A tale of two Bethlehems

CLAIRE MATHIESON reflects on two Bethlehems: the birthplace of Our Lord in the West Bank and the rural town in South Africa.

O little town of Bethlehem today is not so little — neither the Bethlehem in the Middle East nor the one in the middle of the Free State.

But as far removed from the original Bethlehem as our local version may be, for many the iconic named town is just one of the special connections South African Christians have with birthplace of Jesus Christ.

Founded in 1860, the Free State town was named Bethlehem—from the Hebrew “Beit Lachem”—after its Biblical counterpart, because wheat thrived in the region. Today, the region has a Catholic diocese and is home to more than 75,000 Catholics.

Local priest Fr Dikotsi Mofokeng said the connection to the original Bethlehem was until recently not very well established. Many locals, he said, did not feel that much of a special relationship with the original Bethlehem.

However, in 2011 a Palestinian tour organisation travelled to the diocese and spoke to groups of interested people from different denominations about the situation of the Palestinian people — a number of them Catholics from the West Bank town of Bethlehem.

“It became clear to us how they are denied their rights and how they are suffering and made to feel unwelcome in their own land. It sounded very similar to what the new born Jesus and his mother Mary and foster-father Joseph experienced over 2,000 years ago,” said Fr Mofokeng.

He said the story needs to be heard by more people in Bethlehem, and beyond. Many more Catholics from Bethlehem would be interested to hear what their namesake Catholics go through and Christmas might hold even more meaning if they understood the difficulties of the tense Middle East region, Fr Mofokeng said.

Christmas in the town near Jerusalem where Jesus was born is a major event. The streets are decorated with Christmas lights, there is a festive market and nativity plays are performed.

But the most important aspect of the Bethlehem Christmas is the religious part of the season, where age-old traditions of the Holy Land can be observed. Multiple processions and services from various denominations, including Catholic, Protestant, Greek Orthodox, Ethiopian and Armenian, take place throughout the town.

Christmas processions usually pass through Manger Square, the plaza outside the ancient basilica of the Nativity, which stands on the traditional site of Jesus’ birth. The Catholic Christmas Mass, which is televised throughout the world, is celebrated in the adjacent St Catherine’s church and celebrations continue for a long time.

While for many in South Africa Christmas peaks on December 25, a Christmas spirit is felt through to January 6, the feast of the Epiphany, and then to January 18 when the Armenian Christmas is celebrated.

Though the spirit is also felt in our local Bethlehem, Fr Mofokeng said it was usually on account of the municipality placing large decorations in the streets and hanging festive lights in the streets. Bethehemites shop with carols playing in all the shopping centres and decorations are constant—but unlike the original Bethlehem, these are not necessarily a direct reflection of the celebration of Christ, Fr Mofokeng said. He said Christ is the necessary centre in Bethlehem’s Christmas—something the local Bethlehem could learn from the original.

While many leave the Free State town during the holidays, the Middle Eastern town sees around 15,000 tourists and pilgrims visit over the Christmas period—an impressive number considering the town’s population is just double that!

Some of the visitors will include a couple hundred Christians over the age of 35 from the Gaza Strip who are given permission by the Israeli military to travel to Bethlehem and stay for 24 hours to celebrate Christmas.

For Catholic Bethehemites in the Free State the celebration is shorter, less overwhelming but also special. Fr Mofokeng listed the ingredients for the local Church’s special Christmas: “Christmas carols, candles, beautiful liturgy, exchange of gifts, a Christmas crib sometimes created by the children and youth, and Christmas plays.”

While the Christmas liturgy and celebrations in Bethlehem have the unique depth of proximity to Jesus’ actual birthplace, the Free State diocese’s celebrations are also solemn and special.

On Christmas Eve, in most parishes in Bethlehem, Christmas carols are sung by the children where all are welcome. A solemn Mass is always celebrated, said Fr Mofokeng. There are also a number of places where a Nativity play is performed by children, which he said is always very special to see.

There are also hallmarks in the Free State diocese that remain as constant reminders about Bethlehem as the place of the birth of Our Lord.

“If you peep into the bishop’s chapel there are some wall carpets depicting the Christmas scene and a tabernacle in the form of a ‘Star of Bethlehem’. Come to the shrine of Our Lady of Bethlehem, where there is a huge magnificent mosaic on the Christmas scene. To seal all these characteristics, there is also one big church named after the event of the birth of Christ, the Nativity of the Lord, situated in the centre of the diocese,” said Fr Mofokeng.

So the connection goes beyond the name. For Fr Mofokeng and Christians in Bethlehem the connection is that of the faith shared and he said that this faith is the most special part of the similarities.