Be enchanted by the Nativity scene, pope tells Catholics
'The Christmas creche speaks to us of the love of God, the God who became a child in order to make us know how close he is to every man, woman, and child'
The Nativity scene is a simple reminder of how God became human to reveal the greatness of his love “by smiling and opening his arms to all,” Pope Francis said in a letter on the meaning and importance of setting up Christmas cribs.
“Wherever it is, and whatever form it takes, the Christmas creche speaks to us of the love of God, the God who became a child in order to make us know how close he is to every man, woman, and child, regardless of their condition,” the pope wrote in his apostolic letter, Admirabile Signum (The Enchanting Image).
Pope Francis signed the short letter Dec. 1, the first Sunday of Advent, during an afternoon visit to Greccio, Italy, where St. Francis of Assisi set up the first Nativity scene in 1223.
“I wish to encourage the beautiful family tradition of preparing the Nativity scene in the days before Christmas, but also the custom of setting it up in the workplace, in schools, hospitals, prisons, and town squares,” the pope said.
“It is my hope that this custom will never be lost and that, wherever it has fallen into disuse, it can be rediscovered and revived,” the pope said.
At the heart of even the simplest Nativity scene, he said, there is a reminder of “God’s tender love: the Creator of the universe lowered himself to take up our littleness.”
Then, he said, there is the fact that this baby is “the source and sustenance of all life. In Jesus, the Father has given us a brother who comes to seek us out whenever we are confused or lost, a loyal friend ever at our side. He gave us his son who forgives us and frees us from our sins.”
The magic of the season goes deep when — child or adult — gazes upon a Nativity scene and comes away knowing that “God’s ways are astonishing, for it seems impossible that he should forsake his glory to become a man like us.”
“To our astonishment, we see God acting exactly as we do: He sleeps, takes milk from his mother, cries and plays like every other child! As always, God baffles us. He is unpredictable, constantly doing what we least expect,” Pope Francis wrote. “The Nativity scene shows God as he came into our world, but it also makes us reflect on how our life is part of God’s own life. It invites us to become his disciples if we want to attain ultimate meaning in life.”
Knowing that some families keep to the essential characters and setting while others add all sorts of characters and buildings and streams and towns, Pope Francis said even “fanciful additions show that in the new world inaugurated by Jesus there is room for whatever is truly human and for all God’s creatures.”
The Vatican’s official English translation of the pope’s letter can be found here.
