Multi-Cultural Nativity Sets, and the Wise Men Who Couldn't Get There

          During a recent trip to Jerusalem, I went to Bethlehem. It's only about 10 miles away from Jerusalem, though it's within the borders of the West Bank.  One of the oldest churches in the world is there, sitting on top of several caves, which is where Jesus is said to have been born.  It's a cool place to see, though I don't really like the church itself because it is so dark, and I don't like the crowds either.  In addition to the church, we visited the Bethlehem Peace Center, which is right next door.  They have various exhibits, and there was one showing a really neat collection of nativity sets from all over the world. I picked some of my favorites to show here.
          I especially liked the ones that were a little bit different.  For Christians, and probably a lot of people in the West who aren't Christians, the picture is a familiar one: Mary (usually in blue, showing purity, though she could never have afforded it) and Joseph, shepherds and some sheep, and the wise men (usually three of them, one to represent each of gold, myrrh, and frankincense).  Perhaps a donkey, an angel, and a camel if you're lucky.  And all have the newborn, who is really the important part, lying in the feeding trough (we usually say manger, but that's what it was).  Anything that's different stands out.  They reflect a number of different cultures, which is awesome because God created us all to be different and to be creative.

This one is from Switzerland, and I like how crowded it is.  I'm sure the real stable was more like this, with no personal space.  And I like the fluffy sheep.

This one is from Sweden and, as Adri put it, looks very Swedish and just like it stepped out of an Ikea catalogue. 

This one is from Australia, and made to look like a frontier town.  The creativity is really striking.  It's the Royal David City Hotel, and Mary has the baby on her hip and looks rather sassy.  And I love the lady sticking her head out of the window.

This is from an Inuit group in either Canada or the US. Apart from the angel that had fallen over, the style of dress is interesting because it's based on the Inuit style, not the Middle Eastern type of dress.  And there's a moose instead of a camel, and a sleeping polar behind the dog-sled manger.  

A life-sized Chinese nativity set!  You can tell that Mary and Joseph were poorer than the rich guy, which can sometime be easy to miss.  And they had the sense to keep the cow away from the baby.

A Hungarian Puppet Nativity!  (and my Hungarian Roommate)
The decorations are traditional ones, and the puppets are just fun.

This one is made inside of a walnut shell.  It must have taken a lot of skill to make.  

I don't remember exactly where this one was from, but it somewhere in Africa.  The shiny spot is just my flash, but Jesus is in a hanging basket, not on the floor.  There's also a pig, even though Bethlehem would have, at least in theory, been kosher, so no pigs.

This one is just pretty, but there is just one wise man and one shepherd.

          The last one isn't exactly my favorite, but it is very startling.  This nativity set is from Bethlehem, and made of olive wood (which, apart from growing olives and making nativity sets, isn't actually that useful).  The modern city of Bethlehem is located in the West Bank, which is sort of a separate country from Israel, but it's under Israeli military control (it's really complicated).  It's an Arab town, and has both Christians and Muslims who live there (there are lots of Arab Christians all over the Middle East).  To get in from Jerusalem or anywhere else in Israel, you have to go through the wall.  It's concrete, but on the Arab side it's been decorated with paintings. Some of them are beautiful, others are sad, and some are very political.  A section near Bethlehem has stories of different people displayed on the wall.  Many are about the giant wall and its effects, with sad stories and heartwarming stories, though some are just about daily life.  Regardless of your political opinion on the subject, it's sad and ugly and I wish it wasn't there, and that there was never a reason (however good or bad) to build it.

This is the wall.  It's huge (not even a really tall person could touch the bottom of the posters) and rather ugly.  

          The picture below shows what the Nativity might have looked like if Jesus was born today.  Mary and Joseph and the shepherds would have been in a stable together, still stuck in their poverty (the West Bank is really poor).  And the wise men would have been stopped by the huge wall.  Even if they were allowed in through the special gate in the wall for tour buses, they would have had trouble finding the baby lying in a barn, because it would have been down a back street.  

The wise men who couldn't get there.

          Bethlehem has always been a special place in my imagination.  A little village, with a dusting of snow, a shining star, and a new baby crying in the hay.  The real Bethlehem was probably crowded and loud and stinky and hot.  The real Bethlehem is still crowded and loud, and sometimes smells a bit strange, and now feels like a huge mess with a wall that seems permanent.  But the point of Bethlehem wasn't that there was a pretty picture.  The point was the little baby, who came to bring peace and hope.  The little baby grew up, and taught me to reach across walls, both physical barriers like walls and mountains and oceans, but also the ones we build up inside ourselves.  And then he died, but rose again, to tear down the wall between us and God.  Until all of the walls in the world fall down, the little baby who would have been stuck behind one gives people on both sides of the wall hope.  Hope for a resolution, hope for reconciliation, hope for peace.