Farmyard Fridays Xmas Special: Away in a manger

 

 

Animals are an incredibly key part of our lives. On the most basic of levels, animals share our homes and appear upon our plates, though that’s probably an illogicality best left untouched for today. Animals also provide entertainment, whether through being raced, jumped or performing amusing dances on the internet and You’ve Been Framed. They can even help to save lives, by aiding those with disabilities and even detecting epilepsy and cancer. All in all, animals and humans have an absolutely solid relationship.

It’s therefore of no surprise that so many animals were present at the birth of Jesus, right?

 Wrong. At least, according to Emeritus Pope Benedict XVI. In a book published in December 2012, the former leader of the Catholic Church shared the fruits of his research into the birth of Jesus (cashing in? Never…) and revealed some news that it’s surprising more daytime television shows didn’t pick up on: there are no nativity animals mentioned in the four Gospels of the New Testament. No sheep, no camels and certainly no ox or ass.

Farmyard Fridays is nothing if not thorough and this claim has been verified through reading the four Gospels in question (well, the relevant verses anyway. Life is a tad too busy for anything else right now). And it will probably come as no surprise that Benedict, Pope for the nine years, does actually know his Biblical passages. There are no animals standing around the manger to welcome the Baby Jesus.

One has to question, then, why it’s such a key part of modern day nativity scenes. ‘Away in a Manger’, a carol of 1885, builds animals in as a pretty key part of the whole situation, and the part of ‘Fifth Sheep’ is a pretty standard way of including every child in a school nativity. Why this sudden need to have a whole menagerie crowding into the scene?

Of course, the setting of a stable makes animals that bit more logical, especially if you’re trying to create a believable story. Had there been no room at the inn but plenty of room at the local hospital, a stray cow wandering past would have been slightly analogous. Equally, a stable in 1^st century Palestine without some form of livestock would be a complete waste of space. So from that viewpoint, it’s naïve to suggest there wouldn’t be animals present.

 But perhaps it’s simpler than that. Maybe somebody looked at the story and wondered what would make it all more interesting. Not that the Son of God in a cattle-stall isn’t pretty engaging in itself, of course, but, let’s be honest here: if the nativity was being recreated today the three wise men would transform into a sparkly vampire, a wizard and a time-travelling alien. You’ve got to try and appeal to new audiences after all, and so perhaps whoever began adding in our four-legged friends simply intended to make the scene a bit more varied and visually appealing. There is, after all, a limit to the number of humans you can have crowding upon a scene before it become a bit tedious.

There are therefore 2 Farmyard Fridays facts to celebrate Christmas.

Farmyard Fridays Fact #12: There are no animals mentioned in the nativity scene described in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.

Farmyard Fridays Fact #13: Animals make everything way more interesting.