Advent Calendar -Thursday of the Third Week: The Nativity Scene
"O Key of David, and scepter of the house of Israel, that openest and no man shutteth, and shuttest and no man openeth: come and bring the prisoner forth from the prison-house, and him that sitteth in darkness and in the shadow of death."
By now, most of us have probably started decorating for Christmas or perhaps we have already finished? But there is one piece of the decor which is still missing - the baby Jesus in the manger.
When I was little, my family's nativity scene was complete with baby Jesus and the Three Kings as soon as we set it up. It wasn't until later that I observed other Catholic families - hiding the baby Jesus until Christmas and moving the Three Kings slowly but surely toward the manger and finally arriving on the feast of the Epiphany.
Our manger scene was simple with a wooden stable and figurines. At school however, we scavenged the outdoors for moss, rocks, berries and greenery to adorn our student-made creche.
What does your nativity scene look like? Comment below and tell us about your family or cultural traditions!
- by Jane Carver
1 Response
Margaret Tyler
We are a family from Yorkshire living in Italy, this is our second Christmas here. One of the reasons we moved here was because Italy is a Catholic country and has a strong religious tradition. This time of the year there are cribs everywhere. We visited one village in the area that boasted 100 cribs. They ranged from the very big ornate to tiny little ones which fit inside a bottle. Every year three of the villages take it in turns to stage a live crib. A new baby each year playing baby Jesus.
In our home our crib is a structure my husband made many years ago which usually needs a little TLC each year. We had a bit of a disagreement this year as I felt the crib should be in the centre of the house but he wanted it to be put in our little prayer area in our spare room so he could pray privately in front of the crib. So that is where it is and baby Jesus is already in the manger. So I put a little manger in our sitting room which consists of a small basket filled with straw. I have put a few little ceramic angels around the crib with a candle near by. On Christmas day I will place a baby Jesus in the manger made of wood which my mother in law gave me many years ago.
Although we live in a small village and only have Mass once a week our crib in the church is huge. My husband has been helping our next door neighbour build the gospel scene which takes about two weeks. The crib is then hidden behind a curtain until the Mass on Christmas eve.
Blessings at this holy time from Tuscany
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Jane Carver
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