Salvation story reenacted at Journey to the Cross

Scenes from the death and resurrection of Jesus were brought to life in the annual Journey to the Cross celebration on Campion’s campus this past Saturday afternoon. Over 600 visitors attended the Easter event featuring a Jerusalem marketplace and a dramatic reenactment of the story of salvation.

The drama portion was directed by Pastor Leandro Bizama and Erin Johnson. Viewers followed Jesus through five scenes including the Triumphal Entry, the Garden of Gethsemane, Pilate’s Court, the Crucifixion, and the Resurrection. The scenes were narrated with the actors pre-recorded audio and featured live music.

Audience member Janey Padilla-Reyes reflected, “I liked how this year we walked with Jesus through the scenes and the live music was a good touch too. It impacted my life personally because I felt like I was really there with Jesus while he was going through this journey and it demonstrated how much he went through just for me.”

The production was repeated five times throughout the afternoon to accommodate the amount of visitors, with a Spanish version as a new feature this year. 

Visitors started the journey at a recreated Jerusalem marketplace located in the HMS Gym, organized by Natalie Barton along with many volunteers from the Campion Church. Each person was given golden coins to spend at booths or give to beggars. In traditional middle eastern garb, vendors sold a variety of goods including: scrolls with Bible verses, clay lamps, grape juice, bread, and fish. The Roman Army patrolling the village even had a booth to draft new recruits. 

Geraldy Marvel, senior, volunteered as an actor in the marketplace; “Seeing all the happy faces and just having a great time interacting with many people was such a blessing. One of the booths I helped with was selling grape juice: the finest in all of Jerusalem! It was an amazing experience and I had a great time being a part of Journey To The Cross,” Marvel concluded.

Over 120 volunteers from Campion Church, Campion Academy, HMS Richards School, and other area churches worked hard to put the afternoon together in a way that would be remembered by everyone. Erin Johnson commented, “This was our best year yet in Journey to the Cross. We had an amazing team that collaborated for months and I’m so glad people were blessed by the program.”

Toby Quillin, Student News Team