Christians should avoid Mormon-sponsored nativities

Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?
And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel?
And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.
Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you.
And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty. II Corinthians 6:14-18

And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them. Ephesians 5:11

The God of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints--commonly known as the Mormon Church--is an extraterrestrial from a planet near a star called Kolob, and was once a man; the Jesus of Mormonism was the spirit brother of Lucifer (for more information on Mormon doctrine, consult some of the blogs and sites on the sidebar of this blog). Which is to say, Latter-day Saints worship a different God and Jesus from those of Christianity. For this reason, Christians should obey the command of God's word in II Corinthians and have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of Mormonism.

As reported by Carol Christensen in the Topeka Capital-Journal, November 26, 2021 (links in original):

St. Francis of Assisi is credited with popularizing nativities when he set up in 1223 in Greccio, Italy, what we would now call a “living nativity” (a cave with live animals, people representing Mary and Joseph, and a representation of baby Jesus) in order to help laypeople better understand and emotionally connect with the story of Christ’s birth.

The practice of making visual depictions of Jesus’s birth has spread since then throughout the Christian world, and today many Christians have nativities in their homes to help them remember the “reason for the season” and feel an emotional — and spiritual — connection with Jesus and His birth.

It was for similar reasons that Nativities and Noels was started in Topeka in 2012, nearly 800 years after St. Francis set up his cave nativity. Now in its 10th year, this free event features more than 800 nativities from around the world and continuous live vocal and instrumental Christmas music.

It will be Friday, Dec. 3, through Sunday, Dec. 5, at the Topeka Stake Center of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 2401 S.W. Kingsrow Road. The event will run from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, and from 1 to 7 p.m. on Sunday.

The event has reminded attendees of the true reason for and spirit of Christmas and helped them feel a stronger connection with Jesus and His birth at an often-hectic time of year. The nativities from nearly 100 countries have also helped remind visitors that people throughout the world celebrate Christ’s birth and feel connected to Him.

First-time visitors may be amazed at the variety of nativities on display: such as traditional, ornaments, miniature, homemade, electric, musical, children's, international, even ones from Kansas! They range in size from under an inch to several feet tall and are made from a wide variety of materials — porcelain, wood, clay, metal, and cloth, but also paper, marbles, corn husks, coconut shells, gourds and recycled newspapers, magazines, fence slats, pop cans, steel drums, and auto parts.

The display changes every year. This year, 200 nativities that haven’t been shown before will be on display.

Nativities and Noels, which initially featured only music and nativities from local Latter-day Saints, has expanded and includes music from members of other local Christian churches, including First Christian Church of Holton, Topeka Bible Church and Topeka Church of the Brethren. Washburn Rural High School's This Generation will sing at 1 p.m. Friday.

Nativities are on loan this year from friends from 12 other Topeka-area churches: Christ the King Catholic Church, Community of Christ, First Lutheran Church, First United Methodist Church (Garnett), First United Methodist Church (Topeka), Most Pure Heart of Mary Catholic Church, New Hope and Love Community Church, St. Mark’s African Methodist Episcopal Church, Topeka Bible Church, Topeka Church of the Brethren, University United Methodist Church, and Wanamaker Woods Church of the Nazarene.

There’s a wonderful feeling of Christian unity and connection when people of many different churches help with this celebration of Jesus’s birth.

Multiple COVID safety precautions will be taken at the event, and masks are recommended.

For more information, please check out “Nativities and Noels” on Facebook: www.facebook.com/nativitiesandnoels. The Facebook page also has posts from last year’s virtual event. Last year’s inspiring, locally produced videos on the “Nativities and Noels” YouTube channel are also still up and worth watching. Highlights from this year’s Nativities and Noels will be posted on the Facebook and YouTube pages after the event.

We are excited to hold Nativities and Noels in person again.

Here are some of my favorite comments from visitors from the public during earlier Nativities and Noels:

• “We had a nativity like that one when I was growing up!”

• “I have some nativities. May I share one or more next year?” (Answer: “Yes!”)

• “There’s such a wonderful spirit here!”

• “I’m going to tell my family (or friends or Sunday School class, etc.) about this!”

• “This is the highlight of my Christmas season.”

I hope that you will come to Nativities and Noels this year. It — and the spiritual and emotional connections you can make there — just might be the highlight of your Christmas season too!

Carol Christensen is co-chair of Nativities and Noels and the volunteer Communication Director for the Topeka Stake of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.