Pigs at the Manger

One of our most treasured parts of Christmas is an antique manger scene. My grandmother bought it at the five-and-dime way back when Mama was a little girl, 85 or 90 years ago. In the original group of figures, there were only two wise men but there was a pair of identical twin shepherds so one of them was usually elevated to visiting king status. Baby Jesus broke his neck 30 or 40 years ago, and his head has been stuck back on, first with candle wax and then with super glue. The donkey is thread-bare, camel and sheep wobble on uneven legs, and the angel’s golden wings are a little chipped around the edges.

The manger scene was always set up for us to arrange. We moved the figures around, perched the angel on the roof of the stable (she usually fell off, hence the chipped wings), and sometimes brought in hay for the manger. Counting my mother, four generations of our family have learned the story of the Baby Jesus from that old manger scene. 

When my brother was small, he added some of his toy animals: a black plastic cow, a spotted Dalmatian, and two pink pigs. I can imagine a black cow in that first stable and maybe a dog (probably not a Dalmatian). But I am fairly sure there were no pigs. After all, this was ancient Israel, Mary and Joseph were Jewish, and pigs are definitely not kosher! 

I know that my brother was not making a conscious theological statement with the addition of the pigs; he was just offering his toys to the Baby Jesus. But the presence of the pigs at the manger is important; their presence in our Christmas scene is precious. It is a reminder that those of us who would have been outcasts at the Bethlehem stable are welcomed; that the ancient prophecies of a Messiah are fulfilled even for Gentiles; that God’s love in Jesus is radically inclusive. 

We are all invited to the manger; we are all included in the Christmas story. So come and kneel with the donkey and the dog, the camels and the cow ...and the pigs!  And practice the wild and welcoming Love that came into the world that first Christmas.