By Lindsay Peyton

FUMC Lufkin invites families to step back 2,000 years in time to take part in its annual “An Evening in Old Bethlehem.” Guests can stroll the streets of an ancient marketplace, wander into shops and see crafts from times past. They will meet the town’s inhabitants and eventually find a Live Nativity where the Holy Family awaits.

“We try to make it as realistic as possible,” Barbara Peterson, one of the event’s organizers, said. And that means an entire cast of characters will band together to bring the story to life. Guests first encounter the women at the well, which has been Peterson’s favorite role. She tells guests that she has not seen them before and asks where they live. She might say, “I haven’t heard of that town before. How did you get here? Did you ride a horse or donkey?”

Then, Peterson likes to tell the families, “I’ve heard there’s a young woman who just had a baby and that there’s a star shining over her. If you find the baby, will you come back and tell me?” This sets children off on a journey through Bethlehem to find Baby Jesus, an experience they won’t soon forget.

Peterson said sometimes young guests will run back to her exclaiming, “I’ve found the baby!” It never fails to bring tears to her eyes.

An Evening in Old Bethlehem, now in its 38th year, is scheduled for 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 8 and Saturday, Dec. 9. FUMC Lufkin takes over the George H. Henderson Expo Center, 1200 Ellen Trout Drive, for the first week of December to create the setting. Volunteers began moving the sets from storage on Dec. 3. “It takes two to three nights to build the city,” Peterson said. Then more volunteers add details – the hay, baskets, fruits and other supplies. “It will take all week,” Peterson said. 

Next, cast members – from FUMC Lufkin and Abundant Life UMC – begin preparing their scripts. Peterson explains that they remain in character the entire evening to create a magical atmosphere.  “We try to get everybody to interact like it’s back in the day,” Peterson said. “We get our cast to have conversations about what they’re doing.”

There are shops full of grain, spices and sweets. At the edge of the city, a blacksmith is at work, a fish shop is open. There are weavers, potters, fabric dyers and carpenters in action, as well as a synagogue ready for visitors. A roaming wedding party invites guests to dance the hora. “You don’t have to go in any specific way,” Peterson said. “You just experience it.”

As a former kindergarten teacher, she knows the power of experiential learning, which engages students in hands-on activities. During An Evening in Old Bethlehem, children can better connect with the Christmas story.

“It’s not just seeing it,” Peterson said. “You get to smell it, to hear it, to feel it.” Children might even try pomegranates, figs and honey almonds at the sweet shop – or smell bread baking. Each year brings different offerings depending on who volunteers.

An Evening in Old Bethlehem was the brainchild of FUMC Lufkin’s former director of education Melissa Wilkins Brigman.“She had this vision,” Peterson explained.

Church member Steve Paul, an art teacher, designed the sets – and before long, the event became a tradition for Lufkin residents and visitors from afar. Now, about 2,500 guests attend.

Peterson looks forward to helping with the event each year. Her son posed as Baby Jesus 33 years ago.

“A couple of years I didn’t do it, and it just wasn’t the same,” she said. “This is the way to start the season.”

In the past, church members with a baby have played Mary, Joseph and Jesus, but now the community is welcome to sign up for the special occasion. The families take shifts during the event.

Cast members have told Peterson about children who attended and did not know any of the Christmas story.

“That’s why we’re here,” Peterson explained.

And for the children who are familiar with the story, An Evening in Old Bethlehem brings magic and wonder to the reason of the season.

“Their families take them each year to relive it again and again,” Peterson said. “It’s our gift to the community.”