A DRAMATIC renactment of the Easter story of the Crucifixion attracted more than 100 adults and children to the highest church on Dartmoor on Good Friday on a perfect sunny day.

Families got into spiritual meaning of Easter on Good Friday by walking up Brent Tor, near Tavistock, while interacting with members of the community acting out a drama portraying the Scriptures’ story of Jesus’ crucifixion.

The story unfolded in stages on the steep walk up the tor, culminating in ‘Jesus’ being ‘nailed’ to the cross at the top next to St Michael’s Church. Parishioners enacted ‘Christ’s Passion’ which involved two sharing carrying a heavy wooden cross to the peak.

The Rev Hazel Butland, curate of Brentor’s St Michael’s Church, said: ‘For several years Brentor and Gulworthy parishes have enacted Christ’s passion on Good Friday as the heavy cross is carried up the tor to St Michael’s. It has been a fantastic day. We had 120 adults and 30 children or more making the walk and enjoying our Easter story.

‘We were blessed with the most wonderful sunny and windless day with amazing views over lovely Dartmoor from our small but beautiful church.’

She added: ‘It is very important that we tell the story of how much Jesus suffered for our futures. He was tortured and then most cruelly crucified. I’m so pleased so many people came to see our drama which is like a mystery drama. This was where we moved up the hill to the church listening to our excellent churchwarden Helen Harris as she narrated the story of our Lord’s Passion from a booklet comprising a series of 14 short Scripture readings. We stopped to perform different stages of the drama and Helen did a great job of encouraging the crowd to interact with the dialogue.’

Helen said: ‘As a former college teacher for 30 years I was very impressed how so many people paid attention for nearly an hour.’