Let's see your nativity sets

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Something that I am perhaps more aware of as a multiracial American is the way that nativity sets almost invariably portray all the participants in the nativity story as northern Europeans, which the exception that sometimes one or more of the magi/kings/wise men are portrayed as black or some kind of Asian. Of course, this is fine and makes absolute sense if you are a person of northern European descent. Chinese Christians, for example, routinely portray figures in religious art as if they were Chinese. We know that it is very unlikely that Our Lady had golden blonde hair and alabaster skin, but people tend to portray her in a way that is familiar to them or that is an ideal in their culture.

So, before next Christmas, my sister will have had her first baby. Our mom is African American, our dad is white, and my sister’s husband is Korean. My brother’s wife is Hispanic with some indigenous American ancestry. So for next Christmas, I am planning to commission one of these 10-piece multiracial nativity sets, which the artist (a white woman from Portland, OR, with two adopted children from Ethiopia) can paint to the customer’s specific preferences.

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I am so grateful on this feast of the Holy Family for my deceased parents. For my mothers years of collecting pieces of the Nativity and for the teaching it gave to our family. Thank you Jesus for the wonder of your birth and for the Holy Family – Jesus, Mary and Joseph. Pray for us, pray for our families–we are broken – we need you to heal our wounded families
 
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I have my grandmother’s old set that I put out in addition to our family set each year. As she didn’t have a lot of money the figures are plastic, some fading. I reply here because we’re pretty sure a few figures made their way to Bethlehem over the years that were not part of the original set and their origins are unknown. These include a 3 legged horse, a golden retriever and a 4th wise man (on whom I have yet to bestow a name)
 
Everyone has that one “unique” extended family member that shows up at Christmas.
 
That’s a great idea.

I’ve addressed that same situation by having several sets of different ethnic origin. I have an African set, a Latino set, a European set, and new this year, an African American set. Over time I’ll add Asian and Native American sets as well.
 
@mrsdizzyd, you are “artsy.” I bet you could make a very personalized set like the one that @do_justly_love_mercy posted!
 
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