This window depicts the Nativity of our Lord Jesus Christ, the event which the Jubilee Year of 2000 celebrates. Pictured are the Holy Family, along with adoring angels and shepherds. Because of the census ordered by Caesar Augustus, St. Joseph has taken his wife Mary to Bethlehem, the city of their ancestor, David. Having found no lodging available among the town's inns, Joseph has found a lowly stable to provide shelter for Mary, who was soon to deliver her Child. In that area of the Holy Land, animals were often kept in small wooden structures built onto caves or grottoes. It was in this type of cave/stable that Jesus was likely born. In fact, the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem is built over just such a grotto. Christ's birth in this town fulfilled the prophecy, "But you, Bethlehem-Ephrathah, too small to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come to me one who is to be ruler in Israel" {Micah 5:1}. 

In this depiction of the scene Jesus lies in a manger, as related in the Gospel of Luke. The manger, which usually held food for the stabled animals, holds Jesus, who will later give Himself to His people as spiritual food in the Eucharist. Another great Eucharistic "coincidence" in the Nativity story is that Bethlehem ("Biet Lahm" in Hebrew) means "House of Bread." The ancients gave the town this name because of the fertility of its wheat fields, but Catholics can see far greater significance. 

St. Joseph looks on, pondering the great mystery that his all-powerful God has come to earth as a weak and defenseless little baby; that God, the source of all light and warmth, lies shivering naked in the cold, dark night; that during His first several years on Earth, Emmanuel ("God with us" ) will be dependent upon him, a humble carpenter, for food, drink, shelter, and protection. 

Both Heaven, represented by angels, and Earth, represented by shepherds, adore the new born Child. The angels, in a burst of heavenly light, hold a banner with the words "Gloria in excelsis Deo" - Latin for "Glory to God in the Highest." This message of the angels to the shepherds, recorded in Luke 2:14, is repeated by God's people at every Sunday Mass. 

The shepherds' significance in the Nativity story should not be overlooked. They were among the lowest classes in Jewish society, but God chose them to be the first to hear the good news of the holy birth. Their response provides a challenge to us. Leaving their flocks of sheep, which were their wealth, "they went in haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in a manger" {Luke 2:16}. After adoring Jesus, they returned to their duties and responsibilities, "glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen" {2:20}. Along the way, they told the news to everyone they meet, and "all who heard of it were astonished at the report given them by the shepherds" {2:18}. They were, in effect, the very first missionaries of the Gospel. They were not highly educated, nor were they ordained. They provide an excellent example to today's laity, who have been called upon by Pope John Paul II to undertake the "New Evangelization." 

One of the shepherds seen here is playing music for the new born King. Though not recorded in the Gospels, it is not at all unlikely that such an event occurred. Shepherds often played simple musical instruments to entertain themselves and soothe the sheep during their long night watches. One such instrument, carried by shepherds into this very century, was a double reed pipe known as "David's flute," named for the great Jewish King who was a shepherd in his youth. This flute is also known as a "zamoora", a word which may be the origin of "mizmor" (Hebrew for "Psalm"). Thus, some scholars theorize that David composed some of his beautiful Psalms upon this simple and primitive instrument. This window depicts a slightly fancier version of this type of flute. Some Nativity scenes show shepherds playing a type of bagpipe (which, despite its association with Scotland, was actually first used in Greece, and later in Palestine, before eventually making its way to the British Isles). 

An ox and ass, not shown here most likely due to size constraints, usually appear in artistic depictions of the Nativity, as well as in the miniature crib scenes commonly placed in homes by families at Christmas. Not mentioned in the Gospels, they are usually depicted as a fulfillment of the prophecy - "An ox knows it owner, and an ass its master's manger, but Israel does not know, my people have not understood" {Isaiah 1:3}. Also, Proverbs 14:4 reads, "where there are no oxen, the crib remains empty." Because the birth of Christ occurred in a stable, it is quite likely that these animals were present. 

It was the sin of our first parents in the Garden of Eden that made the birth depicted here necessary for our salvation. With this in mind, we can note with a little irony that this window was donated by Mr. and Mrs. Loeser - Adam and Eva! 

The Nativity of Jesus Christ is commemorated by the Church on, of course, December 25, Christmas Day. The Feast of the Holy Family is celebrated on the first Sunday after Christmas. 

- James Montgomery (1771-1854)

- Martin Luther (1483-1546) 
                                 translated by Catherine Winkworth (1827-1878) 

- Cornelius Sedulius (5th century) 
             translated by John Ellerton (1826-1893) 

- St. Ambrose (340-397) 
                                    translated by William M. Reynolds (1812-1876) 

- Charles Wesley (1707-1788)