Event Three: Religion

So it's Mesa in the morning, Scottsdale in the afternoon and now the third event is at a Mormon church in Tempe. After supper we load up three lawn chairs and drive to Tempe. The week preceding Easter this Mormon church puts on an Easter Pageant that basically consists of a play that brings you through the New Testament from the birth of Christ to the Ascension into Heaven. Well, as it turns out it is a very popular event that draws large crowds. Paul was grumbling about parking most of the way there and when we were close, I understood why. This was like Packer Sunday around the Stadium an hour before game time. There were cops directing traffic at the intersections and cars parked in every available spot for blocks around. After an average amount of grumbling we located a spot on a side street about a quarter to half mile from the event. We walk, carrying our lawn chairs to a large field in front of a stage that looks like it's a quarter mile away. On the way people were selling bibles, candy bars, and I think someone might of had a bottle of salvation. OK, I made up the salvation stuff. Every five steps someone was trying to hand us pamphlets. Couldn't tell you what they were since we resisted taking them. Once we made our way to the event, there must of been 5000 chairs set up in the grass facing the stage, almost all of them filled. Behind the chairs was a sloping ridge where blankets were spread out filled with even more people. You'd think we were attending a rock concert (without the smoke, drugs, and booze of course) with up to 8-10 thousand people attending. We slid along the back ridge slightly parallel toward the stage. We found a clear spot in the grass and set up our lawn chairs. Just as we sat down a guy behind us asks us to move because 'We have been here a long time and can't see over your heads because we are on blankets.' He repeated this until we picked up our chairs and moved them over 6 feet. Rough crowd, we couldn't figure out why if he was here so long he didn't take the spot in front where we set our chairs up.

Before the pageant began, the actors, in costume, roamed around the crowd handing out pamphlets or programs and visiting. After the second one offered a program to me, I took it just to prevent anymore actors hassling us. I don't know exactly why they were handing out programs, it was dark in the audience, and no way to read it. After we got back to the car I did take a look at it, but the whole thing was in Spanish. Oh well, at least while I was waving it around at the show it kept more actors coming up and offering me another one.

Twenty feet behind us is the sidewalk along the main road. Being a public walkway, anyone is allowed to stand or walk along it. So along the sidewalk are many of the competing Christian religions protesting with large banners and of coarse handing out propaganda to anyone who takes it. Once the show started, we had one protester yelling at the crowd about how we shouldn't be watching the brainwashing the Mormons were doing to us. Let's call him 'Born Nut Job'. He was the very vocal dude with the heavy beard and goofy hat, and shouting with the good book in one hand. While Jesus was throwing the merchants out of the temple on the stage Born Nut Job was telling me I was going to Hell to burn for eternity. Well this went on for a little while longer until one of the other protesters from a different denomination who was carrying a large banner near Born Nut came over and started discussing religion with him. Let's call him King James. King James took pity on us poor spectators and struck up a conversation with Born Nut Job so he would quit shouting across the audience disturbing the show for so many people. Another denomination's representative chimed in to the conversation at first and I thought there might be a round of fisticuffs on the sidewalk behind us. But they settled down and the technique worked in quieting Born Nut down. Not all the denominations participated in pacing and yelling from the sidewalk. Roman Universal had a wood vendor's stand set up at the intersection with a full array of religious paraphernalia. I suppose Roman figured he might not be able to change to many people's minds, but at least he'd have their money.

The show was professionally done, and involved hundreds of actors. But the part I enjoyed the most was the spectacle which included the 'christian' protesters and vendors giving it the feel of a large political rally or sports event. I have to believe even a devout christian would look at this with a cynical eye.

Well, what a way to end a busy day. The next couple of days have been much quieter, and this Easter Sunday is just about finished. The next couple of days Paul and Shirley have to start packing up for the trip home. Wednesday we move from the RV park and move to Usary Park for a couple days of camping before heading back to Wisconsin around Friday.