ABSTRACT
In the early 1570s, Christopher Goodman, a puritan divine newly returned to his native Chester following a period of exile to the continent during the reign of Mary, undertook to bring a swift end to Chester's venerable tradition of staging biblical drama. Blood in the Chester plays is precisely such a complex symbol. It stands outside of human time, Christ's flesh continuing to bleed until and even during the last judgment, just as fresh as it was on Good Friday. Blood redirects the course of history by subverting the claims of the devil and offering the prospect of redemption where none ought to be possible. With Mary in mind, Goodman also vehemently denied the legitimacy of female monarchs, a position that rendered his return to England upon Mary's death and Elizabeth's accession all the more complicated. In his gospel, Luke reports that Jesus led them out as far as Bethania: and lifting up his hands, he blessed them.
