Who’s who at the Nativity? More importantly, are you going to be there?
– the Maul-Hall nativity
Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared among them, and the radiance of the Lord’s glory surrounded them. They were terrified, but the angel reassured them. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people.
Each new Advent, Rebekah and I try to place our nativity somewhere it hasn’t been before. Also, the number and identity of the participants varies from year to year.
But each iteration has one thing in common, and that is the core olive-wood ensemble of Mary, Joseph, the baby Jesus and a couple of key shepherds and magi.
– our children in 1987
Some years there is quite the crowd pressing in around the baby Jesus. And when our children (Andrew and Naomi) were little the stable behind the inn sometimes welcomed many less conventional visitors. It wasn’t unusual to see camouflaged army guys with dolls, and various Star Wars characters show up along with lego men, then our own Peaceable Kingdom as lions and tigers and bears and more joined with the farm animals to worship the newborn king.
Come one come all:
– Mary, Joseph, Jesus… and some new friends
For 2023, finding a new place for the birth was not so hard (there is a lot of room at this inn!). The cast of characters, however, has necessarily scaled down. Then again, so long as the regular “ensemble cast” is in place, it’s pretty much “come one come all” for the visitors.
But I must admit I was a little surprised at a couple of the characters who found their way into the box making the trip to Tarboro. It’s almost as if there had been shenanigans in the attic during the year, and a couple of strays managed to bypass security and crash the party.
Hence the little helmeted Viking guy getting close in to Jesus, the loud braying donkey who is obviously very excited to be there, the pig, and – if you can see it – the tiny cat down at Joseph’s feet. This morning, even the gaily festooned llama trotted over to get in the photograph!
Angels of all sorts:
– Angel in the background
One thing we always put some serious thought into is the angel – sometimes a whole heavenly host and at times a solo act.
One year we had as many as several dozen in the chorus, bunched together on a few Christmas tree limbs when the nativity was down among the other gifts. Then in 2019 it was our Dresden Angel. In 2021 we used the spectacular Angel With Heart, and this year the birth of Jesus is situated under Peter Max’s evocative Statue of Liberty.
Lady Liberty makes an imposing angel, don’t you think?
The most important question, not so much for decorating but for each one of us as pilgrims on the path to Bethlehem, is “Are we going to show up?”
Are you? I know that I am. After all, Jesus has always showed up for me – DEREK
What can I give him? Poor as I am If I were a shepherd I would give a lamb If I were a wise man I would do my part But what I can I give him Give him my heart Give him my heart.
