The Virgin Mary wearing a gas mask. The baby Jesus restrained with zip ties. Joseph knocked over on the ground.
It is not a typical Nativity display, but one scene in Evanston is attracting attention. That’s where Lake Street Church has erected a challenging creche as a way to get people thinking about their neighbors.
The church leaves little doubt as to where it stands on social issues. Black Lives Matter banners adorn its sign and social justice banners hang at its entrance. Still, a unique Nativity display featuring Roman Centurions dressed as ICE agents has garnered attention.
“Jesus was born into a context…the Roman Empire, right?” Rev. Dr. Michael Woolf said. “He immediately has to flee and go into exile and become a refugee.”
The Nativity scene puts Mary and Jesus in modern times with the Christ child wearing zip ties on its plaster hands.
“Our baby Jesus has zip ties on his hands because that was an actual incident that happened in our city,” Woolf said.
The pastor said it’s important to find real world events and put the sacred into them to tell a story.
That story is playing out not only in front of the Evanston church, but also on the streets of another Chicago suburb – Broadview, where Woolf was among those arrested while protesting in front of the ICE processing facility.
Woolf was part of a group making an appearance Wednesday morning in a Maywood courtroom along with Park Ridge Community Church Pastor Carol Hill.
“When we see injustice being perpetrated against our siblings, we must stand with them,” Hill said.
NBC Chicago reached out to the Department of Homeland Security, which, so far, has had no comment on the unique protest.
Woolf said the immigration theme is especially important at this time of year because it echoes the teachings on how we treat our neighbors.
“If you read the gospels, how we treat our neighbors is how we are treating Jesus,” he said
Woolf holds out hope that a better understanding of ourselves and our neighbors can come from difficult times.
As for the display, it has seen some damage from the elements. Mary’s gas mask has been removed, and the zip ties have been cut off the baby Jesus’ hands.
On Saturday, Woolf is inviting members of the church and residents of the neighborhood to come and help restore the Nativity scene to its original state.
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