Calvary Baptist presented "A Night In Bethlehem" this year. We were the directors and decorators, and our whole family had roles in the production. It was a blast, and everyone who went to the event really seemed to enjoy it and get a lot out of it.
Our first job was to decorate the church to look like an ancient Bethlehem marketplace (sort of!). We started by decorating each room as a different shop. For example, the herb and spices shop looked like this:
We also had a bakery:
A census:
The all important signpost:
And many other stations. The idea was that at each station, an artisan would teach a craft that would have been an important part of Bethlehem society. The baker let visitors make flatbread. The herbalist let families smell common and not so common herbs and spices - including frankincense and myrrh - and then make sachets with mortars and pestles. In the painting shop, a beautiful nativity ornament was painted by each family.
The census taker recorded information about each family and also took some anachronistic photographs with our Bethlehem backdrop to mail to each family later.
We also had a jewelry shop, where participants made necklaces with beaten metal disks, beads, and leather.
At the weaving shop, everyone got to make baskets. 
The weaver even had a young apprentice to help some of the kids with their basket weaving. (Doesn't she look cute?)
The fun didn't stop there, though. Wandering around the Bethlehem streets were a variety of Bible times characters, including this ragamuffinly beggar.
You had to watch out for the tax collector and the Roman soldier! Don't they look like a scary pair?
It was even more fun when the characters interacted! The soldier liked to menace the beggar.
The tax collector stopped at each shopkeeper for his due.
And best of all, the shephards gathered up groups of people to visit the stable and meet the new parents of Jesus. (The stable was supposed to be outside, but it actually started snowing pretty heavily - so we made a quick change!)
This familiar family certainly seems to be enjoying themselves!
All in all, the evening was a huge success. I loved that it really illustrated the true meaning of Christmas, while also letting families have fun and fellowship. And it only took a few hours to clean it all up!
The weaver even had a young apprentice to help some of the kids with their basket weaving. (Doesn't she look cute?)The fun didn't stop there, though. Wandering around the Bethlehem streets were a variety of Bible times characters, including this ragamuffinly beggar.
You had to watch out for the tax collector and the Roman soldier! Don't they look like a scary pair?It was even more fun when the characters interacted! The soldier liked to menace the beggar.
The tax collector stopped at each shopkeeper for his due.And best of all, the shephards gathered up groups of people to visit the stable and meet the new parents of Jesus. (The stable was supposed to be outside, but it actually started snowing pretty heavily - so we made a quick change!)
This familiar family certainly seems to be enjoying themselves!
All in all, the evening was a huge success. I loved that it really illustrated the true meaning of Christmas, while also letting families have fun and fellowship. And it only took a few hours to clean it all up!
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