Inauguration of the nativity scene and lighting of the Christmas tree

Vatican News

With a brief ceremony in St. Peter’s Square this afternoon at 5:00 p.m., in accordance with the rules to contain the COVID-19 pandemic, the manger was inaugurated and the Christmas tree was lit, and they can be admired until Sunday January 10, 2021, Feast of the Baptism of the Lord, with which the Christmas period ends.

The inauguration was in charge of Cardinal Giuseppe Bertello and Bishop Fernando Vérgez Alzaga, respectively president and secretary general of the Governorate of Vatican City State. The inauguration of this monumental nativity scene, composed of ceramic statues, was attended by, among others, the bishop of Teramo-Atri, Mgr Lorenzo Leuzzi, the extraordinary commissioner for reconstruction after the earthquake, Giovanni Legnini, the president of the Italian region of Abruzzo, Marco Marsilio, and the president of the province of Teramo, Diego Di Bonaventura.

Archbishop Lodzij Cvikl, vice-president of the Slovenian Bishops’ Conference, who guides his country’s delegation, also attended the ceremony of lighting the lights of the new Christmas tree, a majestic fir tree thirty meters high and seven tons of weight. HE Dr Anže Logar, Minister of Foreign Affairs and HE Dr Jože Podgoršek, Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Food of Slovenia.

It is an event always awaited by young and old, who not only followed the Romans, but also tourists and pilgrims from all over the world. This ceremony has been taking place since 1982, when it was introduced by Saint John Paul II. And due to the restrictions due to the pandemic, many people were able to watch the ceremony live on the Vatican media website, TV 2000 and on Eurovision.

Spiritual twinning between Teramo and Slovenia

Cardinal Giuseppe Bertello declared that this manger “makes us understand that the Gospel can animate all cultures and all professions. It becomes a point of arrival and departure for the diocese of Teramo, which has made an intense pastoral journey of preparation. And a journey that came to meet Slovenia, where the tree comes from, with which almost a spiritual twinning was created ”. In addition, he said that “this tree reminds us of the extraordinary beauty of this country and its traditions”.

The Castelli ceramic feeder

As every year, the tree and the crib arrive on Saint-Pierre Square accompanied by the stories of the places where they come from. “The possibility of being able to set up the monumental nativity scene of the Castelli art school, explained Mgr Lorenzo Leuzzi, is really a beautiful gift for all our diocesan Church and, above all, a great opportunity for a territory that has been hard hit by two earthquakes, in 2006 and 2017. It is also the moment to bear witness to the faith of the inhabitants of Abruzzo and of this community with their artistic skills and, in fact, we must not forget that Castelli is one of the the most important ceramic cities at European level. It is therefore a gift for all, especially in this time of health emergency that we are all called to share “.

The work of the crib exhibited in the Plaza de San Pedro, was carried out by the students and teachers of the Art Institute “FA Crane”, the current state art school for design, which in the decade 1965-1975 devoted its educational activities to the theme of Christmas. Only a few pieces from the fragile collection of 54 statues were brought on this occasion. The sculptures represent the Magi; in the center, at the highest point of a large illuminated platform, is the group of the Nativity with the Angel, placed at the top of the Holy Family to symbolize their protection over the Savior, Mary and Joseph. Monsignor Leuzzi said:

Illumination of the Holy Family among the angels unexpectedly

During the ceremony this afternoon to enrich St. Peter’s Square, special lighting was also provided. It is the figure of the Holy Family represented in the sculpture Angels Unawares by Canadian artist Timothy Schmalz, present in this place since September 29, 2019 to commemorate the 105th World Migrants and Refugees Day. It is a bronze sculpture that represents a boat with a group of migrants and refugees from different cultural and racial origins, and from various historical periods. The three characters who reproduce the Holy Family of Nazareth were illuminated. A sign, written in a statement by the Migrants and Refugees Section of the Dicastery for Human Development Integra, which wants to underline the deep meaning of Christmas and to remember that Jesus too, along with Mary and Joseph, was a migrant, who had to flee to save its lifespan.

The exact copy of this sculpture was unveiled on December 8 at New York’s Grand Army Plaza in Brooklyn and will also be illuminated in the same way during Christmas time. A twinning to remind us that, even more in this time of pandemic, we are all in need and waiting.

We recall that this morning, after receiving in audience the delegations of Castelli in Abruzzo (Italy) and of the municipality of Kočevje, in south-eastern Slovenia, on the occasion of the delivery of the Christmas tree and the manger set up in St. Peter, the Holy Father, among others, said to them: