VBS Ritual Crackdown

The Kingdom Caper was a Vacation Bible School theme used in 2003. Kids from near come together to play games, have snacks, dance, and learn bible stories throughout the week related to the theme. Kingdom Caper was an exciting theme! A Sherlock Holmes inspired London theme, and I was excited to spend a week with this theme as a mystery lover, even as a child. I was taken to several VBS weeks every summer, it was basically like free religious babysitting for the week. The particular church for this theme turned from fun to uncomfortable.

This particular VBS happened during the week of the summer solstice, with Saturday as the actual day. Monday began with us walkint to look at the cardboard cut out decorations for the week to oo and ahh. There was a cardboard double decker bus, a London clock tower, a detective agency, and a jail. We sit down in the sanctuary to start the day with an introduction and then go to the lesson room. The theme centers around "cracking down the character code." We were then told that we were supposed to be little detectives and crack down to report on someone's character while presenting our evidence. Then the adults would come together to decide if that child deserved a time out in jail.

I automatically felt strange after that lesson and we were all given small notebooks, magnifying glasses, and deerstalker hats. Kid immediately started writing in their notebooks as we headed to the craft room to make them look beautiful. there were stickers, foam, paint, markers, and glitter that we could use. Everyone decorates their notebook until a girl spills glitter all over another girl's notebook. The glittered girl automatically goes to the adults to "present her case and findings." The one who spilled is sentenced to time out in the jail during the duration of snack time even though she insisted on it being an accident. She was put into the cardboard box and we all headed to snack time.

I was then so nervous at that point. I was shaking with anxiety about how anyone could be next in trouble just because another kid said so. I sat down with my gold fish and Hawaiian punch. I ate some gold fish and drank down some of my punch, but because I was shaking when I put the punch back down, I spilled it onto another guy's snack. The guy then automatically headed for the adults and I was next to go to the cardboard jail before being able to finish my snack. I sat in there with the other girl who told me her name was Harley. I felt bad for her because she did not get to have any food or drink at all.

After a bit of us talking, I suddenly remember the money in my pocket and the Dollar General that was across the street from us. We then left quickly racing there and buying juice boxes, cracker, and gushers. We came back and munched them down and stuffed the trash in the purse I had so that no one knew we had something to eat. Later, the adults came back and let us both out for game time. We got to have a race and play on the playground before learning VBS dances back in the sanctuary again.

When we were dancing, the same boy that I spilled my drink on kept hitting me over and over again while we danced and I asked him to back off. He said that I was in the one in his space and he went to the adults again. I tried to explain that it was actually him who started it, but they still sided with him. I was to be in time out during craft time tomorrow, because no one was allowed to skip the lessons. Craft time was my favorite section, so I was upset when my mom picked me up. "Oh, the preacher's son," my mom said and waved to the boy who got me in trouble twice, "and the music minister's daughter," she also waved the the girl who was glittered. I then automatically knew why the adults believed them over those who went to time out.

The whole week continued like this where the two kids, who I found out the names were Joy and James, continued to make other's sit in "jail" for reasons that were just honest mistakes. Some missing a cool craft one day, not getting to eat at snack time the next, and then not getting to play games another. It was so stress inducing and I was glad I at least had my new friend to talk about it with, until her mom somehow found out what was going on, and by Friday she was pulled from the coming anymore. I was so upset that I snuck to the jail by the end of Friday, tore up the carboard, and tossed it far from the church before my mom picked me up to go home.

I was satisfied but scared in what the adults would do. The next day they blamed it on the people at Dollar General and went to go scream at them. The DG donated snacks to make peace. We had our fun VBS Saturday where we got to play on bouncy houses and blow up slides until the evening when a bonfire was started. I thought we were going to make smores, but it ended up being a ritual. We were all told to chant a specific prayer and poured our Hawaiian punch into the fire as we did, representing the blood of Jesus. Then we were told that Joy was the best of the week at "cracking on the character code." We all had to donate $5 to her for her "winnings." At most VBS weeks, you can donate to charity, but I guess the charity for this one was Joy herself.

We all gave unwillingly and then one of the adults came around and ripped something important off of us to throw in the fire. Mine was a headband that I had, Others was a stuffed animal they carried around or a bow in their hair. We chanted once again and I felt dirty and creeped out. "Joy now has all of your power!" We all left and the next day on Sunday when we danced to the VBS songs, it felt as if an entity had been called into the church. It felt scary and dark. I wanted out of there as soon as possible.

The next solstice, the church was hit by a tornado and burned in a fire all in the same week. When I heard the news it felt like I knew why. I was glad that church was no longer an option for the weekly VBS. From then on, there was just regular fun and excitement like there should be for that week of summer fun, and now every time I chose a drink at snack time I would choose lemonade. I never wanted Hawaiian punch ever again.