Bethlehem and Greccio are strictly connected to Christmas. In Bethlehem the divine incarnation of the Savior of the World took place, whereas in Greccio, through Saint Francis of Assisi, its mystical evocation was carried on in a completely new form. San Francesco arrived in Greccio for the first time around 1209. He built a hut between two hornbeams on Monte Lacerone, known as the Mount of San Francesco, where a commemorative chapel was built in 1712. During the day, San Francesco went to preach among the countryside people. The inhabitants of Greccio began to love Francesco and reached such a point of gratitude for his great work of regeneration, that they implored him not to abandon them and stay there. Among those who where listening to the word of the little friar, there was Giovanni Velita, the lord of Greccio, who fell “in love” with the Saint. From 1217, Giovanni became one of Francesco’s best friends and did his best to honour this man, who had already manifested the signs of holiness. And, while Francesco was staying in his miserable hut, he received the visits of Giovanni Velita, who, being a bit heavy, one day asked him to choose a closer abode to comfort him and his people with his word. Francesco understood the sincerity of this proposal and gladly accepted it, saying that he would leave the choice of the new home, not to his will, but to a firebrand thrown in the air by a boy. Whether legend or truth, a four-year-old boy was invited to throw the firebrand in the air. The boy obeyed: “and the fiery ember, like a dart shot from a bow, flying fast, went off to set fire to a wild forest, above a mound, which belonged to Giovanni Velita for one good mile and more”. Astonished by such a miracle, the people from Greccio reached, with Francesco and Giovanni Velita, the place where the brand had fallen. This steep and craggy location was chosen as the new home of the Saint. Francesco loved the hermitage of Greccio and the inhabitants of that land, for their poverty and simplicity, and therefore he often liked to stay there, also attracted by an extremely poor and isolated cell, where he used to pray. About the people of Greccio, he used to happily say to his friars: „there is no large town where as many have converted to the Lord as in such a small town!” In the autumn of 1223 Francesco was in Rome, awaiting the approval of the definitive Rule written for his friars and presented to Pope Honorius III°. On November 29 of that year he was finally holding the rule with Papal bull in his hands. Winter was approaching and a thought dominated Francesco’s mind, the anniversary of the Redeemer’s birth. The poor man of Christ, in his innate simplicity, became audacious, and during the Papal audience, granted to him for the aforementioned purpose, he humbly asked the Pope for permission to represent the nativity. In fact, after the trip to Palestine, Francesco, who had been very impressed by that visit, had kept a special fondness for the Christmas celebrations and this place, Greccio, as he himself declared, emotionally reminded him of Bethlehem. Tormented by the strong desire to celebrate the Redeemer’s Birth within the year in the best possible way, after arriving at Fonte Colombo, he immediately sent for Giovanni Velita, Lord of Greccio, and told him to choose a cave where to build a manger, lead an ox and a donkey, and try to reproduce, as far as possible, the cave of Bethlehem! Velita, who had fifteen days to prepare what Francesco had wished, ordered everything with the utmost care. From various quarters, Francesco had summoned the friars and all the inhabitants of Greccio. From near and far they moved towards the wood with torches and bright candles. Thus Greccio was the new Bethlehem! Finally the Saint arrived, and, together with the friars and some faithful inhabitants reached the manger, the hay, the donkey and the ox. After “some sweet words” preached by Francesco, the vision of the Child appeared on the hay. The miraculous event touches the witnesses. The Saint had wanted to make the Mystery of the Incarnation easy to understand for the faithful ones. This is how the traditional crib originated, a tradition carried on throughout the Christian world, to commemorate the birth of the Redeemer.
