48.99.

Paden then won the 1500m by 4.51 seconds.  Her time of 5:05.15 earned the gold and the No. 8 spot in the program records.  Brumfield also grabbed a No. 8 all-time spot in the 400m.  She finished third at the meet in 1:03.19.

Becca Borg (Gig Harbor, WA/Peninsula) approached the 91����Ƶ record in the javelin, taking third place at the Roanoke meet in the process.  Borg speared at 30.18m, which was second in 91����Ƶ history only to Connie Steiner’s throw of 33.08m in 2004.

Alyssa Bane (Strasburg, VA/Strasburg) also earned points in the throws.  She just missed her PR in the hammer throw, taking fifth at 31.18m.  In the discus, the sophomore landed at 28.14m, good for sixth place.

The Lady Royals finished with 48 points, taking third place at the meet, ahead of Hood College with 38.  Host Roanoke easily won with 243 points.

The Eastern Mennonite track teams are busy next weekend, participating in two meets.  A group of athletes will go to Lexington on Friday and Saturday for the VMI-W&L Carnival.  Another group will also participate in the Jopson Invitational in nearby Bridgewater.

Junior (Harrisonburg, VA/Harrisonburg) highlighted the men’s side, as he took down 91����Ƶ records in both the 1000m and mile runs.  In the one mile, Nafziger crossed the finish in 4:26.77, breaking Kevin Beachy’s record of 4:28.96 which was set in 2007.  He was also the top D-III finisher at the meet, which was filled with athletes from all three NCAA divisions.

Freshman (Grottoes, VA/Spotswood) had a personal record in the mile, grabbing the eighth-best time in 91����Ƶ history at 4:35.86.

Nafziger also broke the school record in the 1000m, as he was sixth overall at the Liberty Open and the second D-III finisher.  His time of 2:35.32 beat out Richy Bikko from 2009 by more than three seconds at 2:38.71.

Orellana was again close behind, taking the fourth spot in the 91����Ƶ books at 2:48.02.

(Dalton, OH/Central Christian), in his first year of competing in the high jump, nearly broke the school record.  The junior cleared the bar at 1.89m (6-2.25ft) to take second among D-III athletes at the meet.  King’s height was also second only to (Fork Union, VA/Louisa County), who set the record of 1.92m (6-3.5ft) in 2009.  (Harrisonburg, VA/Eastern Mennonite) tied his personal best from last week, which has him tenth in 91����Ƶ history at 1.79m (5-10.5ft.)

Allen, returning to the team for his final season after missing a year on his cross cultural study, notched his PR in the 60m dash.  He timed in at 7.38, which also landed him fifth in 91����Ƶ history.  (Syracuse, NY/East Syracuse Minoa) crossed the finish in 7.54.

In the 400m dash, (Pottstown, PA/Owen J. Roberts) had a solid finish, as his time of 53.08 had him third among the D-III runners.  (Philadelphia, PA/La Salle) was a fraction back at 53.34.

The Royals had a busy field in the 200m dash, as Bush led a trio of runners with a time of 24.14.  Watson came in at 24.19, with Allen crossing in 24.21.  In the 800m run, (Mount Joy, PA/Donegal) finished one spot ahead of teammate (Dayton, VA/Benjamin Logan).  Their times were 2:10.93 and 2:13.29, respectively.

In other field events, Allen, although rusty in his return to the triple jump, was still the second D-III finisher, as his best leap totaled 13.11m (43-0.25ft).

(Ooltewah, TN/McCallie School) just missed his PRs in both the shot put and the weight throw.  In the shot, he charted an 11.85m (38-10.5ft), while he landed at 11.93m (39-1.75ft) in the weight throw.

For the women, what they lacked in quantity on Saturday they made up for in quality.

Hannah Chappell-Dick (Bluffton, OH/Bluffton), a week after breaking the 91����Ƶ record in 800m, added two more program marks to her trophy shelf.  In the one mile run, the freshman cruised across the finish in 5:12.89.  She was the top collegiate runner at the meet, notched the top time in the ODAC this season, and broke her own school record by more than 12 seconds.  Chappell-Dick had already set the 91����Ƶ record in her first meet on Dec. 1, clocked then at 5:25.09.

Classmate Jolee Paden (St. Joseph, IL/St. Joseph-Odgen) had actually broken Chappell-Dick’s first record in the event in an earlier heat, clocking a time of 5:24.93.  Paden settles for second on the 91����Ƶ chart, along with the third-best time in the ODAC this year.  Hannah Clemmer (Harleysville, PA/Christopher Dock) crossed in 6:03.30 at the meet, with Saralyn Mast (Gap, PA/Lancaster Mennonite) a few steps behind in 6:13.08.

In the 3000m run, Chappell-Dick added a third 91����Ƶ record.  She was the top D-III finisher with a time of 10:48.48, beating Andrea Good’s record of 10:51.49 from 2002 by just over three seconds.  It was also the third-best time in the ODAC this year.

The only other Royals women running at the Liberty Open on Saturday were Chafin Brumfield (Harrisonburg, VA/Spotswood) and Juni Schirch (Goshen, IN/Goshen), and both set PRs in the 800m.  Brumfield finished with a time of 2:33.67, taking ninth in 91����Ƶ history.  Schirch charted 2:34.68, good for tenth in the program’s books.

The Eastern Mennonite teams head south again next weekend, participating at the JDL Fast Track Invite in Winston-Salem, NC.