Performances of Faith at Orlando's Holy Land Experience
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Where Christ Dies Daily: Performances of Faith at Orlando‘s Holy Land Experience by Sara B. Dykins Callahan A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of Communication College of Arts and Sciences University of South Florida Major Professor: Stacy Holman Jones, Ph.D. Eric Eisenberg, Ph.D. Navita James, Ph.D. Daniel Belgrad, Ph.D. Date of Approval: January 22, 2010 Keywords: tourism, pilgrimage, heritage, sacred, faith © Copyright 2010, Sara B. Dykins Callahan To Rick: the reason. Acknowledgments I would like to thank all of the people who supported me through this process and who generously contributed their time and assistance. I‘ve dedicated this manuscript to my husband, Rick, whose love, patience, and faith in me are my foundation. I would also like to acknowledge Truman, Tula, and Ollie, for their ability to keep me sane: sitting on my lap when I was dejected, licking my face when I needed comfort, and always their uncompromising adoration. I would like to thank my committee members for their mentorship and their willingness to read this very long document. And thank you, Stacy, for your guidance and your unyielding belief in my ability to finish this project. Table of Contents List of Figures v Abstract vi Prelude: It Ends Here 1 Chapter 1: Genesis 3 Field Notes: July 14, 2007 3 To Tell the Old, Old story 4 Finding ―Jesus‖ 5 Building a Mystery 8 Mapping the Site 9 Controversy With the Jewish Community 10 TBN and the New HLE 12 Casting Lots: Administrative Reorganization 13 A Mixed Marriage: Theological Differences 14 Shrouded in Controversy 17 Other Christian-Based Parks and Museums 18 Local Sites 19 National Sites 19 International Sites 20 Historical Antecedents 22 Reading into Religion and Authenticity 23 Clarifying Authenticity 27 The Secular/Sacred Binary 29 Strange Bedfellows: Postmodernism and the Christian Master Narrative 31 The Implications of Simulation 33 Conclusion 35 Interlude: Journal, May 4, 2008 39 Interlude: God-Incidence, Field Notes, August 18, 2007 46 Chapter 2: I Tell You the Truth: Museum Status and the Educational Imperative 52 A ―Musement‖ Park 52 An Educational Imperative 54 i Identity Crisis 55 To What Purpose? 57 Museums and the Educational Imperative 60 Theme Parks 63 Precursors to the HLE 66 Chautauqua Institute‘s Palestine Park 66 World‘s Fair New Jerusalem Exhibit 70 Similarities to the HLE 73 Contemporary Museum Exhibits With Religious Content 78 Conclusion 83 Interlude: An Imagined Conversation With Timothy Beal, Journal, April 28, 2008 86 Interlude: The Scriptorium, Field Notes, June 27, 2004 95 Chapter 3: In Situ 100 Field Notes: July 7, 2007 100 Is It Real? 101 Museology and the Making of Museums 102 Authenticity, Actuality, and Virtuality 105 The HLE‘s Performance of Museum 107 Of Labels and Learning 107 The Orchestrated Model and the Co-Creation of Meaning 111 Into the Scriptorium 113 In Situ and In Context 115 The Objectification of Faith: Death of the Living Word? 116 Displaying Conviction 121 The Empowered Flâneur 123 Conclusion 127 Interlude: Journal, July 1, 2008 130 Interlude: Journal, August 28, 2008 132 Chapter 4: Heritage, Identity, and a Christian Homeland 135 Theming and Heritage at the HLE 135 Theming 136 Heritage 138 Living History Museums 139 Turning to the Past 141 Creating a Christian Homeland 142 Collectively Confiscating Jewish Ritual 143 The Powerful Draw of Blood 148 Field Notes: August 18, 2007 149 Ellnide‘s Performance of Pilgrim 152 ii Theoretical Approaches to Pilgrimage 153 Pilgrimage as Metaphor and Paradigm 155 A Portrait of Pilgrim History; Or Denying the Indigeneity of Native Americans 157 Heritage and Home as Catalysts for Change 161 Memory, Memorials, and Dark Sites 164 Memory 165 Memorials and Dark Sites 166 Onward Christian Soldier 169 Conclusion 172 Interlude: Journal, October 30, 2008 175 # Interlude: Good Friday, Field Notes, March 21, 2008 178 Chapter 5: And the Word Was Made Flesh 189 Field Notes: March 21, 2008 189 Passion(ate) Performances 191 Theatre, Law, and the Church in the United States 193 Introducing the Passion Play in the United States 196 Contemporary Passion Plays as Cultural Performances and Ritual 197 The HLE‘s Behold the Lamb: A Passion(ate) Play 200 Participating in the Passion: HLE Visitors as Spectactors 202 Witnessing as Spectacting 205 Bearing Witness as an Ethical Action 207 Replacing the Antagonist; Becoming a Silent Witness 208 Portrait of a Silent Witness 210 Suffering Through Simulacra: Bearing (False) Witness? 217 Field Notes: December 13, 2008 (The Scourging) 220 Field Notes: July 27, 2004 223 Suffering, Bearing Witness, and the Role of the Camera 223 Conclusion: Suffering Through an Execution 227 Interlude: Journal, July 28, 2008 230 Interlude: Journal, August 15, 2008 232 Interlude: Journal, July 6, 2009 234 Chapter 6: In the Beginning 236 Field Notes: June 27, 2004 236 The Beginning of the End of the Beginning 236 Behold, an Execution 240 Repression of the Violence of Execution 242 Sacrifice as Sacred Violence 245 iii Jesus‘ Death as Sacrifice and Execution 246 A Postmodern Passion for Pain? 250 Field Notes: June 27, 2004 252 Acquiring Embodied Knowledge of Pain and Suffering 255 Sacrifice Made Strange 256 Field Notes: June 27, 2004 259 Journal: December 21, 2008 259 Notes 264 References 287 Appendices 299 Appendix A: Photographs 300 About the Author End Page iv List of Figures Figure 1 Gates of Damascus 293 Figure 2 Bedouin Women Weaving 294 Figure 3 Sara Playing Samson 295 Figure 4 Moses and the Ten Commandments 296 Figure 5 Herod‘s Palace at the Temple Plaza 297 Figure 6 The Scriptorium 298 Figure 7 Bronze Altar in the Wilderness Tabernacle 299 Figure 8 Pilgrims in a Prayer Circle 300 Figure 9 Living Room Gallery 301 Figure 10 Roman Soldier 302 Figure 11 Roman Soldiers 303 v Where Christ Dies Daily: Performances of Faith at Orlando’s Holy Land Experience Sara B. Dykins Callahan ABSTRACT This manuscript focuses on performances of place and faith inside the Holy Land Experience (HLE), an edutainment complex nestled in the fantasy nexus of Orlando, Florida. A self-proclaimed living-history museum, the HLE includes animatronic Bible characters and musical dramas. The HLE enacts and embodies evangelical narratives of Christianity and Christian faith, and visitors to the park are asked to join the performances, blurring the distinctions between spectators and professional actors. I argue that visitors‘ performances of faith invest the space of the HLE with sacredness, while the location and design of the HLE infuses the space with elements of the secular. The HLE exemplifies the performative nature of the sacred and shows how sacredness is a process (a performance), not an inherent property. Through participant observation, interviews, and critical/cultural analysis, I engage the multiple meanings of the HLE with the intention of facilitating empathic understandings of the complex, embodied phenomenon of faith as it manifests in this hybrid space. vi PRELUDE It Ends Here 1And the word was made flesh and dwelt among us. 2That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life; (For the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness.) 3And his name is the Word of God. 4And they clothed him with purple, and plaited a crown of thorns, and put it about his head. 5And on him they laid the cross. 6And there followed him a great company of people, and of women, which also bewailed and lamented him. 7And my toes challenge the translucent barrier that keeps the crowd from blocking the path. I strain to see, to find the dying savior. Rick taps my shoulder and points in silence. Christ drags his brutalized body through the street. His knees break beneath the weight of the large wooden cross. Guards mock him; scream at him; kick him. I witness the agony in his dark eyes. 8And they were instant with loud voices, requiring that he might be crucified. 9And when they come to the place which is called Calvary they crucified him. 10And when they had crucified him, they parted his garments, casting lots upon them, what every man should take. 11Pictures. I take pictures trying to capture something of the dying Christ. I need a memory, a memento: proof. And then I realize my distance. I am numb and cannot feel His presence, His pain. I want to feel His pain. I try to lower my camera, to witness with my own eyes the horror and the sorrow. But I can’t. The Christ has turned a corner. He is gone. 1 12And all the people that came together to that sight, beholding the things which were done, smote their breasts. 13The crowd, too, seems numb, disinterested, restless. Where is the care for the dying Christ? Rick cares. He is the nonbeliever, but I see Christ’s pain moving through Rick’s face. I am jealous. 14And Jesus cried with a loud voice saying, Eloi, Eloi lama sabachthani? 15And I question, Why am I here? 16And Jesus saith unto me, Verily I say unto thee, That this day, even in this night, before the cock crow twice, thou shalt deny me thrice. 17My faith has left me: Judas. 18And ye are witnesses of these things. 2 CHAPTER 1 GENESIS Field Notes: July 14, 2007 ―Are you a Christian?‖ I knew the question had to be asked sooner or later, but I was still taken aback by Matthew‘s bold query. He was ringing up my coffee and handing it to me over the dark wood counter.