Nativity play ‘banned in schools’

[CoughLaughFart]

A couple of my FB friends have recently shared a post about what a disgrace it is that the nativity play is now ‘banned in schools’ and that the tradition must be restored immediately as this is a CHRISTIAN country (it's always in caps). I have two problems with this:

1. A search for ‘nativity school banned’ brings up several results for stories about schools banning photography at nativity plays, plus a Guardian article about why there’s such a panic about nativity plays being banned in certain circles. There wasn’t one example of the nativity play actually being banned. I also don’t know any parents who have experienced this in real life.

2. As this is indeed a CHRISTIAN country on paper, it happens to have thousands of churches. Anyone desperate to see their child in the nativity play could easily get involved with their parish church so that their children can be part of that one. They could learn all they like about Christianity then, from the experts no less.

AIBU to think that this is a non-existent ‘scandal’ spread on social media by people too lazy to check the facts? And that, with church attendances standing at around 2% of the population, these people aren’t bothered enough about their children learning about Christianity to get up early on a Sunday, and really just want a picture of their child looking cute with a tea towel on their head?

Where's OP?

Atheism - if that is what is bothering you so much - isn't a left or right wing issue
Neither is having nativity play

Some people do see every issue as leftwing bogeymen / rightwing bogeymen, but religion doesn't fit in like that
e.g. the Pope is regarded as pretty leftwing by many - especially in the USA

It’ll be the same people who kick up a fuss about Easter eggs not having the word ‘Easter’ on them. If your Easter is so bloody commercialised that you feel like the lack of a word on a cardboard box is ruining it then you really need to take a step back and think about what Easter is really all about
(Slightly irrelevant rant over, sorry about that)

@CoughLaughFart, I think other posters are right. If you're keen to avoid spreading fake news, please do report your OP to MNHQ and ask them to amend the title.

But surely if people share the link as ‘proof’ the Nativity is being banned, anyone who clicks the link will discover otherwise? I think it’s probably a good thing if the title encourages shares.

Where's OP?

Busy in real life!

DTS

Please explain more about why you are prejudiced against Catholics.

Handy infographic for ya.

I love it Uterus.

It's just as fake as the 'news' story my in-laws shared about children being forced to do Muslim prayers in school. The picture showed children doing yoga.

I particularly like "International But When's It International Men's Day? Day". 😂

I particularly like "International But When's It International Men's Day? Day".

Woth everyone ignoring the fact that there IS an International Men’s Day!

Does anyone remember the UKIP tweet outraged about the BBC showing clear bias by choosing to interview people about Brexit outside a "mosque"? The mosque in question was Westminster Cathedral . For some reason this thread is making me think of that.

CoughLaughFart 😂

You have more faith than I that people will actually read more than a title, CoughLaughFart!

Ahh Fermat, you've reminded me of the time some Americans got up in arms about a British Super Mosque. Aka the Brighton pavilion.

I work in an infant school. Mixed catchment, large Muslim population as well as Christian and other religions, and no religion too. We still 'do' Christmas fully, including:

Eyfs do a short Christmas assembly including a small story about the first Christmas. Brief with some songs.

Year 1 do a nativity based play with singing and acting.

Year 2 do a Christmas concert including Christmas songs, less religious aspect though definitely Christmas themed.

We all have Christmas workshops, and we all learn about the Christmas story.

It it's just the same as at the moment seeing lots of social media nonsense about the banning of poppies, etc. It's all nonsense obviously but some people either believe it r at the very least want to spread the nonsense to get others in a tizz.

I've never heard of nativity plays being banned. Agree that is probably fake news and right wing propaganda.

I know some schools do other types of play, rather than the nativity, but that's through choice.

DDs school does a nativity but it's catholic so you would expect that.

There were not many protestants in the Republic of Ireland, definitely not in the 80's, So no protestant influence and we always had a nativity play*

I personally and all my family lived in Ireland until the start of the 90s and none of us ever heard of a nativity play before then in the Republic. And the Republic is the most Protestant influenced Catholic country there is given it was ruled by a Protestant state for nearly 500 years.

Crib scenes are the norm in Catholic countries. Not nativity plays. On further research, nativity plays actually appear to be a British phenomenon, so Protestant from that point of view, but not found commonly amongst other Protestants either.

Nativity plays don't really fit in with Catholic ideas about who should be presenting and interpreting the bible (the clergy) in comparison to the Protestant idea of the same (which is any Church member). That's one of the primary differences between the RC and Protestant churches and nativity plays are just an example of how it manifests itself.

"They've never particularly encouraged their congregants to study the bible or know it's stories either."

Errr….you don't have to study the Bible to know its stories. The medieval churches of Europe were covered in paintings of Bible stories, many still survive on the Continent and (in slightly less good shape) in English churches. Congregations were expected to know the stories, just not necessarily through reading.

"Little children acting out bible stories is not part of their tradition for obvious reasons when you consider the different approach they have to bible stories."

The first surviving nativity plays are from the 11th century- that is quite some time before Protestantism. And there has been a long tradition of performing Bible stories in several Catholic countries since, though not necessarily always at school.

The medieval Mystery plays may not have been acted by children, but they were acted by the local congregations, not by priests, as were similar plays in other parts of Europe.

DTSMUMBOJO sorry I misunderstood where you were coming from on the subject of Catholic attitudes. However we all speak only for ourselves and our area of experience.

I'm not Catholic but live in a very Catholic region outside the UK, and small children do act out Bible stories here - every year they act out the saint Martin's story (yesterday, in fact) in church followed by a parade with lanterns and songs. It's a big deal here. It's also now mainly cultural tradition with now often fairly tenuous roots in an accessible bible story, exactly like UK nativity plays.

The traditional epiphany/ 3 kings day fancy dress door knocking/ poem recitation / charity collection/ parades/ performances are another Catholic culrural tradition involving retelling or acting out Bible stories in some areas.

So your Catholicism may not be representative of a wider Catholic attitude to acting out Nd retelling bible stories.

These are all old Catholic traditions in some parts of the world, like mystery plays. A lot of them are also more cultural than religious.

Actually, now I have engaged my brain, obviously Saint Martin is not a biblical story - epiphany is though.