By Zachary Keefer
Correspondent
For the first time, the Diocese of Camden will host a gingerbread church decorating competition to coincide with the secular start of the Christmas season. Bakers of all ages – amateur and professional – are encouraged to enter.
Registration for the competition will open around Labor Day and will close by late October, or when all slots are filled. Accepted entries will be on display from Nov. 17 to Dec. 29 in the Cumberland Mall, Vineland.
Father Robert Hughes, the Diocese’s Vicar General and Moderator of the Curia, thought of the idea when reflecting on “how to get people, in this time of the National Eucharistic Revival, to reflect on their parish church and understand it as the house wherein we celebrate the Eucharist.”
The competition is being sponsored by the diocesan Office of Family and Youth Ministries. With gingerbread houses being a staple of the holiday season, “This is an opportunity for us to immerse ourselves in faith – while having fun – during one of the busiest times of the year,” said Jose Rodriguez, the office’s director. The mall display, he said, “Will be a subtle reminder to shoppers what the season is really all about.”
Those taking part in the competition can enter under one of three categories: 1) parish families or 2) students ages 12-17 who attend a diocesan Catholic school, both of which must construct a church within their parish or school sending area, and 3) professional bakers, who can recreate any Catholic church, cathedral or basilica they choose.
“For professional bakers, we hope to showcase some of the great local talent working in South Jersey,” Rodriguez said.
A blue-ribbon panel will judge the gingerbread churches and award prizes to the most impressive structures, which will remain displayed throughout the season in the mall. Father Hughes hopes the venue will be instrumental in “sharing the Good News and helping people understand the work of our parishes and the Catholic community here in South Jersey.”
On select dates during the display’s run, local parish and school choirs are expected to perform Advent and Christmas songs. In addition, volunteers are needed for the 4-9 p.m. busy shopping time to help oversee the displays, and welcome curious shoppers or tell them more about the Catholic Church and its ministries.
“This competition and display are an evangelization tool,” Rodriguez said. For some who have fallen away from the faith, “seeing their churches could be an invitation to come back. Maybe they will be reminded of how they grew up in a certain parish or where they received their sacraments. Others may say, ‘I baptized my child in that church!’”
To learn more about the competition, volunteering, registration and prizes, contact Rodriguez at Jose.Rodriguez@camdendiocese.org or (856) 583-2908. The Cumberland Mall is located at 3849 S Delsea Dr., Vineland.
Rodriguez said he is looking forward to seeing how young people interpret their churches through their creations. For example, some may focus on a particular stained-glass window. Others may pay added attention to a statue outside. As youth construct their creations with gumdrops, icing and candy canes, parents may learn more about what stands out to them about their parish church.
“I’m going to be interested to see what they see,” he said.
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