A Holy Land Experience

(Orlando, FL: 8 Feb 2010) In the theme park Mecca of Orlando is a surprise and incredibly unique park called The Holy Land Experience. Trinity Broadcasting Corporation owns and manages the park which has been around for 9 years and, as the name states, tries to provide a mini experience of the Holy Land through a Christian and Biblical perspective. You enter through Noah's Ark like animal menagerie on one side and a manager scene on the other side; you walk through streets that are filled with characters in 1st century Palestine costume along buildings and displays made to look authentic to the time. There is a an outdoor 1/6th scale replica of Herod's Temple that existed in Jerusalem at the time of Christ. There are indoor exhibits/attractions like the Wilderness Temple, where a man dressed like a Levitical priest blows the Shofar horn and explains and acts part of the Passover sacrificial ceremony. In another building is a huge scale model of the city of Jerusalem at the time of Christ. A man stands in the middle of the model and explains the history of Jerusalem from the time of it's founding by King David from the City of Jebus to the razing of the city by the Romans in 70 AD. A building called The Scriptorium houses one of the largest private collections of Biblical documents and manuscripts in existence. Small groups of visitors are moved through 14 rooms of artifacts and displays every seven minutes, telling the story of the translation and preservation of the Bible over thousands of years. One room has a copy of Matthews Bible, which was an English translation done in the early 1500's in England. This was the period in English history of the oppression of religious worship and limited freedom. The copy of Matthew's Bible in the collection actually has a blood stain across the pages where the owner was attacked and brutalized for owning a Bible!
We saw an abbreviated street play of the trial and crucifixion of Jesus. The strangest experience of all was having communion with John and Jesus. After communion Jesus came through the crowd and touched each person and pronounced blessings on all (it was weird).
There were not huge crowds the day we went, but I will commend TBN for taking an opportunity to share the gospel at every opportunity.
This was truly an unexpected and pleasant surprise...A Holy (land) Experience in Orlando!