A blessed and peaceful Advent season to you from the Catholic Community Foundation of Mid-Michigan!
During Advent, we await the birth of our Savior in a humble stable by displaying Nativity sets in our churches and homes. To honor this Catholic tradition, first enacted by St. Francis in 1223, CCFMM featured some church Nativities from the Saginaw Catholic Diocese on our website and Facebook page in 2020.
In 2021, CCFMM will be posting additional church Nativities from around the Saginaw Diocese, so watch for these! If you haven’t already done so, please email us photo(s) of your church’s Nativity. If you have details such as age or maker of your Nativity, we would appreciate that as well.
We also welcome photo(s) of your own special family Nativities. Please send them to Connor Rabine at connor.rabine@ccfmm.org. Be sure to include your name, any details about the history of your Nativity including its age, how it was made or where it came from. Thank you.
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CCFMM Nativity Gallery:
St. Agnes Parish, Freeland
The CCFMM is proud to share photos of Saint Agnes’ beautiful nativity from last year. Isn’t this donkey a charming little fellow? We thank Nasie Snider, Office Manager at St. Agnes Parish, Freeland, for submitting these photos.
CCFMM Nativity Gallery:
Ave Maria (St. Denis) Parish
The Catholic Community Foundation of Mid-Michigan (CCFMM) is proud to feature the Nativity from Ave Maria (St. Denis) parish in this year’s Advent Nativity Gallery.
Sister Maria Inviolata, SMDG, submitted this photo of the beautiful 2020 Nativity display for Ave Maria Parish (St. Denis) in Lexington, Michigan.
CCFMM is proud to share the photos of Christmas Nativity displays from churches all around the Saginaw Catholic Diocese as we prepare for the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ. We welcome photos from your Saginaw Diocese church and appreciate any details you can provide about your Nativity. Thank you.
CCFMM Nativity Gallery:
Blessed Trinity Catholic Church
It probably isn’t surprising that this inspiring Nativity set at Frankenmuth’s Blessed Trinity Catholic Church was imported from Italy by Bronner’s Christmas Wonderland. It was purchased and donated to Blessed Trinity by parishioners Carol and Kevin Maurer.
The Nativity is displayed in the church’s gathering area where little children often wander into the scene for a closer look. The wooden stable was hand made. Parishioner Kathie Mates painted a daytime scene that appears in the window cut into the back wall. The painting is reversible to also show a nighttime scene with the stars in the Christmas sky.
For all who see it, the display is a powerful reminder of the Christmas message — Peace on Earth.
CCFMM Nativity Gallery:
Holy Family Catholic Church
Displaying a Nativity scene at churches and in homes is an historic Catholic tradition that helps us meditate on the gift of Jesus’ birth in a humble stable. This Advent season, the Catholic Community Foundation of Mid-Michigan (CCFMM) is featuring some beloved church Nativities from around the Saginaw Diocese.
Pictured here is the lovely Nativity from Holy Family, the beautiful church in the Grove, on Washington Avenue. The Nativity figures date to the late 1930s, while the stable is new. We invite you to visit our website to learn more about St. Francis’ first Nativity scene in 1223 and about other Nativities in the diocese as well.
CCFMM Nativity Gallery:
St. Mary’s Cathedral
St. Francis of Assisi said:
“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.”
St. Mary’s Cathedral, 2019
St. Francis is believed to have created the first living Nativity scene on Christmas Eve in 1223. St. Francis, who lived in simplicity and gave everything to the poor, wanted to impress upon the people of his time the humbleness of our Savior’s birth.
Maybe you remember the Christmas Nativity scenes from your churches growing up? The photo above displays a few of the beautiful century-old nativity figures from Saginaw’s St. Mary’s Cathedral. Lisa Rigali, one of the owners of the Daprato Rigali Studios in Chicago, believes the Cathedral set to be Daprato figurines that date back to the mid 1920s. They were created in the studio in Chicago at Adams and LaSalle, now located on the north side of Chicago. They also did restoration work on Joseph, Mary, and two of the kings in 2018.
Displaying a Nativity scene at churches and in homes is an historic Catholic tradition that helps us meditate on the gift of Jesus’ birth in a humble stable. This Advent season, the Catholic Community Foundation of Mid-Michigan (CCFMM) will feature some beloved church Nativities from around the Saginaw Diocese.
Should you be interested in donating to help maintain and restore Nativity figures from churches around the Saginaw Catholic Diocese, please contact CCFMM (989-797-6680) or your own church directly. The CCFMM is available to you and your family to assist you with your philanthropic endeavors that support Catholic ministries throughout the Diocese of Saginaw. Also, if you have photos of your church’s Nativity figures and information about them, please contact Mary Beth via email at MaryBeth.Looby@ccfmm.org
