The city comes alive with Christmas fervour

Come December, the nip in the air also brings the cheer and joy of Christmas. The season known for its lit decor, stars, Christmas trees and cakes, also boasts of the special seasonal display of the crib — a representation of the birth story of Baby Jesus, complete with the manger, animals, shepherds and angels.

The annual tradition sees city churches bringing out their creative best.While some churches like the Holy Trinity, St John’s and Wesley have already put up their cribs since December 1, others, like St Mary’s Basilica in Secunderabad and St Joseph’s Cathedral in Hyderabad, have started preparing their traditional cribs for display ahead of X’Mas.“We have started preparing our crib, and it should be ready for viewing by December 23,” says Rajasekhar, office in-charge at St Mary’s Basilica.

Unlike the past two years, people from the Christian community say this year’s celebrations are more alive with significant participation. “For the past couple of years, we couldn’t do much as there were covid restrictions, and we were not supposed to gather in large groups. But this year, we see a lot of participation from people, and we are celebrating the season more joyfully. We had carol singing with a choir of 125 people, followed by a candlelight ceremony. Recently, our youngsters presented a skit depicting the nativity scene (birth story of Christ) with a musical choreography to keep the message of Christmas alive,” says B David Raja Benjamin, youth director at Centenary Baptist Church, Secunderabad.