AFTON — The Village of Bethlehem in Afton, Va., is a small replica of the actual City of David, and it comes to life each December when members of a little country church transform into first-century characters.
Visitors from all over journey to this miniature town in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains to experience Christmas in an ancient time.
These guests will often mention a sense of time travel. When the wind carries a bit of the supernatural, the firelight can turn back the clock by about two thousand years. Then a small gray donkey looks you straight in the eye, and the scent of spice and smoke transports you to a distant Middle Eastern land.
You are a foreigner — a stranger in this strange land, but you sense the excitement in the town. The sky is unusually clear, and that star — “Could this be the night?” you're asked by a blind woman, who is completely covered except for her eyes, which expand with brightness. “Do you think the Messiah might come tonight?” You hope so.
Time travel is not possible, you may say. But on those frigid nights, when long-necked camels pad the streets and humble villagers almost burst with the expectancy of their rescue — or Rescuer — visitors to Bethlehem are carried back to that first Christmas Eve.
The little village swells in anticipation. There is something strange going on here. The tension of this ravaged land is almost too much to take. How could God allow such oppression, such poverty and injustice? There is a woman up on the hill giving birth in a barn! Nobody seems to care except for that funny star that doesn't move; it keeps shining on that stable with snow flurries cycling up the beam of light.
The baby is a boy, a Son of David. If only that child could offer some hope. Is he the Messiah, or just another poor baby born into an occupied country? What is it that's happening here, and how can so many miss it?
The Roman guard on the hill can't believe what he is seeing. All these people come to watch an ordinary occurrence, yet an uncommon scene: a Hebrew baby born with the barn animals. As heavy armor cuts into his shoulder muscles, the wind freezes the metal making his entire body burn. He isn't used to the weight of armor, because he isn't really a soldier; this is only a costume, just a reenactment.
As he looks into the eager eyes of the visitors, however, he suddenly gets it. And when it hits him, his typically formidable facade yields itself to tears. All these people came looking for something, and they have found that “something” in this little baby. This event has changed everything. Is it really a rehearsal — a fleeting moment — or is this for real?
With frosty winds biting her face and stinging her eyes, the young woman in the hay can barely take her eyes off of her newborn baby. Yet she's still very aware of tall, winged beings singing a celestial and sacred song.
There are wealthy kings from the East worshiping the infant and presenting him with expensive perfumes and precious metals. What is even more amazing to her is the crowd shivering around the stable — all angels and visitors come to see her child.
As she is led by her husband through the mass, she hears the shouts: “See, O Israel, your newborn King! God's glory has come at last! Hallelujah!” Visitors and villagers alike bow and kneel as they pass. This woman, not the actual Mary but rather a costumed character, is completely altered. She is there in the moment — frightened yet overjoyed that Yaweh has chosen her.
A modern-day woman, bundled and ecstatic, approaches the mother. She kisses the sleeping baby boy's chilled forehead and weeping exclaims, “Oh, I love you, I love you. Praise you, Lord.” She is there, too: transported to another era, in which she gets to kiss the face of our Savior. Of course, it's just an ordinary baby, but in this moment, it is He.
The Bethlehem Experience is one you can never shake. Whether you come for the evening tour or you work shops and streets, it is well worth the journey and the frozen toes. Your senses will be stirred, your holiday renewed, and Christmas will mean something again. Come to Bethlehem and see for yourself: Jesus is in our time.
The Village of Bethlehem at Hebron Baptist Church, Dec. 14-23, 6-9 p.m. (Sun., Dec. 16, open at 4 p.m.); 66 Tanbark Dr., Afton, VA 22920. For more information, call (540) 456-6868, or visit www. bethlehemvillage. org.