Page 3 - Michael Journal March 2020

The Enchanting Image

of the Christmas Crèche

Pope Francis’ Apostolic Letter

The apostolic letter “Admirabile signum” (The the Latin word praesepium, meaning “manger”.
wonderful sign of the crèche) was signed by Pope Coming into this world, the Son of God was laid
Francis on Sunday, December 1, 2019 during a vis- in the place where animals feed. Hay became the
it he made to the Fransiscan sanctuary of Greccio, first bed of the One who would reveal himself as “the
north-east of Rome. (Greccio is where Saint Francis bread come down from heaven” (Jn 6:41). Saint Au-
of Assisi fashioned the first manger scene in 1223, gustine, with other Church Fathers, was impressed
three years before his death.) The Apostolic Letter by this symbolism: “Laid in a manger, he became
addresses “the meaning and importance of the na- our food” (Sermon 189, 4). Indeed, the nativity scene
tivity scene”. The Holy Father encourages families to evokes a number of the mysteries of Jesus’ life and
preserve, or rediscover, if necessary, this “beautiful brings them close to our own daily lives.
tradition” of preparing the nativity scene a few days
before Christmas to celebrate the birth of Jesus, our But let us go back to the origins of the Christ-
Savior. Excerpts from the letter follow: mas crèche so familiar to us. We need to imagine
ourselves in the little Italian town of Greccio, near
The enchanting image of the Christmas crèche, Rieti. Saint Francis stopped there, most likely on his
so dear to the Christian people, never ceases to way back from Rome where on 29 November 1223
arouse amazement and wonder. The depiction of he had received the confirmation of his Rule from
Jesus’ birth is itself a simple and joyful proclamation Pope Honorius III. Francis had earlier visited the Holy
of the mystery of the Incarnation of the Son of God. Land, and the caves in Greccio reminded him of the
The nativity scene is like a living Gospel rising up countryside of Bethlehem. It may also be that the
from the pages of sacred Scripture. As we contem- “Poor Man of Assisi” had been struck by the mosaics
plate the Christmas story, we are invited to set out on in the Roman Basilica of Saint Mary Major depicting
a spiritual journey, drawn by the humility of the God the birth of Jesus, close to the place where, accord-
who became man in order to encounter every man ing to an ancient tradition, the wooden panels of the
and woman. We come to realize that so great is his manger are preserved.
love for us that he became one of us, so that we in The Franciscan Sources describe in detail what
turn might become one with him. then took place in Greccio. Fifteen days before Christ-
With this Letter, I wish to encourage the beauti- mas, Francis asked a local man named John to help
ful family tradition of preparing the nativity scene him realize his desire “to bring to life the memory of
in the days before Christmas, but also the custom that babe born in Bethlehem, to see as much as pos-
of setting it up in the workplace, in schools, hos- sible with my own bodily eyes the discomfort of his
pitals, prisons and town squares. Great imagina- infant needs, how he lay in a manger, and how, with
tion and creativity is always shown in employing the an ox and an ass standing by, he was laid upon a bed
most diverse materials to create small masterpieces of hay”.
of beauty. As children, we learn from our parents and
grandparents to carry on this joyful tradition, which At this, his faithful friend went immediately to
encapsulates a wealth of popular piety. It is my hope prepare all that the Saint had asked. On December
that this custom will never be lost and that, wher- 25, friars came to Greccio from various parts, togeth-
ever it has fallen into disuse, it can be rediscovered er with people from the farmsteads in the area, who
and revived. brought flowers and torches to light up that holy
night. When Francis arrived, he found a manger full
The origin of the Christmas crèche is found above of hay, an ox and a donkey. All those present experi-
all in certain details of Jesus’ birth in Bethlehem, as enced a new and indescribable joy in the presence of
related in the Gospels. The evangelist Luke says sim- the Christmas scene. The priest then solemnly cele-
ply that Mary “gave birth to her firstborn son and brated the Eucharist over the manger, showing the
wrapped him in swaddling cloths, and laid him in a bond between the Incarnation of the Son of God and
manger, because there was no place for them in the the Eucharist. At Greccio there were no statues; the
inn” (2:7). Because Jesus was laid in a manger, the nativity scene was enacted and experienced by all
nativity scene is known in Italian as a presepe, from who were present. u

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