Heart's Rebirth is the story of the Bennett family, struggling with dysfunctionalism and forgiveness on a Christmas evening. In sharp contrast to all that Christmas is supposed to represent, Chris Bennett witnesses her family tearing itself apart, each one confronting the harsh "reality" that there is no reason to live and no one to look out for except "number one." The return of the Bennett's "prodigal son," Will, does nothing to help the sorry situation.
Interleaved with this modern-day tragedy, which we can see rehashed around us every day of our lives, is the story of quite a different Christmas, spent in a manager, in Bethlehem. Mary tries to come to grips with the incredible knowledge that the baby she is holding is, somehow, the Messiah.
As the Bennetts move closer to self-destruction, and long-held secrets begin to come out, we cut again to Mary, this time in the dark hours between the crucifixion and the resurrection three days later. Mary and John struggle with the same answerless dilemma that the Bennetts face: what does life mean without Jesus?
Ultimately both the Bennetts and the disciples encounter the same Answer. Jesus' resurrection reveals him to be the Solution: both to Mary and John as they discover the fulfillment of God's plan, written millenia ago, and also to Chris Bennett, wrestling with the modern world two thousand years away.
A copy of the play and author's notes on the manuscript are available in Postscript and Adobe Acrobat (PDF) format.
If you're interested in performing Heart's Rebirth, you'll probably want to take a look at the author's notes.