When Jesus was born in a manger in Bethlehem, He came as a light for those in darkness.
This crib which the Capuchin Franciscan friars along with the boarders at Monte
de Guirim, Mapusa, Goa have depicted this year is based on the theme “The Light
in the Darkness”. This is not merely a traditional crib… in fact, as a
visitor put it, it is “an entire journey of life and faith”.
This journey begins by peeping into the
distance, where in the crib we see Christ the Light, Who was born in in a
manger. From the darkness we can indeed see the Great Light.
Before we move along, it is good to note
the texture of the houses and the figures. One of the boarders who worked on
them commented, “All the houses and figures have been painstakingly made with
newspapers stuck together on a wooden frame, and then painted with love to give
them more life.”
One of the first figures vividly depicts
the womb of an expecting mother, wherein one observes not darkness or some
lifeless cells (as some consider them), but both light and life in it.
Journeying on from there we approach a tree, which represents
the numerous trees that are felled due to human greed, in turn causing a
constant flow of tears from the eye of the tree. These tears well up to form a
river, which flow on and on till they join the sea of hope, while still giving
life all along the way.
When one crosses the first bridge, we are led to the darkness of
the prison. In the first cell we see a Capuchin friar with the Scriptural quote
from prophet Isaiah (The theme for the year 2018-19 of Goa Archdiocese) placed
in his hand reading, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me for He has anointed
me… to proclaim release to the captives”. It is indeed a noble ministry to
those who are lonely and in the darkness of the prison. In the next cell, a
prisoner is seen gazing out of the window; for he who was in the dark has seen
a Great Light – All is surely not lost. And finally, before leaving the prison
we encounter Lady Justice.
A visitor to the crib, Beverley Fernandes from Saligao had this
to say, “It’s a very creative and beautiful crib… every scene has a powerful
message. The best theme ever presented in such a beautiful way”. Moving
slightly further, we indeed have a powerful message as we enter the land of the
blind, and meet Helen Keller, the inspirational lady who became deaf and blind
as a result of an unknown illness at the tender age of 19 months. We read
alongside from her essay “Three Days to See” where she visualizes and says “If
I have three days to see, … I would spend them with my friends…. with
nature… and in my hometown… And if you have eyes see the good things”. A
strong message for us blessed by God with good vision. Another placard
summarises the feelings of the blind, “I am blind but I have life within”.
Next to the land of the blind is the camel who strives to enter
through the eye of a needle carrying all the baggage. It’s only when we leave
aside all the unnecessary baggage that it would be easier to enter the ‘eye of
a needle’ into the Kingdom of God.
A slight glance towards the sky, and one is left awestruck with
the star of hope above the crib, and an entire galaxy of stars covering the
entire canopy, with Our Lady of Hope looking on. We also see the crib and the
church back to back – closely connected to each other. Water flows from below
the threshold of the church giving life to all around. You can presently also
observe the three kings moving back from another way after paying homage to the
Child Jesus. A point
to be noted here is that the church bears the name San Damiano,
the first church repaired by the founder of the Franciscan Order, Saint Francis
of Assisi, when he heard the voice of God saying, “Go and repair my church”. St
Francis later realised that he was called to renew the spiritual lives of the
people, the living church.
Before we move ahead there’s a window which we are invited to
open. On doing so, we see an individual at the computer – taking refuge in the
darkness of the room – with a caption stating: “Be careful what you see when
you are alone”.
On crossing the second bridge one is led to the sea which is
formed from the tears flowing from the crying tree. At the farthest end of the
sea is the lighthouse, which periodically flashes light, calling us to be those
beacons of hope to the lost in our daily life. Beyond the sparkling waters, on
the seabed is an invitation “let your light shine”. Also seen in the sea is a
fishing trawler, with trucks in the background transporting the fish. In the
neighbourhood is a certain individual called Dr. Formalin, who is trying to
preserve a few fish, a present dark reality heard of late in isolated cases.
Dr. Formalin’s signboard very aptly bears not a red cross but a black cross,
because he is not a doctor of life but a doctor of death. And finally, the
fisher folk make a choice as to what kind of fish they are to sell, just as
each one of us too make a choice to give good or bad to others, our darker side
or our brighter side.
We finally conclude with the glorious view in a golden yellow
house, where we see God’s best and beautiful creation. It’s true, ‘beauty lies
in the eye of the beholder’, which addresses the fact that each one of us is in
fact beautiful.
Fr. Marcus, the Capuchin Priest at Monte de Guirim who conceived
this crib, had this to say about the various curtains and colours used in the
crib, “We begin with black, and from our darkness we see the Light. From there
we proceed to white, the region of light and hope. As we move through the crib
we encounter shades of grey and blue, which bring out our various human
weaknesses as well as a sign of healing. Towards the end we reach the pink of
good health. The journey terminates with the curtains and walls in golden
yellow, which depict a glorious conclusion, wherein we see God’s best
creation.”
All in all this crib is a true journey of light in the darkness
and it “portrays the various aspects of darkness in our daily life, in our
environment and in the world at large, challenging us at every moment to let
our light and goodness shine.”
(Open
for public viewing until 20th January 2019 from 6:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. daily. )
