Saint Francis of Assisi is lauded in Church history, known for his love for God, the poor and all of God’s creation. He is the patron saint of animals, merchants and ecology and the founder of the Franciscan order. His feast day on Oct. 4 is a popular time for people to request blessings for their animals and pets.
Did you know that St. Francis of Assisi also deeply loved Christmas? His creation of the first Nativity scene in 1223 is one of his many enduring legacies in the Church and culture at large.
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On a visit to the Holy Land, St. Francis was deeply moved by seeing the sites of Jesus’ birth, crucifixion and resurrection. He felt the Scriptures come alive in an even more vivid way and believed that if he could bring them to life for other people, it would deepen their faith and love for God.
In 1223, St. Francis was staying in Greccio, Italy, to receive Pope Honorius III’s blessing for the Rule for himself and the brothers to live by. During his audience with the pope, St. Francis secured permission to reenact the scene from the night of Jesus’ birth.
According to Brother Thomas of Celano, his first biographer, St. Francis’ goal was to “re-present the birth of that Child in Bethlehem in such a way that with our bodily eyes we may see what he suffered for lack of the necessities of a newborn babe and how he lay in a manger between the ox and ass” (EWTN, Vatican).
With the help of a local man named John, St. Francis organized a Christmas Eve Midnight Mass and a depiction of the Christmas story. They recruited local people to play Mary and Joseph, used a rag doll to represent baby Jesus, and brought an ox and a donkey for the stable.
The Nativity was a huge success! St. Francis shared the Gospel message in the homily and celebrated the Eucharist. There were even those who said they witnessed a miracle — a real baby appeared in the manger!
People’s hearts were touched by this visual representation of the birth of our Lord, and it became an annual celebration in Greccio. Those who witnessed the scene took it to other communities as missionaries, and it wasn’t long before the tradition spread worldwide. It has become a symbol of the hope and grace that the incarnation of Jesus brought to our world.
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The Gospel of John says, “the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14). The wonder of the Christmas season is that God came to us, not born in a palace but in a humble and quiet stable. St. Francis of Assisi experienced great hope at seeing the site of Jesus’ lowly birth and wanted to generously share that hope with others — may we follow his example and be conduits of Christ’s mercy.
St. Francis’ Prayer of Peace makes a wonderful guide for how to pray through this holy season:
Lord, make me an instrument of your peace:
where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
where there is sadness, joy.
O divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek
to be consoled as to console,
to be understood as to understand,
to be loved as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive,
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned,
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.
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