Holy Cross Church
Speaking to City Herald, Holy Cross Church Parish Priest Fr Valerian Pinto said that ICYM unit of Kulshekar parish have toiled for a month to create the crib. The students used to attend colleges in the day and work late in the evenings on the crib, he said.
“We have created an artificial spring and waterfall with seven tributaries. Apart from the main idols of Joseph, Mary and Jesus, we have used shepherds, three kings and over 100 sheep,” said a member of ICYM who worked on the crib.
Infant Jesus Shrine
The crib at Infant Jesus Shrine is based on a theme, “filled with the zeal for god,” that focuses on youth. A huge cave structure with two openings enclosed 3 different scenes.
“The first scene depicts the Old Testament where prophets who are waiting for the coming of the messenger are portrayed. The scene also had a thermocol tower which depicted the tower of Babel. The second scene gives a perfect picture of the birth of Christ in one section and the parables of Jesus in another. The third scene was to motivate the youth to come back to God as many are gone away with technology and modernisation,” said Brother Vijay, speaking to City Herald.
Our Lady of Miracles
“We have concentrated on the importance of nature with our crib,” says Milagres Parish Priest Fr Walter D’Mello. The crib has a spring flowing from artificially created hills. A fish and turtle pond is the main attraction.
St Aloysius chapel
The crib has grass and plants giving a luscious green look. “We have created an artificial waterfall which is a reminder for the shortage of water we face nowadays. Jesus was born in a manger, which is a symbol of poverty making us realise that we need to take care of the less fortunate in the society,” said St Aloysius Chapel in-charge Fr Francis Almeida SJ.
Rosario Cathedral
“We have tried to create the real picture of Jerusalem,” says Binoy D’Silva, in-charge of crib. Jerusalem was a desert like place and it had scarcity of water, hence we have not created ponds like other cribs, he said.
History
Creation of the first nativity scene is credited to Saint Francis of Assisi in 1223, as he was inspired by his visit to the Holy land where he was shown the birthplace of Christ.