photo by: Contributed

A modern Nativity at the Festival of Nativities depicting Mary and Joseph taking a selfie with the newborn Jesus as the three Wiseman bear Amazon gift packages on Segways. The festival is at Centenary United Methodist Church, 245 N. Fourth St.

A Lawrence church has been collecting Christmas Nativities from around the globe for over 30 years and is inviting the public, as it does every year, to view its latest depictions of the night of Jesus’ birth in the Bethlehem manger.

Centenary United Methodist Church in North Lawrence has now amassed more than 450 Nativity scenes, which will go on display Sunday in what has become a holiday tradition in Lawrence: the Festival of Nativities.

“They’re gonna see some Nativity sets that they probably had never dreamed of… crafted by people from wherever they live,” Pastor Todd Seifert said, allowing people to get a glimpse of other cultures and ways of seeing one of Christianity’s holiest moments.

The collection includes plenty of traditional looking Nativities, alongside distinctly modern takes. One of the contemporary representations has the three wise men, the Magi, on Segway scooters carrying Amazon packages while Mary and Joseph take a selfie with their newborn.

“Every now and then, we’ll have somebody that says that’s sacrilegious. But the reality is it’s just a different way of telling the story for people who otherwise wouldn’t be interested. Way more people are intrigued by it than are put off by it,” Seifert told the Journal-World.

photo by: Contributed

This poster is a modern interpretation of Mary and Joseph outside of a motel with no vacancy. It’s part of Centenary United Methodist Church’s Festival of Nativities.

The church has only a few dozen members in its congregation, and over the last 31 years members have been picking up new Nativity scenes as they travel around the globe. This year is the 30th annual event; the church took a pause during the pandemic.

One of the congregants has a massive personal collection that he lends to the church, and that collection has its own room.

The collection started after people would donate a piece from time to time, but by 1994 the church had gathered dozens and decided to put them on display. From there, the festival offerings grew year after year.

“As people would go on vacations, if they saw one, they would buy one and bring it back,” Seifert said.

Some scenes are small enough to fit into a shoe box while other sets can fill a whole room like the one from The House of Fontanini, a commercial purveyor of Nativities.

“We also have a Fontanini set — I don’t want to say rare, but it’s something that is not normally seen in the United States,” Seifert said.

photo by: Contributed

A Nativity depicting a whole village at Centenary United Methodist Church.

Some of the sets are so intricate that they get left up year round, Seifert said.

The Festival of Nativities starts on Sunday, from noon until 4 p.m., at Centenary, 245 N. Fourth St. The festival continues the next two Saturdays and Sundays, Dec. 14-15 and Dec. 21-22, from noon until 4 p.m.

There will be performances by the Lawrence Community Hand Bell Choir providing an ensemble for a concert at 1 p.m. on Saturday Dec. 14 and Dec. 21. And the Lawrence Indian United Methodist Church will sell Indian tacos during the festival on Dec. 14.

photo by: Contributed

A Nativity scene from Tanzania at Centenary United Methodist Church.

photo by: Contributed

A traditional Nativity scene at Centenary United Methodist Church.

photo by: Contributed

A Nativity from Bangladesh at Centenary United Methodist Church.

photo by: Contributed

A Nativity made up of babushka dolls at Centenary United Methodist Church.

photo by: Contributed

A mix-media painting of Vincent Van Gogh’s “Starry Night” reimagined to include a Nativity scene at Centenary United Methodist Church