As dusk settled, a large crowd gathered inside and outside the church at St. Aloysius-St. Agatha Parish in Cleveland’s Glenville neighborhood. Proud family members and friends, parishioners and neighbors who had heard about the parish’s annual Live Nativity awaited the first program at 6 p.m. Dec. 14.
Among those who stopped by to enjoy the seasonal presentation that crisp but clear night, was Bishop Edward Malesic. He walked around the grounds greeting guests, students from the parish school who were participating in or watching the program and he got acquainted with some of the four-legged members of the cast, including a camel.
“He’s pretty soft,” the bishop remarked as he looked up at the camel’s head looming above him.
(See photo gallery above.)
Excited children petted a sheep, a donkey, a goat and a small cow who were fenced into pens in the front yard of the rectory. Anyone driving by the parish at East 109th Street and St. Clair Avenue couldn’t help but notice the crowd – and the farm animals. And that’s exactly why the parish has offered the live Nativity for the past several years.
Parish Life Coordinator Sister Mary Jean Raymond, SND said it’s a way to help draw people to the parish and to provide an introduction to what they do. “It’s a way to evangelize,” she explained, noting it was a non-threatening way of helping to share the faith.
For weeks before the event, schoolchildren at St. Aloysius-St. Agatha School rehearsed their roles in the production. Some were angels, others shepherds, some were cast as the Three Kings, Mary and Joseph, while others were in supporting roles. There was singing and a narration of the story of Jesus’ birth during the outdoor presentation. There was even a star hanging over the wooden stable where Mary and Joseph stayed the night of Jesus’ birth. Parents, teachers and other volunteers helped create costumes for the children in the cast. After the performances, the costumes are cleaned, repaired and stored for the next year.
Favorite seasonal songs like “Silent Night” and “We Three Kings” helped add to the presentation. A small fire pit near the stable provided some warmth to the chilly night for volunteers and shepherds who were part of the production.
After the story of Jesus’ birth finished, the group moved into the church for refreshments and more entertainment from Foxx & Company Band and liturgical and praise dancers. Also participating in the program were the St. Aloysius School Gospel Chorus, St. Adalbert School (Cleveland) altar servers, Diocesan Praise Dancers from St. Agnes/Our Lady of Fatima Parish in Cleveland and Holy Spirit Parish in Garfield Heights.
Sister Jane Nesmith, SBS, who heads Black Catholic Ministries for the Diocese of Cleveland, welcomed everyone to the program in the church. Also spotted in the crowd were Father Damian Ference, vicar for evangelization and secretary of Parish Life and Special Ministries, Father Anthony Simone, presbyteral moderator of St. Aloysius-St. Agatha Parish, K. Frank Jones, school principal, and Marcia Hatcher, assistant principal.
There were two presentations – 6 and 7 p.m. – with the program concluding by 8 p.m.