Baptist –
prepare the way of the Lord.
Season –
decorating, putting up trees and lights, buying gifts and sending cards
Focus today
– Beautiful tradition of Preparing the Nativity.
Origin, of
course – Bethlehem. Mary gave birth and placed her son in a manger – place
where animals feed – hay was the first
bed of the One who would become food for us – Bethlehem – house of Bread
Idea of a
Christmas Creche or Nativity – goes back to St. Francis – Greccio, Italy – 1223
Fifteen days
before Christmas, Francis asked a local man named John to help bring to life
how Jesus was born.
When Francis
arrived on December 25, he found a manger full of hay, an ox and a donkey. Mass
was celebrated, and, as a Deacon, Francis read the story of the first
Christmas. All could see, hear and smell what it was like! Here was God, God takes flesh, as a
Baby! How much God loves us to become
one of us!
When we set
up a Nativity in our homes or in our yards, we relive what happened in
Bethlehem. It becomes part of us!
Some
elements:
Stable or
cave – simple, poor, comes for all of us
Background
of starry sky – all seems dark , but God is with us!
Sometimes in
midst of ruins of buildings – new life in a fallen world.
Shepherds –
the first to see – the humble and the poor.
SEE
Mary – the
one who always said YES to God. We bring Jesus when we say yes!
Joseph –
with a staff or holding a lamp. Guardian and protector of family.
Three Kings
– followed a star to bring Jesus gifts - Faith is a journey – kept their eyes
on the star!
Christmas –
we place Baby Jesus there – it all comes alive – God becomes a child – hold
him. – there is joy and wonder. God acts
like we do – sleeps, takes milk from his mother, cries and plays. Our life is part of God’s life.
For adults – when we stand by the Nativity, we
are reminded when we were children – had a beautiful child-like faith. This is
what we want to pass on to children and grandchildren.
Nativity
takes many forms – but it always teaches us of the love of God, who became a
child to show how close He is to each one of us!
