The significance of the manger scene — an 800-year-old Christmas tradition
National Post, 24 December 2023
Families all over the world set them up at home, some as a pious devotion, others as a seasonal decoration
There won’t be a manger scene in Manger Square this year. Bethlehem’s civic authorities judged festive Christmas decorations to be unsuitable for wartime. That’s a pity, for the manger — or nativity scene, or crèche, or crib — is one of the most beloved Christmas traditions, and this year marks its 800th anniversary.
St. Francis of Assisi conceived of the idea in the little town of Greccio in 1223. Manger Square is called that in part because St. Francis made manger scenes so popular.
Families all over the world set them up at home, some as a pious devotion, others as a seasonal decoration. Whatever the reason, the centre is the manger, the feeding trough — think of manger, the French verb “to eat.” Long before Christians began to think of Holy Communion — the bread of life, the Body of Christ — the manger was there for the baby Jesus. And Bethlehem, too, which means “house of bread.”
The manger scene is set up with an empty manger. All the other figures are arranged. The figurine of the baby Jesus is only placed in the manger on Christmas itself. It’s a good lesson. Everything can be set up ahead of time, but the empty manger is a reminder that until Jesus comes, it is not complete.
A manger scene without Jesus is to focus on secondary things and neglect primary things. Throwing out the baby but keeping the Bethlehem is to empty Christmas of its principal identity and purpose. The placing of the baby Jesus in the manger — often done by the youngest child at home — is a powerful way to keep Christ in Christmas.
On Nov. 29, 1223, while in Rome, St. Francis received approval for the “Rule” of his new religious order, which in time came to be known as the Franciscans. The approval of the “Rule” was an essential and landmark step, but Francis was worried about the institutionalization of the spirit he desired to foster in the friars. So as he made his way back from Rome to Assisi, his thoughts turned to the humility of Bethlehem at that first Christmas.
He had been a pilgrim in the Holy Land earlier, and when he reached Greccio before Christmas 1223, he was struck with an inspiration. How could he share with the local townsfolk the simplicity of that first Christmas, the hardship of the Holy Family and the wonder of the shepherds?
He had a few of his fellow friars recreate the scene in a local grotto. There were no statues or figurines — there had never been a nativity scene before! It was a living scene, complete with live animals.
The giant nativity scene in St. Peter’s Square this year marks the octocentennial by including three of those original friars — and St. Francis — alongside the statues of Mary, Joseph and the animals. Some observers may well wonder why the “three kings” are dressed so roughly.
The friars and the villagers worked together and, it is recorded, Francis found it as he had envisioned when “the day of joy” came: “The manger is prepared, the hay is carried in and the ox and the ass are led to the spot.… Out of Greccio is made a new Bethlehem.”
Continue reading at the National Post.