'Faith Journeys' Heads to Oberammergau in 2020

During Lent and Holy Week, the faithful across Eastern Washington were waving palms, chanting hosannas, praying the Stations of the Cross and hearing the Passion story proclaimed in our parishes. These rituals remind us that Christ truly did die and rise from the dead. Similarly, every 10 years, a ritual in a small Bavarian village in Germany reinforces the reality of God’s salvation in our lives.

In the 17th century, the bubonic plague threatened Oberammergau. Troops spread the pestilence as they crisscrossed central Europe during the Thirty Years’ War. The plague induced terror across the continent. In Italy alone, as many as 1 million people died as a result of this pandemic.

In past outbreaks, mass hysteria took hold. The sick were abandoned. The dead were interred in mass graves. Roving bands of penitents flagellated themselves. Minorities were scapegoated, especially Jewish and Roma communities.

But in Oberammergau, the people made a deal with God. If God spares us, the citizens prayed, we’ll perform a Passion play every 10 years. The plague passed, so the Oberammergau Passion Play began.

In 1634, the villagers staged the first play. The script depicted salvation history through scenes from the Old Testament and Jesus’ final days. The modernized performance maintains 17th-century art forms like tableaux vivant, or still dioramas staged by live actors.

The villagers have produced the decennial play with few interruptions. They postponed the 1920 edition because of the fallout from World War I and skipped the 1940 production as a result of World War II.

Today, the play has grown into a massive production. It runs five hours and includes a meal intermission. There are more than 2,000 performers, musicians and technical staff — more than half the town! The play draws half a million people from all over the world, and the villagers run the show more than 100 times over the course of several months.

The production is what today we might call hyperlocal. Only village residents can act in the play and the rules are stringent. To qualify, you must have been born in Oberammergau, have married a local and lived there for 10 years or have moved there and lived there for 20 years.

Likewise, a local director is elected by the townspeople. The current director, Christian Stückl, happens to be a theater director by trade and has revitalized the play’s artistry. He has also excised some of the more obviously anti-Semitic tropes, such as the suggestion the Jews were responsible for Jesus’ death — advancing an effort the Catholic Church has helped lead after the Second Vatican Council.

If ever we begin to think of the Passion as a mere entry in the historical record, Oberammergau bears the modern witness of a people who, facing certain death, trusted in God and were passed over.

If you would like to experience this renewal of faith, Catholic Charities’ Faith Journeys program is offering the chance to attend the 2020 Oberammergau Passion Play. This experience of a lifetime will include an opportunity to see the play and tour the imperial cities of Prague, Vienna and Budapest. Contact Shelli Brotherton at 509.358.4257 or [email protected] to reserve your space today.