This time of year, Nativity scenes are standard components of almost every church’s Christmas setup. But there is nothing standard about the Nativity scene at Our Lady of Sorrows Church in Santa Barbara, where a dedicated parishioner has, quite literally, lit up the church with his own culturally inspired creation.
Sure, the Holy Family is prominently featured in the area below the Blessed Virgin Mary altar to one side of the sanctuary of the church, a few steps off of State Street in the center of town. Below them, however, spreads a large village that looks more like a 21st-century community than old Bethlehem.
Not only are there streets and houses and shops, but there is a spinning ferris wheel, a musical carousel, an ice rink with skaters skating, and lights galore, soft but plentiful. People, pets, and Christmas trees are scattered about on the “snowy” landscape, reflecting the peace, comfort, and joy that is synonymous with the season.
“Our Nativity scene represents the world, that Christ is for everyone, today, yesterday, and tomorrow,” said Cara Crosetti, parish business manager. “That’s something many of us often forget; we focus on the birth of baby Jesus without recognizing that Christ is always present in our world. And that reality, I think, is very much on display in what Jose has created.”
“Jose” is Jose Fuentes, by day a stone-cutter and finisher, and by night — at least, in recent weeks — an artist with a passion for creating Nativity scenes like those he grew up with in his native Mexico.
“This is how I express my faith in God — through my work on this project,” said Fuentes, who came to the U.S. 20 years ago with his family from Mexico. “I always make Nativity scenes at Christmas, as I did in Mexico every year. And ever since I came to Santa Barbara, I’ve been doing this at home.”
Fuentes’ passion for Nativity scenes came to the attention of Father Cesar Magallon, Our Lady of Sorrows’ pastor, when he and Father Mario Torrez, associate pastor, visited the Fuentes home two years ago.
“We saw this beautiful Nativity scene in his home, and we were amazed at how creative it was,” said Father Magallon. “I said to Jose, ‘Hey, maybe you could think about doing this at church one day.’ And he was open to the idea.”
For nearly three weeks, Fuentes — aided by his two teenage sons — worked from 5 p.m. until almost midnight each night, after a day at work, building the Nativity scene from an assortment of materials, including wood, paper, and spray foam as well as tiny lights and two water features.
Full story at Angelus News.
I hope they paid him. Or is this just another example of the church taking advantage of the laity. Good work, guys. It’s a beautiful creation. But the church needs to pay them.
If he wanted money, he could ask for it. Otherwise it is his gift.
If you’ve spent any time around priests and pastors in parish life, you know that they can manipulate generous parishioners into doing way more volunteer work than is just. According to the story, this guy and his two sons worked for three weeks from 5PM until midnight to make the scene. That after working a full day at his regular job. No volunteer should be taken advantage of, but priests do it all the time.
Nice story and stunning church, however sadly no Traditional Latin Mass.
Now that the Dubia have clarified that the TLM should not be celebrated in parishes, you’re soon going to have to search far and wide for a Catholic parish that celebrates it. And eventually it will only be the SSPX that celebrates the TLM because the Vatican II Church is going to celebrate only the Vatican II liturgical rites.
The Vatican said Saturday that bishops can ask the Congregation for Divine Worship for a dispensation from this obligation “if it is established that it is impossible to use another church, oratory or chapel.”
The congregation went on to say that if the dispensation is given for a community to celebrate the Traditional Latin Mass in a parish, “such a celebration should not be included in the parish Mass schedule, since it is attended only by the faithful who are members of the said group” and “it should not be held at the same time as the pastoral activities of the parish community.”
“It is to be understood that when another venue becomes available, this permission will be withdrawn,” the liturgy office said.
The note also explained that the reason for the provision that the Traditional Latin Mass not be celebrated in parish churches is “intended to affirm that the celebration of the Eucharist according to the previous rite, being a concession limited to these groups, is not part of the ordinary life of the parish community.”
“There is no intention in these provisions to marginalize the faithful who are rooted in the previous form of celebration: they are only meant to remind them that this is a concession to provide for their good (in view of the common use of the one lex orandi [law of prayer] of the Roman Rite) and not an opportunity to promote the previous rite,” it added.
And as it turns out the SSPX will be the ones that go down in history who saved the Roman Catholic Church and the Mass of All Times the Tradional Latin Mass sorry buddy. And before you start screeching that I’m an SSPXer i’m not, I attend the mass at an institute of Christ the King, This Jesuit in Rome has single-handedly destroyed the Roman Catholic Church in less than eight years but guess what he will not prevail, Christ has told us so, the Masss of all Times will once again be said at the high altar of Saint Peters maybe not in my lifetime but it will return. So you can have your altar girls, lay lectors male and female, dancing girls, effeminate men in leotards prancing around the altar, banjos, drums, guitars, felt banners, holy communion in the hand while standing, improper dress, giant puppets, you know the Novus Ordo as we know it, Vatican II said nothing about the above, Latin was never to be eradicated, statues, communion rails, high altars, Mass facing the people were never in Vatican II Gregorian Chant was never to be stripped from our churches, Vatican II was hijacked and we have the man made Novus Ordo.
Jesus didn’t tell you anything about the Tridentine Mass. And as for it’s being the mass of all times, it is the mass of the Council of Trent, less than 1/4 of the history of the Church.
Only the Will of God matters.
Sounds like institutional Munchausen Syndrome by Proxy to me. Make the institution that you are supposed to care for sick, in this case by creating division through dissent, then pretend to be its salvation. It is a form of abuse and we should not tolerate it.
A beautiful example of adoration.
How do you know? they are not supposed to put it on the schedule.
https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/249928/traditionis-custodes-vatican-further-tightens-restrictions-on-traditional-latin-mass
The congregation went on to say that if the dispensation is given for a community to celebrate the Traditional Latin Mass in a parish, “such a celebration should not be included in the parish Mass schedule, since it is attended only by the faithful who are members of the said group” and “it should not be held at the same time as the pastoral activities of the parish community.”
I wish this website had the feature where you click on the picture to get it bigger.
Please click the link at the end of the article.
Thanks it was a little bigger but they don’t have a zoom either.
Maybe someone will post it on FB.
Merry Christmas.
Please tell Bob McPhail’s family and friends we pray for him and them this Christmas.
Gracias Jose y familia.
Our Lady of Sorrows is a magnificent church;
y’all should see it if you get a chance
beautiful Pieta, too.