Outside Nativity
Nativity Set
The life-size nativity set features Mary, Joseph, and baby Jesus. It also comes with an angel, three kings, and two sheep. You can add battery-operated lights to complete the outdoor nativity scene. Sets of this nature can easily be moved to other outdoor locations and can be stored or set up within a matter of minutes.
The New Testament narratives do not mention a single specific animal. So if animals were present, there is no way of knowing which kinds. However, one can assume that the shepherds would have brought along some of their sheep; and the Magi would arguably have arrived by camel, which was a popular means of transport at the time. We can be fairly certain that no pigs would have been present, as they were considered unclean beasts in ancient Judea. The other kinds of animals commonly kept by the farmers of Bethlehem would include oxen, donkeys, goats, and perhaps chickens or other domesticated fowl. Dogs and cats also would not have been out of place. In the Roman period during which the Nativity occurred—and given the geography—it is not completely implausible that there might even have been an elephant in attendance!
