Of course, in Greccio, there were no figurines—just a straw enclosure with an ox and a donkey beside it. On December 25th, brothers from the order and men and women from the surrounding areas gathered there to celebrate the memory of that holy night. This is how the tradition began: everyone gathered around the grotto, by the light of torches, filled with joy, with no distance remaining between the event being commemorated and those participating in the mystery.
Even today, creating a nativity scene inspires wonder because this tradition is not merely a way to relive the night of Bethlehem but a custom that touches everyone’s heart, even those who do not believe, as it speaks of brotherhood, friendship, humility, and peace.
Pope Francis, moved by his personal affection for this centuries-old tradition and for the saint who created it, has dedicated writings, reflections, and homilies to the nativity scene, now collected in this volume “Christmas at the Nativity”, along with an unpublished text.“With Christmas, divine life is joined to human life. The Christmas tree, then, evokes rebirth, the gift of God who unites himself with man forever, who gives us his life. The lights of the fir tree recall that of Jesus, the light of love that continues to shine in the nights of the world”.
Reflecting on the characters and elements that populate the scene—figures that have accompanied his own Christmases since childhood, including Jesus, Mary, Joseph, angels, shepherds, the Magi, the star, and the manger—the Pope invites us to discover the deepest and most intimate meaning of that timeless event: God’s love offered to every human being through the simplicity, poverty, and tenderness of a child.
“Dear friends, Christmas is this: Let us not let it be polluted by consumerism and indifference. Its symbols, especially the Nativity scene and the decorated tree, bring us back to the certainty that fills our hearts with peace, to the joy of the Incarnation, to God who becomes familiar: he lives with us, he gives a rhythm of hope to our days”.
From the introduction, dated 27 September 2023, let’s meditate the words of Pope Francis:
“Indeed, the Incarnation of Jesus Christ remains the heart of God’s revelation, although it is easily forgotten that its unfolding is so unobtrusive, to the point of going unnoticed.
Littleness, in fact, is the way to encounter God.
The shepherds in the manger are those who welcome God’s surprise and live in wonder at their encounter with him, adoring him: in littleness they recognize the face of God. Humanly we are all inclined to seek greatness, but it is a gift to know how to really find it: to know how to find greatness in that smallness that God so loves.”
on Christmas night there are two signs that guide us in recognizing Jesus. One is the sky full of stars. There are many of those stars, an infinite number, but among them all a special star stands out, the one that prompted the Magi to leave their homes and begin a journey, a journey that would lead them where they did not know.
On that night, made holy by the Savior’s birth, we find another powerful sign: the smallness of God. The angels point out to the shepherds a baby born in a manger. Not a sign of power, self-sufficiency, or pride. No. The eternal God is reduced to a helpless, meek, humble human being. God lowered himself so that we could walk with him and so that he could stand beside us, not above and far from us.
I am sure that the first Nativity scene, which accomplished a great work of evangelization, can also be an occasion today to summon forth awe and wonder. Thus, what the simplicity of that sign made St. Francis realize persists down to our own days as a genuine form of the beauty of our faith.
The full text of the introduction can be found in: https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2023-11/pope-francis-book-introduction-christmas-nativity-texts.html
Al Madina Al Jadida
