To get pissed off at nativity sets?

[Cundtbake]

This is my second Christmas thread in a week sorry to everyone who isn't quite ready for it.

DS has decided he'd like us to have a nativity set after admiring one in a shop recently. I'm not particularly religious but his dads family is, and besides I have a fondness for nice little nativity sets.

But as I search online I'm getting increasingly pissed off at these white skinned blond haired sets. Do people really believe that this whole group of middle eastern people were ivory skinned with rosy cheeks and fair hair? Oh apart from perhaps a token black wise man.

Does it bother anybody else?

I've decided to just make my own.

Agree Firbolg

"Erm.. Christmas is about Jesus."

Not for everyone-christmas has nothing to do with jesus in my home.

Of course you can have a Jesus free Christmas! That's what probably the majority of the UK do- and Ive managed it for nearly 30 years.

Like any celebration, it's about what you make it.

Guess what, I have a Jesus free Easter too...!

I bought a nativity set in home bargains a few years ago. All of the figurines have dark skin and dark hair.

irongnome- well said. The christian easter story is particulary gruesome anyway- a ritual killing and a zombie- I far prefer bunnies and Easter eggs for my children.

FWIW I prefer my Christmases to be completely secular as well. Not sure why people are so surprised by that - it's hardly unusual.

Jesus: the dark, scruffy, political activist that most people wouldn't sit next to on a bus

We have a wooden nativity set in which all the people have African features and hair styles.

Exactly, Blair. Rather than the rather effete, long-nosed Englishman with a perfect centre parting in a nicely-laundered robe.

This one is not a "blond hair and blue eyes" nativity set - in fact everyone looks just a little bit knackered perfectly appropriate for new parents, hard working shepherds and royalty after a long journey.

I can always lend you my copy of a nativity knitting pattern

Looks like the jedi council.

It looks like the Jedi council after a night on the tiles!

Espii Where did you get the idea that Jesus is Black in Africa? [sceptical]
the only place i've heard of or seen a black Jesus is amongst the Rastafarians, everywhere else he seems to depicted as White.

Why not buy a 'white' one.........and bloody paint it? FFS.

Aes because I shouldn't have to. Why not....calm down? FFS

what about these?
A bit pricey but you can add to it every Christmas. They have got all colours but Jesus doesn't look very Jewish

That's mine, JamNan, the Ostheimer set. With the blonde haired, blue eyed Jesus. It's quite Waldorf- like too in style, though, which doesn't appeal to everybody.

If you look at Christian art around the world, you will see that it's very common for the figures to look like the people who created the images. It's normal to want to relate to the people depicted. It's not a big deal.

educationrocks

These are images (3 of very many) my pupils study when exploring depictions of Jesus.

Exactly Blair . It is so strange that the church is part of the establishment when Jesus was such a nonconformist.

Jesus WAS White. Jewish people and all the Semitic peoples are Caucasian. OK, blonde and blue eyed is stretching is ever so slightly....

I love the beanbag nativity set on the Traidcraft site.

Juggle Your Own Jesus?

Crumple These are nice. Are you showing me these in response to my last post ? If you are, its not that i don't know these sort of pictures exist but was responding to another poster who said in Africa, Jesus is Black and and the nativity sets will be black. Im from Ghana, and we've always had white Jesus nativity sets, and he is depicted as white. However we know that Jesus was Jewish and so couldn't have looked the way he is generally depicted, but take it with a pinch of salt.

"That's christianity for you though. Male white supremacy."

What an incredibly offensive and ignorant thing to say!

But true.