Menu
Live nativity Sunday night at First Baptist Church
In what has become a local holiday tradition complete with live animals, the First Baptist Church of Greencastle will put on a live nativity Sunday, Dec. 6.
Featuring a quartet of singers and five scenes telling the story of the birth of Jesus Christ, the live nativity drive-through is scheduled from 6-8 p.m.
Vehicles will enter off Judson Drive and follow the live nativity segments from the south side of the church around to the north side.
Coordinator Terry Black notes that there are 65 cast members this year, including some from Greencastle Christian, New Life Baptist, Cornerstone and Gobin Church.
Of course, COVID-19 has brought about some changes in the sixth annual live nativity.
“Normally we feed the cast a little supper before we start,” Black said, “but we can’t do that this year.”
Also with some church members still not attending services in person, Black had to go outside First Baptist to get volunteers to fill out the cast this year.
First Baptist gets its live animals -- camels, donkeys and sheep -- from Lost River Game Preserve in Orleans.
Availability of those animals is the reason this year’s live nativity is earlier than normal in the holiday season.
“The guy with the animals was booked up in the middle of the month,” Black said, leaving First Baptist with the choice of Dec. 6 or Dec. 20.
Having it on Dec. 20 seemed problematic with some cast members going away for Christmas and possibly fewer community members around to view the event for the same reason.
Attendance has been increasing, except for last year when a snowstorm struck about 5:30 p.m. and dropped two or three inches of snow and only 132 vehicles were counted due to slick roads. Organizers counted 190 cars in 2017 and 222 vehicles passing through in 2018.
Black said the live nativity became his project after he and wife Dede visited the Putnamville Baptist Church live nativity, which was set in a wooded area. Black suggested the First Baptist ought to try a drive-through event that would be warmer for visitors.
“The pastor said, ‘Go for it,’ and it kind of became my baby.”