The enchanting image of the Christmas crèche, so dear to the Christian people, never ceases to arouse amazement and wonder. The depiction of Jesus’ birth is itself a simple and joyful proclamation of the mystery of the Incarnation of the Son of God. The nativity scene is like a living Gospel rising up from the pages of sacred Scripture. As we contemplate the Christmas story, we are invited to set out on a spiritual journey, drawn by the humility of the God who became man in order to encounter every man and woman. We come to realize that so great is his love for us that he became one of us, so that we in turn might become one with him.
With this Letter, I wish to encourage the beautiful family tradition of preparing the nativity scene in the days before Christmas, but also the custom of setting it up in the workplace, in schools, hospitals, prisons and town squares. Great imagination and creativity is always shown in employing the most diverse materials to create small masterpieces of beauty. As children, we learn from our parents and grandparents to carry on this joyful tradition, which encapsulates a wealth of popular piety. It is my hope that this custom will never be lost and that, wherever it has fallen into disuse, it can be rediscovered and revived. (Pope Francis)
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Pope Francis issued this apostolic letter during his recent visit to Greccio, the site of the first nativity scene or Christmas crèche. I never knew that Saint Francis was the creator behind this Christian phenomenon. Francis, the Pope not the Saint, goes on to explain the meanings behind the symbology and the proper place of the nativity scene in the faith and lives of Roman Catholics. You don’t have to be “raised by Jesuits” to appreciate this letter. It is far more a historical and anthropological study than an evangelical sermon… unless you’re looking for an evangelical sermon. Enjoy.
I was attracted to this letter because the nativity scene was part of every Catholic house at Christmas I ever entered in my life. My house is no different. Every year I set up the same Goebel figures that I set up for SWMBO’s and my first Christmas in our own house in Mililani Town, Hawaii. I think we bought the set at the Pearl Harbor Base Exchange. It wasn’t all that expensive and we’ve only added the two camels and a sheep in all these years. We like it and it serves to remind us every day of the season of the meaning of Christmas to Christians.
When I was growing up, my family would make at least one trip to downtown Waterbury, Connecticut to see the Christmas decorations and lights. One of the highlights was the massive Christmas crèche set on the city green. It included elaborate cave and village scenes with scores of figurines. Very impressive and without a hint of controversy in the late 50s and 60s. Waterbury went well beyond the Christmas crèche as evidenced in this story of a unique landmark of the 50s, 60s and 70s.
2023 update: This year I’m starting another tradition. During our first Christmas in Mililani Town, I bought a live tree from the local market and carried it home wearing a T-shirt and shorts. It was a weird feeling. We had no ornaments so one of the things we did to decorate the tree was to assemble and paint some wooden ornaments from a kit we bought at that local market. We now have more glass ornaments than our tree can hold so I’m putting another small tree in the corner decorated only with those wooden ornaments we assembled and painted for our first Christmas in our own house.
Merry Christmas to all,
TTG
Bethlehem, occupied West Bank – The churches of Palestine have announced the cancellation of all festive Christmas celebrations in an expression of unity with Gaza and rejection of the ongoing aggression against Palestinians, limiting them to masses and prayers.
In Bethlehem, the Lutheran Church decided that its Christmas nativity scene would reflect the reality of children living and being born in Palestine today, placing the symbolic Baby Jesus in a manger of rubble and destruction.
Interview with Pastor:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nY9hkS_B_sk
You might like to know that we have our lighted nativity set up on the garage roof in Mililani so as you come down our cul-de-sac it is in front of you. Schofield has their unit “holiday” cards set up by Foote gate, but obviously not Christian, except the Chaplains office. (We do have a Chaplain who says mass on occasion at St John parish in Mililani). There is a Palestinian Christian group that comes to the parish every year to fund-raise by selling hand-made items crafted from olive trees, including nativity sets.
scott s,
I took a look at Google Maps to see if my old place on Kipapa Drive was there. Not only is it there, but the color of those town houses is the same and the jalousie windows appear to be the same. The McDonalds is still there, but the stores in the nearby small shopping center are different. SWMBO remembers a bakery there that had the best malasadas and coconut donuts on the Island in her opinion. My God, Mililani has sure grown since the 70s.
My last year there I was running the RECONDO School and was practically the governor of East Range. I wised up about my Christmas tree choice. I drove my VW Bug up the dirt road into the mountains with a machete, climbed a tall Norfolk Island Pine, lopped off the top eight feet and “Bob’s your uncle” I had a Christmas tree. It was beautiful albeit very different and it lasted forever.
Pope Francis spoke again on the nativity scene today :
https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/256325/pope-francis-the-nativity-is-an-example-of-joy-and-amazement
“[St.] Francis doesn’t desire to create a beautiful work of art,” the pope said, “but through the Nativity scene to provoke amazement at the extreme humility of the Lord, at the hardships he suffered, for love of us, in the poor grotto of Bethlehem.”
The pope emphasized that the very essence of the Christmas season cannot be reduced to a mere historical moment or viewed as “a beautiful thing,” adding: “We need this religious attitude of amazement.”
We have always used real candles on our tree. The angel on top is the
one I made in kindergarten, 54 years ago.