Happy Christmas!

Regular programming will resume next week, with more hymns and carols. Till then, here are three depictions of the nativity that have inspired us recently.

Let Mum Rest.

Pope Francis was shown an image of this scene (above) earlier this Advent, which led to it going viral. The Pope said it showed “the tenderness of a family, of a marriage.”

The display below reminds us of “the most well-known refugee family in the world” and our moral responsibilities in the world today.

Nativity scene at Claremont United Methodist Church, Claremont, CA.

Roberto Ferruzzi’s Madonnina (“little mother”; below) was not intended by the artist to be a depiction of Mary and her infant Jesus, but has since been received as such, emphasising Mary’s youth and vulnerability in the social context of her day and reminding us that many children are still born in difficult circumstances.

Madonnina. Roberto Ferruzzi.