A Common (Street) Creche: Children Lead St. Joe's Advent Celebration

The small group of adults and children arrived to the entrance of St. Joseph Parish on a misty and cool Sunday afternoon, Dec. 22, singing the ancient Christmas carol:

O come, O come, Emmanuel,
And ransom captive Israel,
That mourns in lonely exile here
Until the Son of God appear.

The group gathered before the church's outdoor wooden and straw creche, preparing to place the participants of the Christmas story in their correct spots. 

As Rachel Keeler read the Nativity story from Luke, children took the appropriate statues to the small tableau and gently laid the people and animals on the straw.

While many could wonder why St. Joe's waited until three days before Christmas, on the final Sunday of Advent – the season of preparation for the celebration of the Nativity – to create their creche, the date had a specific purpose for the St. Joe's community. 

"We are really trying to respect the beauty of the season and not rush Christmas while we enter into the true meaning of the season amidst the hustle and bustle around the holidays," said Keeler, who is the associate minister at St. Joe's, located at the corner of Common and School streets. 

The creche is "not just a symbol of the Nativity. The reason we put them in our houses, in front of our homes and along the street is because they are a symbol that Christ comes to all and is present in all places and to all people as the Savior," said Keeler.