A CHILD IS BORN

It seems imperative to me, in this new millennium, to reinvigorate our symbols with meaning that feels both direct and personal. Among the many important aspects of the birth of Jesus was the historical introduction of the sacredness of family, maternity, and infancy. Almost an aside was the roll of the earthly father. Today we are seeing an intimacy of paternal involvement that I believe must be reflected in the symbol of sacred birth. Thus the father in this tableau is immanently present as he embraces his wife and baby daughter.

Secondary only, to the five essential needs of humankind, is story. In story/myth we attempt to define who and what we are. In this "story" illustration, A Child is Born, all the original members of the Christmas Story are present. Reflecting who we are today in an urban society, where, in spite of vast riches, we have failed to erase the blight of homelessness, the stable has become a homeless shelter. Despite 2000 years of the concept of Christian love, we still (within the faith) disenfranchise those whom we experience as "different", and fail to love the God-given gift of Self, out of which flows love for all. Present in the shelter are: A young homeless family; wise ones, one of whom is a Christian priest (representing both herself and the authority of the Church, she reaches out to the child with her own child in tow), and a rabbi (representing both himself, within this family, and the tradition which gives rise to the story; he carries the child of the tradition who reaches out to the child of NOW); an urban shepherd (who tended her flock of "disenfranchised" on a global scale); a "bearer of glad tidings", a blind ham radio operator (who by his vision, through the eyes of his heart, broadcasts the good news that a child is born); a choir of "earth-angels"; a father who carries his Aides riddled son to "shelter"; a street man; individuals representing a range of ethnicity, socio-economic levels, and varying states of "wellness", and a few urban animals.

The members of this story are really all Wise Ones, because they have sought "shelter" in whatever way they needed it. But a few may require further narrative, they are: a seated gentleman with Alzheimer's disease; a gay family with son who, like the story, plays his drum for the child; a pregnant teen who's ferret is a focus of interest for a young boy with Down's syndrome. Each in his/her own way should teach us, remind us, that God lives in all of us, and that we must see "with eyes that see" the truth of that; that the Christmas Story is OUR story, that we, all of us, are participants. While I have tried, to the degree possible, to create a microcosm of humanity, as we here in Portland experience it, there are many missing, and thus the empty chair invites YOU to sit and be a part of this story, to experience Yourself as essential within the FAMILY of God.

Catherine Stakel
blu@catherinestakel.com
December 2000

photography
joan tilney (panorama)
jen dean hartman photography
elizabeth root