A congregation in Missouri will host their annual Christmas season event for which they collected and put on display around 600 Nativity scenes sent in from across the world.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints of Cape Girardeau is slated to hold its annual “Nativities From Around the World” event on Dec. 5-7.
Peggy Mouser, co-chair of the local Mormon church’s event, told The Christian Post that they were hosting the festivities to “show our community the true meaning of Christmas and that our church truly believes in Jesus Christ and of His importance.”
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“We hope they take away a stronger Christian Christmas spirit instead of the commercialism that is promoted at this time of the year. A feeling of peace. When people arrive, as soon as they walk through the door, they feel the Spirit of Christmas,” said Mouser.
“They are surrounded by Christ. His Spirit is there in every scene, every room. Browsing through the hundreds of beautiful and much-loved nativities is the perfect way to add meaning, peace, and joy to your celebration of the Christmas season.”
According to Mouser, the meetinghouse will showcase at least 600 Nativity scenes this year, with the congregation needing an additional room to accommodate all the displays.
The church has been overseeing the event for about a decade, with interruptions including the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns and their building being burned down by an arsonist in 2021.
“This year we will have live and programmed music provided by musicians and choirs. A photo booth we introduced last year will be returning because of its popularity,” Mouser added.
“It is magical to see all the varied sets displayed together, each one a unique expression of the artist and their culture.”
In addition to Cape Girardeau, the LDS congregation in Farmington, Missouri, will be holding a similar event next month featuring numerous Nativity displays from the local community and abroad.
According to Denise Wright, chair of the Farmington church event, last year they had 125 different Nativity sets, including a few that were donated by the Cape Girardeau church.
“Our hope last year and this year is that most importantly, people will be enriched by this celebration of the birth of our Savior Jesus Christ and be reminded through the display of the many Christians throughout the world who worship Him,” said Wright.
“In addition, we hope that again we can come together as brothers and sisters in Christ in sharing these nativities with each other.”
