By Keva Hoffmann Boardman —

Christmas morning had finally come! Presents, wrapped in shiny red or green paper and topped with ribbon bows, were stacked beneath the Christmas tree. But first, I looked on the coffee table where the Mary and Joseph figures had been reverently kneeling, gazing with love at an empty manger for weeks. There He was, the tiny Baby Jesus, lying in the brown wood manger filled with moss. Our manger scene at home was never complete until Christmas day.

The 13th C. theologian St. Bonaventure credits St. Francis of Assisi with creating the Christmas tradition of a manger scene. In his biography, “Life of St. Francis,” Bonaventure tells us that Francis was inspired by the sight of the traditional place of Jesus’ birth when he visited the Holy Land. In 1223, St. Francis sought permission from Pope Honorius III to create something “for the kindling of devotion to the birth of Christ.” On that Christmas Eve in a rock niche near the town square of Grecio, Italy, St. Francis put together a scene of a live ox and donkey beside a hay-filled manger. “He preached to people around the Nativity of the poor King … the Babe of Bethlehem … a dear friend of this holy man affirmed that he beheld an Infant marvelously beautiful, sleeping in the manger, whom the blessed Father Francis embraced with both his arms, as if he would awake Him from sleep.” The vision wasn’t the only miracle that night. “The hay of that manger, being preserved by the people, was wondrously found to cure all diseases of cattle and many other pestilences.”

After such a beginning, the inclusion of a nativity scene quickly became part of Christian Christmas tradition. In 1291, Pope Nicholas IV decreed that a permanent nativity scene be erected at Santa Maria Maggiore in Rome. Attributed to the sculptor Arnolfo di Cambio, the marble figures are believed to be the oldest nativity in Italy. By the end of the 14th C., almost every church in Italy included either live or statue/figurine manger scenes in their Christmas services.

Living nativities fit well into the tradition of pantomimes and mystery plays which were popular in the Middle ages. Renaissance art was dominated with the subject of the Nativity, artists and sculptors telling and retelling the story in unique and beautiful ways. Wealthy patrons even had themselves inserted into the Nativity story. The manger scene was often expanded to include the little town of Bethlehem and the countryside.

Manger scenes are not really historically accurate. They usually incorporate the shepherds and the three Magi along with sheep, donkeys, oxen, and camels. Our manger scene at home has come to include exotic animals like antelope and swans, and a cheetah walks next to the camels. The story of Christ’s birth varies in its telling in the Gospels of the Bible. All are combined in our manger scenes, this adjustment to the timeline simply allowing us to have the whole dramatic and beautiful story gathered together in one place.

The tradition of the Nativity is uniquely kept all around the world in displays both live and static. In past years, Holy Family Catholic Church celebrated the festival of Los Posadas, a tradition in Spanish-speaking countries. This reenactment of Mary and Joseph’s search for a room took the Nativity to the streets of New Braunfels in a lovely candle-lit walking drama. Many other local churches have manger scenes set up on their front lawns. I remember being a shepherd for a night in the living Nativity at First Protestant Church when I was in Jr. High. And we cannot forget the many Christmas pageants, with school children acting the parts of both humans and beasts.

The seven Timmerman Sisters of Geronimo (just up Hwy. 123 towards Seguin) were well-known for their family’s nativity scene. In 1936, Mrs. William Timmermann found a description in Hermann Seele’s Die Cypress, of the 1849 Christmas celebration at her grandparents’ home, the Waissenhaus (the orphanage out near Gruene). Seele described seeing a manger scene set within a circle of honeycomb limestone rocks beneath a native cedar Christmas tree. Mrs. Timmermann, the seven sisters’ mother, then reestablished this tradition of her grandparents by setting up a manger scene surrounded by honeycomb rocks beneath the Timmermann Christmas tree. The scene grew to include a miniature Waissenhaus, a waterfall and other little vignettes which were nestled within an ever-growing ring of honeycomb limestone rocks.

Special figures for the orphanage were created in Germany after WWII. A copy of Seele’s story was sent to a West German friend. Disguising herself as an old woman gathering seeds, she made her way to a home in East Germany and placed a note under a rock which described the children and adult figures needed for the scene. The friend then arranged to return and pick up the finished pieces which she sent to the Timmermanns in Texas. The completed Waisenhaus scene appeared under the Timmermann tree in 1949 — on the hundredth anniversary of the Christmas described by Hermann Seele.

Many of us remember visiting the Timmermann Sisters at Christmas to marvel at their manger scene. Surrounded by honeycomb rocks, the Nativity and Texas Hill Country scenes spilled out from under the wide-spreading branches of the Texas cedar tree quite nearly filling the entire room. For many years, the scene was also created at the Heritage Exhibit which was put on at the NB Civic Center during Wurstfest.

Of course, depending on where you are from, a manger scene has a different name. In Spanish-speaking countries it is known as belén which is literally “Bethlehem.” Churches and cathedrals have elaborate scenes which include the manger, the city, and the countryside. German-speakers call the manger scene a Weihnachtskrippe or “Christmas crib.” While the French call it a crèche, the Italians call it a presepio, but both mean a “crib.”

All these names reflect the most important part of Christmas — the Baby Jesus in the manger on Christmas morning.

Sources: San Marcos Daily Record, Austin American Statesman, New Braunfels Herald-Zeitung, Texas Library Journal Vol 29 No. 4 – Sophienburg Museum & Archives; https://www.google.com/search?q=history+of+nativity+scenes; https://theconversation.com/how-st-francis-created-the-nativity-scene-with-a-miraculous-event-in-1223-124742; https://catholicstraightanswers.com/what-is-the-origin-of-the-nativity-scene-creche/

Photo: The Timmermann Christmas tree and nativity scene in 1948. The Waissenhaus is on the left. (S481-014_3)

The post Away in a manger appeared first on Sophies Shop.

Our Lady of Perpetual Help congregation is celebrating its 90^th year of existence. It is a good example of a group of people who held on to their beliefs and held on to their culture and traditions. Sts. Peter and Paul Church, the oldest Catholic Church in New Braunfels, sent a request to the Motherhouse of the Holy Family in Holland asking for priests to work among the Spanish-speaking people in New Braunfels. In 1926, the church became a reality and still serves the community at 138 W. Austin Street

The idea of serving the needs of the Spanish-speaking people in the area began much earlier at Las Calera or The Lime at Dittlinger, four miles west of New Braunfels. In 1907, Hippolyt Dittlinger founded the Dittlinger Lime Company four miles west of New Braunfels. It is said that Mr. Dittlinger recruited workers from Mexico. Immigrant workers brought their families and immediately a settlement began close to The Lime.

Mr. Dittlinger provided housing and a school for the children in the vicinity. He also built a house for the Sisters of Divine Providence who had come to teach the children in that school. In 1926 space was provided in the school for a chapel. Worship services were held in a room partitioned off in the building, the same year that the Sister’s House was built. The Lime was sold in 1934 to the United States Gypsum Company, but the school continued until 1936 when it became a public school of the New Braunfels Independent School District.

The year 1926 was a very important year for the congregation of Our Lady of Perpetual Help and that is the reason for the celebration. It was this same year that the late Henry Moeller bequeathed a house on Austin St. in Comaltown to Archbishop J.J. Droassarts for the purpose of establishing a church for Spanish-speaking people. Emily Moeller also gave property on Austin St. adjoining the house.

The Archbishop appealed to the Holy Family Fathers in the Netherlands for missionaries to help organize a church. Four missionaries accepted the call in March of 1926.

Reverend Anthony Elsing, M.S.F. headed the group. Since there was no church building, the house given by Henry Moeller at 158 W. Austin St. was used as a temporary chapel and a rectory. A small church was built and Our Lady of Perpetual Help became the official name on December 5, 1926 with 40 families in the parish. Two years later a fire partially destroyed the interior of the chapel. The church was rebuilt and enlarged to accommodate a larger congregation, which had grown to 509 parishioners, plus living quarters for the sisters. A home next to the one given by Mr. Moeller was purchased and used as a new rectory with the old house being remodeled into a school. In 1931 a parish hall was built on the back of the property. Also in that year the parish purchased land for its own cemetery on Peace Avenue, taking the place of the Sts. Peter and Paul Cemetery and the Hidalgo Cemetery for its parishioners.

In 1948, it became necessary to enlarge the school so a larger more modern structure was built. In the 1960s the parochial school was closed and most children entered the public schools. Nuns from Indiana took over the Catholic religious instruction of the children going to public school. This lead to a strong program for youth that is still active as the Catholic Youth Organization.

A beautiful structure was built in 1969 on the corner of Austin and Union Sts. In the 1980s a new Parish Hall, CCD Center and bazaar booths were constructed on the premises.

Many Spanish-speaking people lived on the western edge of New Braunfels due to the influx of industry in that area. Growth was inevitable and so became the necessity for a church in the area. Out at Dittlinger, the Sister’s House that had remained on the property of Servtex Material, was purchased by Mrs. Amalie Dittlinger Mengden of Houston in 1944. She was the daughter of Hippolyt Dittlinger and she donated the building to Our Lady of Perpetual Help in New Braunfels. The building was dismantled and the materials from this house became the beginning of the Holy Family Church which is now at 245 S. Hidalgo Ave. This church, as well as another church in Hunter, St. Johns Church, were both mission churches of Our Lady of Perpetual Help.

The church is very active socially, bringing people together. Some of the original organizations live on and some were abandoned. These activities exemplify the strong love of family and friends that the Mexican culture is known for.

The love of music has always been important in the Catholic Church. Going back to early Europe, all denominations honored the great classics like Hendel’s Messiah or the Vivalde Requiem. Different denominations adopt their church music to their beliefs and culture. An example of that took place in 1978 when the Lady of Perpetual Help formed the Mariache Choir and then later the First Conjunto Choir when the Latin Mass was eliminated.

The Bazaars or Jamaicas is a time for fellowship when parishioners pool their talents for the betterment of church funds. A dance with a D.J. raises a large part of funds for improvements on the campus. The dance takes place inside the hall and the Bazaar is not outside as it used to be.

Another important occasion is Las Mananitas which is a tribute to Our Lady of Guadalupe and her apparition to Juan Diego on the morning December 12^th. The grotto called El Cerrito (the mountain) which was constructed on the grounds in 1940 is the site for the celebration of Las Mananitas. After singing Las Mananitas, the celebration is concluded with Mass. This practice has been conducted in many, many Catholic churches. Although this ceremony is no longer at church, many parishioners carry it out as a tradition in their family.

Las Posadas is the reenactment of Joseph’s and Mary’s journey to Bethlehem for the birth of Christ. This is concluded at midnight on December 24^th. It is a tradition of “blessing of the home.”

In the early years, going back to Father Elsing’s time in New Braunfels, a tradition carried on for many years was Las Tamaladas. This tradition was made famous by the Guadalupanas preparing tamales from hand ground corn meal. Father Elsing would collect the corn from the farmers and the Guadalupanas would grind the corn into cornmeal and make tamales. From their sale of tamales, funds would be used to benefit children.

On the anniversary of its 90^th year, Our Lady of Perpetual Help finds itself a congregation of diverse backgrounds. An early 7:30am Mass is still conducted for the Spanish-speaking parishioner but the two other morning services are in English. Winter Texans from all over have found the church to be a welcome home.

The post OLPH celebrates beliefs, history and traditions appeared first on Sophies Shop.