Stealing Baby Jesus?
December 9th, 2006 by Brian
Each year we face the War over Christmas and the attack on public displays of faith. But stealing statues of the Baby Jesus from nativity scenes as a joke?
From today’s Hartford Courant:
December 9 2006
It’s not Christmas until baby Jesus starts disappearing from outdoor Nativity scenes.
The thefts happen annually throughout the country, and last weekend, Jesus figures were stolen in Naugatuck and Waterbury. The phenomenon has baffled police, who are usually helpless unless the pranksters anonymously return the icon.
Is it the work of drunken teenagers on a mission for holiday booty or just local Grinches?
Waterbury police Lt. Chris Corbett said that police have no leads in the theft of the baby Jesus figure from a Nativity scene on the town green over the weekend. In Naugatuck, this is the second consecutive year that Jesus has been stolen from a crèche on the town green.
“There is no purpose or motive in this type of case,” Corbett said.
But this type of case is becoming more common, and, according to the website lordnapping.com, the thefts should be celebrated and seen as acts of liberation – as long as the statues are placed in an inn for Christmas.
The Christ child “deserves a warm bed with a soft pillow and nice sheets,” preferably “hand-milled cotton, 400 thread-count or above,” according to the site.
Is this supposed to be funny? And while the thing that is really shocking is just the lack of basic decency, there’s also a monetary cost.
Naugatuck is still trying to find who stole its baby Jesus. The town has put up a $250 reward toward the return of the statue, which was screwed and glued in place. It has also ordered Plexiglas to encase the manger to avoid future thefts.
“I don’t know if it’s a symbol to them, I don’t know if they think it’s a cool thing to do, but it has so much meaning to so many people,” said Naugatuck Mayor Ron San Angelo.
The baby Jesus stolen last year, valued at $650, was never recovered.
In Waterbury, all that’s left of baby Jesus is an arm. One of the Three Wise Men also was vandalized.
Joe Geary, deputy chief of staff to the mayor, said that the city had purchased a $1,700, 14-piece Nativity scene. The stolen baby Jesus was made of resin and could not be reproduced.
Donations have been pouring in to city hall. Kindergartners at Blessed Sacrament School donated the proceeds from their monthly cupcake sale – $475.
Geary said that the city will enclose the new Nativity scene in a steel cage to prevent vandalism.
When the Rev. Mark Flynn displays the baby Jesus in an outdoor manger at St. Patrick Church in Farmington on Christmas morning, he’ll do so with much trepidation. Someone stole the statue last year but anonymously returned it days later.
“It’s a risk, but I don’t have an alarm system. I’m not going to put a pit bull out there,” Flynn said.
Flynn said that it is sad when churches and towns have to encase their Nativity scenes to protect them from thieves.
“It’s so contradictory to what the message of Christmas is. The Lord came to say, `Come close to me and touch me, don’t stay away from me.’ It’s so contrary of the message,” he said.
Contact Ann Marie Somma at asomma@courant.com.
Copyright 2006, Hartford Courant. For full article click here.
Do any of our friends in Naugutuck or Waterbury have more information on this?
maybe Baby Jesus got sick of the hypocrisy of the Church, the lack of compassion and caring, so little forgiveness in the world. The Church as become a divisive tool, and that was not His intent! It’s not about helping the poor and downtrodden, just about casting stones!
Hell, I’d run away too!
GO BABY JESUS GO!
fuzzyturtle.. and what have you done lately to help the poor and downtrodden? have you taken a homeless person into your home? have you adopted a crack baby? have you fed someone today that has not eaten? Yes, organized religion has it’s failings, but why don’t you take a close look at the soup kitchens and the clothing drives and all of the other good and noble things that people of faith have managed to accomplish? It’s easy enough to criticize your local church or synagogue and the people who happen to be lucky enough to have faith and actually believe in something, but don’t do so unless you can prove that you haven’t been a hypocrite either.
To come to an obviously Christian blog to cast your own stones is pretty loathesome behavior., and you don’t even have the integrity to use your real name.
fuzzyturtle’s post shows a lack of basic understanding of the scriptures and what Jesus taught. It is true that Jesus taught compassion, but it also is true that he said of those who would offend children that “it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea,” (Matt. 18:6). True compassion, as Jesus taught, is keeping and defending His commandments (including not stealing) for that is what leads to spiritual life. Jesus taught and commanded his disciples to establish truth, not the wisdom of the world, which brings spiritual death, according to His teachings. He commanded his disciples that “whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear your words, when ye depart out of that house or city, shake off the dust of your feet . . . [and] It shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgement, than for that city,” (Matt. 10: 15-16).
I will agree that devisiveness has entered some churches; specifically those that reject what Jesus and his prophets clearly and unequivically teach. Specifically, some churches willingly ordain priests who engage in homosexual acts, and sanction (irony intended) same-sex marriage. As a direct consequence there is division, for as the prophet said, “Woe unto them that call evil good and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter! Woe unto them that are wise in their own eyes, and prudent in their own sight!” (Isaiah 5: 20-21).
Of course stealing is bad, but I doubt very much that any of these thefts have an anti-religious agenda behind them.
Teenagers have been doing pranks like this for years. They’re not making a statement. They’re doing what kids have been doing for quite a long time now.
They know it’ll get attention, so that’s why they do it.
I have to agree with Chris. This isn’t some new volley in the imaginary “war on Christmas” any more than teenagers who vandalize mailboxes are declaring a “war on the postal service.” There are jerks in the world and they do stupid things; they rarely have a philosophical reason for them.
Yeah. It’s silly, but I went to Catholic school for my entire educational career, and I’ve become very familar with my Catholic peers who would pull pranks like this. I wouldn’t read too much into it.
No Chris. Can’t you see all the atheists who want to abolish Christmas? It’s a WAR I tell you. A WAR. It won’t end until is against the law to say Jesus Christ in public.
Not only do ATHEISTS not subscribe to religion, they hate you and me and anyone else who believes in God.
Luckily when the Rapture arrives, they’ll get their deserved fates. hehehehe. (although it’s hard to imagine Jesus leaving anyone behind. or being against homosexuals, for that matter.)
Baby Jesus in Naugatuck has been returned anonymously with a note asking forgiveness for the perp. In Waterbury, a kindegarten class at Blessed Sacrament school raised $650 to buy a new baby Jesus. (I believe it was a student-initiated project).
When Mayor Jarjura got to back to his office after visiting the class and accepting the check, he was met with correspondence from the CT chapter of American Atheists demanding that the city replace the nativity display.
His quote to the newspaper: “We’re not removing anything.”
Baby Jesus was taken from the home of my 70 year old mom house early this morning. It was part of a large display celebrating the holidays. The entire neighborhood takes part. Some children on the block sell hot choclate on Christmas Eve and donate the money raised to Children Hospital. Some families have organized a toy drive and others collect shoe certificates to donate to families that need a little extra help.The nativity manger was behind a glass partition. Someone broke the glass to take the Baby Jesus. For anyone that thinks its a harmless prank, this is destruction of someone else’s property.
For anyone who thinks this is funny it is not. Today I discovered my baby Jesus was missing. I cried.
And the worst is I don’t know where to buy just the Baby Jesus.
They have stolen the most important part of Christmas…
Baby Jesus