Mountain View United Methodist Church of Marietta announced today that Little River UMC of Woodstock and St. Andrew UMC of Marietta will support Mountain View’s 20th Annual Bethlehem Walk on December 6 – 7, and December 12 – 13, 2014.
“We thank Little River and St. Andrew for helping us make our 20th Bethlehem Walk the best ever,” said Rev. Bill Burch, senior pastor at Mountain View UMC. “For 20 years now, Mountain View has recreated the shops, the townspeople, the census takers, the Roman soldiers, all going about their business while an unnoticed miracle takes place in a small corner of the city. Of course, undertaking this requires a great deal of time and effort by a large number of volunteers.”
“Each night, more than 150 volunteers help us bring Bethlehem to life,” said Roger Patterson, longtime Mountain View member and “mayor” of Bethlehem Walk 2014. “That’s a tall order for a congregation that has an average attendance of 180 people at our Sunday worship services.”
According to Patterson, nearby Little River United Methodist church has committed its church van to help shuttle hundreds of visitors to Bethlehem Walk from the parking area at Davis Elementary School on Jamerson Road. Volunteers form St. Andrew will assist in setting up Bethlehem Walk, portraying townspeople, greeting guests, and helping out in a variety of other ways
“We’re very glad we can help bring people to this annual birthday celebration for our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,” said Bill Coady pastor of Little River UMC.
“St. Andrew is a very mission minded church, so our congregation members are delighted that we can help our Mountain View neighbors pull everything together for this wonderful ministry that they’ve been doing for so long,” said Rev. Mack Riley, senior pastor of St. Andrew UMC.
Bethlehem Walk 2014 will take place from 7 – 9 p.m. on Dec. 6- 7 and Dec. 12 – 13, 2014. The preschool morning performance is Friday, Dec. 12 from 9:30 a.m. – noon. Preschool morning reservations may be made at https://sites.google.com/site/bethlehemwalkatmvumc/.
Admission is free, but contributions to the missions of Mountain View are encouraged.
“Bethlehem Walk is a signature Christmas event that is free of charge and open to everyone,” Rev. Burch said. “The purpose of Bethlehem Walk is to focus our community’s attention on Christ as the center of celebration during the Christmas season,” said John Watkins, a Mountain View UMC member who has served as the Scribe at Bethlehem Walk for the last 10 years.
“We accomplish our goal by recreating the entire city of Bethlehem on our church grounds. Each night of Bethlehem Walk is a 2-acre interactive play where visitors can walk through the city’s streets and talk with the potter or the baker. People can see Roman soldiers open the city and watch the changing of the tower guards at the city gates. Visitors can listen as the storyteller weaves tales of the heroes of old and sign the census to show they were there.”
For more information or to volunteer or participate, please email mvumcbw@gmail.com.
Mountain View United Methodist Church originated with a group of 12 people attending services at the La Petit Academy in Marietta, Georgia. Their goal was to start a community church that would become a larger home for people in north Cobb County and south Cherokee County. The vision caught fire in the community, and the group eventually purchased land at Jamerson Road and Trickum Road. The church’s construction was started in 1986. Today, the church continues to grow and welcomes all persons to visit our church. Mountain View United Methodist Church is a friendly church whose members share open hearts, open minds and open doors.