HUE (UCAN): Sister Mary Agnes Truong Thi Phuc decorates crèches with small pebbles while two other sisters make Christmas trees from old bottles.
“We use old items to produce nativities as a way to heighten public awareness of environmental protection in this Christmas season,” Sister Truong said.
The sisters make small crèches from cardboard, polystyrene, branches, pebbles, and pine fruits. The crèches measuring 50 centimetres in length and 40 centimetres in width are in the style of miniature rockeries that are familiar to the local people.
The sisters say local Catholic students collected the used items from their own and others’ homes and offered them to the nuns to make environmentally friendly cribs.
“Our Christmas message highlights environment protection and charity as Jesus was born in a manger and among herdsmen,” Sister Truong explained.
The three sisters from the Daughters of Our Lady of the Visitation based in Thua Thien Hue province produce over 200 nativities during Advent and sell them for 200,000 dong [US$8] each. The money is used to provide food for people whose crops were washed away in October and November.
Our Christmas message highlights environment protection and charity as Jesus was born in a manger and among herdsmen
“Many followers of other faiths buy our hand-made cribs and pay us more than 200,000 for each crib as they are interested in them,” the sister said.
Le Thi My Tien, the owner of a clothes shop in Hue, said she finds the beauty of sincerity and simplicity in the crèches made of used items.
She bought a crèche from the sisters and displayed it in her shop to share the Christmas message with her customers.
Stephanus Tran Van Thuan from the parish of Thuan Nhon said he and other catechism students were inspired by the sisters to make Christmas cribs from old paper, straw, pebbles and bamboo. They use clay to make statues of animals and paint them.
The 14-year-old Tran said they collected 10 million dong [US$412] through donations to buy electric lamps and statues of Joseph, Mary and Infant Jesus to decorate the nativities. The parish has 80 catechism students studying catechism.
We want to ensure that poor people also have something useful to celebrate Christmas as Jesus comes to all people
“We have offered 40 crèches and colourful lanterns to families who could not build them in their homes,” he said. “We want to ensure that poor people also have something useful to celebrate Christmas as Jesus comes to all people.”
Anna Le Thi Cong from the parish of Huong Lam said her three children were away at work and she could not make a crèche or decorate her house.
“I am very touched by a crèche and two lanterns the students gave me as I am alone this Christmas,” Cong said.
Heavy rains battered the central province of Thua Thien Hue for days in November claiming the lives of five people and damaging 19,000 houses, crops, poultry, and cattle.
During Advent, Caritas in Hue provided rice, instant noodles, clothes, blankets and money for 1,000 people. Some parishes offered gifts to people in need to celebrate Christmas.
Father Francis Ho Van Uyen, parish priest of Nhan Dong in Quang Tri province, said many people suffer from lack of food because they lost their jobs and are badly affected by climate change.
Father Ho said he appealed to parishioners to donate 10 kilogrammes of rice to poor people and help them celebrate Christmas.
“Christmas is only meaningful when we know how to share with our brothers and sisters in this difficult time,” he said.
