03 Dec 2023 Take part in the Festival of the Nativities returning to Central Arkansas

Posted at 1:43 PMh in Features by

Grace Presbyterian Church of Conway will once again host the Festival of the Nativities from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 10, at 1010 Hogan Lane, Ste. 2. The event offers a time to reflect upon the birth of Jesus Christ as depicted in the various nativity scenes that will be on display. The Festival of the Nativities is free and open to the public.

This antique nativity will be among more than 100 scenes on display at the Festival of the Nativities on Dec. 10 at Grace Presbyterian Church in Conway.

The nativities on display come from members of the congregation and community. They are different sizes and presentations. “The variety of the nativities make for an interesting viewing of the nativity scene of Jesus as an infant surrounded by his mother, Mary, and other components of the night of the birth of Jesus,” said Jim Hays, a lay pastor at the church.

There will also be a chili supper from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. for a donation of $7 or any donation amount. All proceeds from the chili supper will be given to Conway Cradle Care (CCC) and its ministries, which provides mentoring and access to child care, or child care vouchers, to adolescent parents who are still in high school or college, working on their GED, or enrolled in a workforce program. “We make sure they do not have to abandon their education just because they are a parent,” said McKinley Hess, who has been with the organization for five years and executive director for a year and a half.  

CCC is located at First Presbyterian Church on Prince Street in Conway. In addition to child care, CCC offers mentoring in Faulkner, Van Buren, Conway and Perry Counties. “Our number one goal this year is community outreach, letting as many as possible in the community know about the services we offer and helping as many young parents in the community as possible,” Hess said. “We are so grateful to Grace Presbyterian for letting us be a part of the wonderful festival.”

At this time, CCC is caring for 15 babies and has the capacity to care for 18. They also provide diapers and wipes for every child in their day care and mentoring program and depend upon grants, donations and fundraisers for support.

Hays sees the connection between the nativity and the local nonprofit. The original name for nativity scenes was a crèche, which is the French word for a crib. A crèche is also known as a place of day care for infants and small children while their parents are at work or school.  “Because Conway Cradle Care provides a ‘crèche’ for the infants of teenage mothers, what better way to share the meaning of the birth of Jesus than by supporting this Festival of Nativities and Chili Supper?” Hays said.

“The history of the nativity scene being displayed is credited to St. Francis of Assisi, when he set up a live ox and donkey with a child in a bed of hay to display to his audience ‘a scene to provide the ordinary people access to the divine child,’” Hays said. “Since those days, churches and homes throughout history have set up nativities with live animals and people and in art through painting, sculpture, carvings and any form of medium imaginable to create a scene of the Christ child and his birth.”

Anyone may display their nativity scene at Grace Presbyterian Church. The setup of nativities will be from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 9. Contact Hays with questions at 501.499.2885.