{"id":97317,"date":"2018-11-27T08:37:32","date_gmt":"2018-11-27T07:37:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/?p=97317"},"modified":"2018-11-27T08:37:32","modified_gmt":"2018-11-27T07:37:32","slug":"living-nativity-scenes-in-barcelona","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/living-nativity-scenes-in-barcelona\/","title":{"rendered":"Living Nativity Scenes in Barcelona"},"content":{"rendered":"

Although it seems as if more and more classical traditions are lost every year, in reality they are frequently kept around for the nostalgic and enchanting feeling that they bring, especially as many of them bring back memories of childhood. Christmas as of late has also been losing some its more traditional aspects and become more materialistic and consumeristic, in addition to adopting foreign traditions that are more exciting for children. It’s true that, as time has passed, the original symbolism of the birth of Jesus Christ has diminished compared to other ideas we now associate with the holiday. However, certain religious and more solemn customs still remain at the center of the celebrations; one in particular is beloved by those who like seeing life-size representations and are a bit nostalgic around the holidays. Today in this article from <\/span>ShBarcelona<\/b><\/a> we\u2019ll tell you where to see <\/span>living nativity scenes<\/b> in the Ciudad Condal. <\/span><\/p>\n

Related article: <\/span><\/i>Caga T\u00edo – A Catalan Christmas Tradition<\/span><\/i><\/a><\/p>\n

See the representations of Jesus\u2019 birth in Barcelona<\/h2>\n
\"\"

Photo via VisualHunt<\/p><\/div>\n

These life-size <\/span>nativity scenes are Christian representations of the birth of Jesus of Nazareth as the Bible describes it as happening. Barcelona takes great care to prepare its <\/span>Christmas image,<\/b><\/a> with ornate street ornaments, lights, carols sung by those in the central areas of the city and numerous activities for children (and children at heart) taking place in the streets and plazas of the different neighborhoods and districts of the Ciudad Condal, and the manger scenes are one of the main attractions. Along with the larger nativity scenes, it\u2019s <\/span>traditional<\/b><\/a> for individual families to place a smaller representation in their home during Advent, with miniature figures and decorations that recreate the scene of Jesus\u2019 birth. Although there are many different styles and designs for this scene, it\u2019s generally set up with the baby Jesus in front of the Virgin Mary and her husband Joseph of Nazareth, all situated in the stable where the baby sleeps in a hay-filled manger with warmth provided by a mule and an ox. The <\/span>three Magis<\/b><\/a> are also present with their respective camels, offering lovely gifts to the newborn king, along with the shepherds who have come to lend a hand in whatever way they can. This tender image is also represented and recreated annually by actors all over the country, and famously so in Barcelona. <\/span><\/p>\n

Related article: <\/span><\/i>Catalan Christmas Traditions<\/span><\/i><\/a><\/p>\n

\"\"

Photo via VisualHunt<\/p><\/div>\n

In the Ciudad Condal, you can see living nativity scenes in various locations throughout the city. Generally, these representations are put on by associations and civic centers, where community amateur actors dress as Mary, Joseph, the three wise men, the shepherds, the angels and even the mule and ox to give life to one of the most important images in the <\/span>Catholic tradition<\/b><\/a>. If you want to take a look at one of these traditional and deeply-rooted theatrical representations, you should head to <\/span>La Marina Park<\/b><\/a>, where more than 250 figures gather to form over 30 different nativity scenes in the forested area of the park. You can also check out <\/span>Navas<\/b>, where the <\/span>civic center of the Sant Andreu neighborhood <\/b>has been organizing a stunning manger scene for years. In the <\/span>Torre de Suro<\/b>, employees of the <\/span>Sant Camil school<\/b>, a school for those with mental disabilities, create a beautiful living nativity scene each year. Some of the other locations where you can see traditional celebrations of the living nativity scenes in Barcelona are <\/span>Espacio V\u00eda Barcino, El Cottolengo del Padre Alegre<\/b> next to <\/span>Park<\/b> G\u00fcell<\/b>, or the <\/span>Santa Bernardeta Parrish<\/b> in <\/span>Torre Bar\u00f3<\/b>.<\/span><\/p>\n

*Main photo by\u00a0prayerfriends via VisualHunt<\/em><\/p>\n

Are you going to see the living nativity scenes in Barcelona this Christmas?<\/b><\/p>\n

\n
\n
\n
\n
<\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n
<\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n
<\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n
<\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n
<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n
\n
<\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n
<\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n
<\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n
<\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n
<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n 5<\/strong>\n \/<\/span>\n 5<\/strong>\n (<\/span>\n 1<\/strong>\n \n vote <\/span>\n )<\/span>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Although it seems as if more and more classical traditions are lost every year, in reality they are frequently kept around for the nostalgic and enchanting feeling that they bring, especially as many of them bring back memories of childhood. Christmas as of late has also been losing some its more traditional aspects and become […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":138,"featured_media":97318,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[4498],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/97317"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/138"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=97317"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/97317\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":97321,"href":"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/97317\/revisions\/97321"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/97318"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=97317"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=97317"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shbarcelona.com\/blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=97317"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}