The God and country tourism of Branson attracts loyal Christians

 Tuesday, November 1, 2022 

At the Dolly Parton Stampede, a night is a microcosm of life in these polarized United States.

On a hot and humid night in August, for almost two hours, a capacity crowd divided by North and South, Red and Blue, tried to shout louder than the other side, encouraged by the leaders who referred to the other side by creative, G-rated terms of derision.

The anxiety increased as two teams of riders clad as cowboys and pioneers of the Old West fought to demonstrate which side could ride fastest, by escaping the impediments and the occasional ring of fire, then breaking into songs as the audience applauded and consumed biscuits, Cornish hens, and corn on the cob by the truckload.

Out came the American flag, at the end of the night for a march past with a Dolly Parton soundtrack, all set to tell everyone once again that no matter where they came from, as red, white and blue are the color of their blood.

The show’s emcee, dressed up in a star-spangled outfit, said that there really is no North or South, no East or West as they are the United States of America. The emcee added that they are all united under one flag.

Then he questioned the crowd: Are they proud to be American? Slowly, Dolly Parton’s voice goes up saying America the Beautiful.

To Branson, St. Louis tourists were first drawn as a refuge where they could hunt and fish in its unspoiled wilds.

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