Augusta church creates new spin on old favorite
by Rachel Dorf
This past weekend, The Augusta Assembly of God Church hosted “The Road to Bethlehem: An interactive journey,” as a unique alternative to the average Christmas show put on annually.
Visitors took a step back in time for the holiday season to experience a free indoor family event. The show was an effort to transport those who visited back to Bethlehem to experience the time of Jesus Christ’s birth as told through the eyes, and research, of church member and show producer Cynthia Lund. The interactive production, meant to engage visitors, took viewers through a journey for nearly two hours, with costumed shepherds guiding the way through rooms which had been transformed to represent each stop described in the Bible during Joseph and Mary’s trip to Bethlehem.
The Assembly of God Church had a goal; to make the experience as real as possible, to help visitors feel what it was like to be in the story, to bring realness to the experience so visitors were able to better feel the spirituality of it. From Roman soldiers and shepherds to Joseph and Mary and baby Jesus, the experience is meant to bring light to the church’s message; the true meaning of Christmas.
To experience the first Christmas scene with the baby in the manger, visitors first had to brave the Dark Room.
Guides explained that the Dark Room was meant to illustrate the personal mental battles Mary and Joseph went through as illustrated through the information Lund collected. Visitors listened as voices yelled and tormented Mary and Joseph. They then had to read a “scroll of assurance” to make the voices stop. The second room the shepherds led the visitors through was the city of Nazareth. The room was designed to imitate a busy market place; beggars and young children crowded the room along with Joseph’s carpentry shop.
The next room on the interactive tour was a representation of Bethlehem, which the shepherds highlighted with historical background to viewers of the interactive experience. Next was a hospitality house, where visitors were served honey bread and coffee. This was also the chance interested audience members were given to approach relatives of the couple known as Mary and Joseph to inquire about the birth of Jesus.
Finally, the last stop brought visitors to Royal David’s City. There, visitors acted out the Nativity scene, with Mary and Joseph, the three wise men and the shepherds. The actors danced and sang beautifully, captivating the audience with the music Lund said she wanted to ensure was a part of the experience of the show she produced.
In a production that takes a significant amount of The Assembly of God’s congregation, planning and rehearsal took place three months in advance.
Lund said the new take on an old story took her “decades in my head, but on paper for about two years” to write. Lund said the idea came to her after years of reading the Bible and visiting other nativities which always left her wondering why they were not historically accurate according to religious text. She also wanted to give people a more in-depth experience.
“This story is so personal yet it’s told at a distance,” Lund said.
With a musical background, including decades of band and choir in churches with contemporary music, Lund said the production just came together.
Lund said she wanted to give visitors a clearer picture of what really happened in Bethlehem according to their faith and to help clear up any misconceptions which may have clouded the birth of Jesus’s story.
“When you know the truth, the story becomes way more powerful than the traditional view of Christmas” she said. She pointed out that “The Road to Bethlehem” gave visitors history and culture lessons about the time period as well as an interactive experience. Lund explained the procedures of sacrificing a lamb, the importance of a Jewish marriage proposal and even gave visitors a small geography lesson.
Lund said her extensive research came from books, the internet and also messianic Jewish sources. And the production was a hit; every visitor was engaged in one way or another.
Church member Evan Petras said the real enjoyment was the attempt to keep a more accurate portrayal.
“I liked that they genuinely portrayed Jesus’s birth and the first month of his life,” Petras said.
Babe Ross, another church member said her favorite part was touring all the stops and getting to interact with the characters. Ross said the best thing she got out of it was “a deeper meaning and feeling of what Joseph and Mary went through on their way to Bethlehem.”
Ross also added that she hopes other visitors now better understand “the deeper meaning of Christmas, and that Jesus is the reason for the season.”
Pastor of the Assembly of God Church Dale Hazard said he hopes this experience will encourage people to think about the Christmas story.
“I want people to ask themselves, what does [the birth] mean to each of us personally?” Hazard said. “What is the reason? Hopefully, from what was portrayed here tonight, we can each come to an individual conclusion.”
Lund said they moved the show to two nights after their 2013 production brought with it feedback from viewers about their hopes to bring family members and friends to see the different take on the story they have known since their beginnings in their church. This year, the two nights brought in similar positive feedback, and Lund hopes to continue the show for as long as visitors and church members wish to see it.
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Dorf was hired as a contributing student writer in April, 2014. She enjoys volunteer work and is often busy with extra coursework through the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, preparing for her upcoming freshman year of college. Follow us on Twitter or check out our Facebook page for more updates!
