Every year, filled with emotion and memories and meanings dear to us, we prepare to set up the nativity scene. We go up to the attic or into the storage rooms where we keep our beloved figurines, the stable, the silver paper... We check whether everything is in order and whether there is anything we still need to buy, perhaps adding a character or a little sheep.Β
But have we ever wondered how the nativity scene came about? When was the first nativity scene created, in the modern sense of the term? It is attributed to Saint Francis; it was the Saint of Assisi who began this beloved tradition that has come down to us.
In the days before Christmas in 1223, Francis was in Greccio (Rieti) and had the idea of organizing a representation of the birth of Jesus for Christmas Eve. βThis is how our tradition was born: everyone gathered around the grotto and filled with joy, with no longer any distance between the event taking place and those who become participants in the mystery... Saint Francis, with the simplicity of that sign, carried out a great work of evangelization. His teaching entered the hearts of Christians and remains to this day as an authentic way of presenting the beauty of our faith anew with simplicityβ (Pope Francis, Admirabile signum).Β
Let us now review the characters whose figurines we take out of the boxes every year and free from the paper in which we wrapped them for fear they might break. What message do they convey? What do the shepherds, the sleeping shepherd, the gypsy woman, and the Magi remind us of, for example? And what emotions do the other characters arouse in us?
The shepherds perhaps remind us of something profoundly true: in life, we must always set out on a journey and never stop being simple.
And the sleeping shepherd? Who knows what he is dreaming about? He teaches us that in life we must never stop dreaming. And imagine the wonder when, upon waking, he saw Jesus!
What does the character of the gypsy woman make us think of? She reminds us of our need for conversion. We must abandon ourselves completely to God, giving up the desire to keep everything under control, including our future.
The angel tells us that God is with us and brings us good news: we are not alone.
The Magi teach us that we must never stop seeking the truth.
From the ox and the little donkey we must learn the attachment to reality that our Savior brings us.
Then there are the main characters: Mary, Joseph and Baby Jesus: a symphony of love that our ears never tire of hearing, a source of light that our eyes never tire of seeing.
Behind every character there is a βstoryβ that speaks of us; Editrice Shalom offers you a series of intense meditations centered on the characters in the nativity scene, written, among others, by Father Luigi Maria Epicoco, Father Dario Criscuoli, Father Giulio Albanese, Father Renzo Bonetti, and others. The meditations are collected in a Christmas novena that is a Β«small masterpieceΒ» (Costanza Miriano).
The publisher Editrice Shalom also offers a wide range of products to help you prepare in the best possible way for this special time of year.Β
Have a good journey and good reflections!
