The Nativity: Good News

Pastor Hector: So, Audrey, can you please tell me about our new nativity scene that we have right outside our church.

Audrey Thorne: Yes, I would love to . So, the concept for this new nativity display came from wanting to kind of showcase, or blow up, or show a life-size version of our children's art. So you can see here these cardboard cutouts of Jesus and Mary and Joseph, and they’re colored in kind of like a life-size coloring page.
And we also have these life-size face cutouts where the kids can get their pictures taken and be a part of the nativity story. And probably the most important part is here in the back where you can see the kids’ art, their depiction of the nativity story. So the intention behind this was to bring the kids into telling the story and sharing the good news of the nativity with our community.

P: Yeah. And I just love that the advent themes of Joy, Hope, Love and Peace are actually scattered throughout the nativity scene. And one thing that really caught my attention was that behind the image is actually newspaper – weaved newspaper.

A: Yes.

P: And one thing that we see is these drawings depicting the nativity scene as a backdrop but it's in the backdrop also of the news. Yeah. One thing that caught my eye is that there as also a story hidden in the drawings. And tell me more about the artist.

A: Yes. So, Alison Yamaguchi is a real hero. So much of this was her labor, her creativity. This entire backdrop, she made by hand using both Japanese and English text newspaper. She literally wove the newspaper together, and then painted over it, drew, these drawings, wrote the words. She also designed the cardboard cutout drawings as well, that you can see, that are incorporated in the kids’ coloring page and incorporated into the Christmas tree that's off to the side as well.
So this is really like her artistic creativity come to life here. It's so beautiful.

P: Yeah, and I know that a lot of people have come off from the streets to look from Omotesando, and if they never heard of the News, they can scan the QR code and hear about the Christmas story.
And if they wanted to add their own picture, they can.

A: Yeah. So the tree here has ornaments made by the kids with the same drawings and kids can come off the street and color their own page or their own ornament and also become a part of telling the story with us.

H: Yeah, I love it. It's Good News in spite and in the midst of the news.

A: Yup.

H: All right. Well, thank you so much for doing this week's Thought of the Week.

A: Was that good?

H: I think it’s good.