The celebration of Greccio: 800 years of the beloved Nativity scene.
Francis, living a life of poverty, preached to the people about penance, brotherly love, and peace. In 1223 feeling that the people had forgotten the Gospel story that Jesus came as a poor child, born in a stable, not as a rich king, he wrote to his friend Giovanni, “I want to do something that will recall the memory of that child who was born in Bethlehem, to see with bodily eyes the inconveniences of his infancy, how he lay in the manger, and how the ox and ass stood by.” He created a living Nativity scene in a cave at Greccio, a small town on a hill in Italy, inviting the villagers to visit while he preached about “the babe of Bethlehem.” God had come to earth as a baby, one of us, to be loved and cared for. The first Nativity scene and the tradition of celebrating “Greccio” had begun.
When
12:00 p.m. – Mass
1:00 p.m. – Presentation about St. Francis and Greccio accompanied by a light lunch
2:00 pm. – Procession to the Day Star Chapel in the Basilica housing a beautiful Nativity scene
Where
Basilica of the National Shrine of Mary, Queen of the Universe