Dear Episcopal
Church Family in Southern Virginia,
The crèche
is surely one of the most enduring traditions of the Christmas season. During the holidays many churches manage to
display one somewhere on their property.
Crèches really vary in size – from a small display set on a table in the
back of the church or parish hall, to a life-size, elaborately lighted one in
the church yard. And there are a few
industrious congregations that even perform an outdoor living crèche, replete
with live animals and costumed congregants.
Likewise, crèches
are popular in homes. I grew up watching
my mother set one up each year with delicate precision on the dining room
sideboard. The figurines were made of
china. I can still remember the “negative
feedback” my baby brother and I received one Christmas when we “borrowed” Joseph
to lead our army of plastic toy soldiers into battle.
Lizzie and
I have a crèche that was given to us years ago as a wedding present. Rather than made of china, ours is made from
olive wood from the Holy Land. It appears to be indestructible – which is a
good thing after raising three children.
Each Christmas Lizzie still sets it up on our dining room sideboard –
just as my mother did – just as her mother did.
Regardless
of size or location, all crèches have a couple of common attributes. The first and most obvious are the characters
– Mary, Joseph, barn animals, wise men, sometimes shepherds, maybe an angel or
two, and, of course always, the baby Jesus.
A second
and less obvious attribute is that crèches are opened depictions. The barn scene is always displayed outwardly
toward the observer – not unlike a stage play is displayed outwardly toward an
audience. Each crèche means to tell a
story – the story of Jesus birth. Yet, this
telling is about more than the mere conveyance of historical fact. The crèche
is an attempt to dramatize something holy, to elicit in an observer a
first-hand experience of the abiding peace, tranquility and joy that so
characterize the essence of the miracle of the Incarnation. Also, the crèche dramatizes the startling
news that God has opened his home to the
whole world. In the birth event God
literally invites the whole world in to his inner sanctuary to meet his newborn
son.
Despite how
commonplace it has become, I believe the crèche tradition continues to have
profound implications for how we - as the Church - are to understand our role
in the modern world. The real challenge
for the Church today is not displaying
the crèche, as much as it is actually being
the crèche - being communities of faith that are living sanctuaries, places
defined by peace, invitation, openness and holiness.
Last month
I received several emails from people expressing their concern over the fact
that the Washington National Cathedral had recently decided to invite the Muslim
community into their sanctuary for weekly prayer services. At first I too raised an eyebrow. But then, upon further reflection, I was
struck by the thought that such an action is exactly the kind in which the Church should be engaged. If we as
Christians cannot offer sanctuary – places of safety that are open to others in
the name of Peace - then who in this world can?
Is such openness not reminiscent of the openness that drew the Magi to Bethlehem? Likewise, isn’t it our call to be an open manger
that allows for conversation around the
real difficult, “sticky wicket” issues which now divide the people of the earth? And are we not to demonstrate by example how
we might live together in our differences?
After all, at Christmas, God provides a safe place for his child to be
born and then invites the whole world
- without discrimination - to visit him there.
Is this not our calling too?
The crèche
is a wonderful, simple, and enduring Christmas tradition – whether it’s the
coffee table version or a church pageant casted by excited, bright-eyed
children. It is also a powerful reminder
that, for Christians, our truest exercise of that tradition will always be when
we bear gifts of peace and reconciliation and create sanctuary for meeting the
stranger. For the crèche tells the joyful
story of God’s humanity as seen in the birth of a child - and in so doing,
invites us to embrace at the deepest level what it truly means to be human.
He will bring new light to a world
in darkness,
Like a bright star shining in the
skies above.
He will bring new hope to the
waiting nations.
When he comes to reign in purity and
love.
Let the earth rejoice at the
Savior’s coming.
Let the heavens answer with the
joyful morn:
Gloria in excelsis Deo! Gloria in
excelsis Deo!
Hear the angels singing, “Christ is
born”.
(John Rutter)
Noel,
+ Holly
Hollerith
