Nativity Characters ~ The Shepherds

We hear about the shepherds in Luke account of the Nativity.  The shepherds were a goup of men who would be out on the hills side caring from their sheep through most of the year.  They would be grubby and were certainly the lowest on social scale.  And yet it's to them that an angel appears and tells the good news.  They are ordinary men.  The shepherds hear the greeting and without hesitatiuon leave their flocks to the mecy of the night and hurry to find the things that the angels had told them.  Then they rejoiced and hurried around shaing the good news.

Nativity Characters ~ The Wise Men

The three wise men

The Three wise men (or in some translations Magi or kings) are traditionally celebrated at the feast of Epithany 6th Jan.  It was believed that the Baby Jesus may actually have been as old as two when they visited.

They had been looking at the stars and followed one that they believe foretold the coming of a sviour for all the people.

They brought gifts of 

Gold ~ symbolising Kingship

Frankinscence ~ symbolising Godship

and Myrrh ~ symbolising sacrifice and tears.

Nativity Characters ~ Herod

Herod was the king of Judea.  We read about him in Matthews gospel.  The three wise men visited him in order to discover the whereabouts of the child they were seeking. Herod was a Jewish king.

Being an educated man and with access to the learned scholars of the land etc, it is surprising that Herod was not more in touch with his roots. 
He felt that the term used in the scriptures "a saviour for all mankind" was a direct threat to hi and saw Jesus as a threat and "not for him" when infact Jesus was coming to the earth as much for him as for anyone else, because God loved Herod too.

Herod made enquireies from the wise men asking where and when the star had appeared and made the pretence of wanting to go and see the baby too, but the wise men were warned in a dream not to return to Herod. 
Herods raging then saw him issue a degree that all male children under the age of two in the vicinity of Bethlehem were to be killed.

Joseph was also warned in a dream of Herods intention and took Mary and Jesus to Egypt to escape him.

Nativity Characters ~ The Inn Keeper

 Every school nativity play featured inn keepers with their famous "no room here".  In the bible however, the inn keepers do not really get a mention at all.  
"And she brought forth her firstborn Son, and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn."
Mary and Joseph had been forced to travel to the Town of Joseph's ancestors.  The journey would have taken days and been treaturous for a heavily pregnant woman.  The thought of arriving and finding the place bustling with all the other people forced there, and being able to find no shelter other then an animal hold would be very frightening.