As long as I can remember my family always had a nativity scene we pulled out for Christmas. When I was younger our nativity scene had little porcelain figures that all surrounded a little porcelain Jesus. Then we got a more abstract nativity scene with just Joseph, Mary and Jesus that I stole when I moved out, which you can see above.
Most nativity scenes are fairly straightforward with some variation in color or head size, depending on if you have the Precious Moments nativity. Here are some nerdy nativity scenes that don’t exist but definitely should.
Star Wars Nativity
Jesus: Anakin Skywalker. He may never have been an infant in the movies but he was the chosen one who would bring balance to the Force.
Mary: Shmi Skywalker. She was Anakin’s mom so it only makes sense that she is Mary. I even read that Mary is killed by Sand People in the “Gospel” of Judas.
Joseph: Senator Palpatine. He wasn’t Anakin’s biological father but, much like Joseph raised Jesus, Palpatine guided and mentored Anakin.
Shepherds: Luke. Han. Lando. If the nativity were a buddy cop movie the shepherds would be the buddy cops.
Sheep: Chewbacca. Wicket.
Wise Men: Yoda. Obi-Wan. Mace Windu. Mace Windu needed to make this list because the three kings may not have come from the “Orient” but they definitely weren’t Swedish.
Lord of the Rings Nativity
Jesus: Frodo Baggins. He was kind of small like a baby and again he was the one chosen by the Ring.
Mary: Galadriel. LOTR is kind of a boys party so Mary has to be Galadriel, Arwen or Eowyn. Galadriel seems the most matronly and gave good presents.
Joseph: Gandalf. Again, Gandalf wasn’t Frodo’s father but he helped guide and direct Frodo, almost to his death.
Shepherds: Sam. Merry. Pippin. Boromir. Aragorn. Gimli. Legolas. Had Jesus had shepherds like the Fellowship, I would have liked to see Herod try to kill him.
Sheep: Gollum. One stinky, gross, disgusting sheep.
Wise Men: Elrond. Saruman. Bilbo. Bilbo may not have been as wise as the other two, but a mithril vest is probably more valuable than gold, frankincense and myrrh put together.
Star Trek Nativity
Jesus: Baby Spock from Star Trek III. If Jesus grew at the rate of Baby Spock, his earthly ministry could have started a lot sooner.
Mary: Commander Trip Tucker. Enterprise may not have been the most beloved Star Trek series, but it did feature a pregnant, male chief engineer. It may not have been an immaculate conception but it was still pretty good.
Joseph: Lieutenant Saavik. If Mary can be a man why can’t Joseph be a girl? Saavik was the one responsible for Baby Spock and helped raise him, even when Klingons were getting all crazy.
Shepherds: Captains Kirk, Picard, Sisko, Janeway and Archer. I haven’t watched The Captains on Netflix but I plan to soon. If I had to choose one, though, I’d pick Picard every time.
Sheep: Tribbles. Lots and lots and lots of sheep.
Wise Men: Q. The Prophets. It’s easy to be wise if you’re an all-powerful alien or aren’t bound by space and time.
I don’t have the skills necessary to create these nativity scenes but, if I did, I would proudly display them in my home. I would also create life-size versions and place them in front of my church.
It’s not really important what our nativity scenes look like, as long as we remember what they symbolize and that the greatness of Christ’s birth can’t be captured with some small statues.
Also, it’s good to remember that the wise men weren’t at the birth of Christ.
What memories do you have of nativity scenes?
How about a “Doctor Who” nativity?
BABY JESUS: Melody Pond (“A Good Man Goes to War”)
MARY: Amy Pond
JOSEPH: Rory Pond
THE ANGEL: The Doctor (of course!)
I’m a little stumped on who should be the shepherds and wise men, but Herod and his soldiers shoud, of course, be Davros and the Daleks.
The TARDIS can be the stable, and K-9 can be kneeling at the manger.
Just discovered your blog and am looking forward to reading more. Merry Christmas to you!